00:00Get those fingers ready.
00:02We need your opinions.
00:05We need your thoughts with three calls and it all because Miranda has something on her mind.
00:10Shannon, are you able to read it to the people?
00:13Yes, I can do that.
00:15Okay.
00:15So Miranda writes, hey, guys, hope everyone had a good Fourth of July weekend.
00:20Our oldest son, age 17, had a couple friends over.
00:24And the morning after, I found some empty hard seltzer cans back behind our shed.
00:30My son, when I asked what were those, he said, oh, those were Jimmy's.
00:36That's not Jimmy's real name.
00:37Right, right.
00:38Jimmy's and I didn't have any.
00:41Okay.
00:41So now Miranda's wondering, like, I will be honest.
00:44Obviously, I don't condone underage drinking, but I absolutely cannot stand lying because that can be more dangerous.
00:50My plan is to ask one more time and threaten to call Jimmy's mom if he doesn't tell the truth.
00:57Do I take him at his word and still call the mom or just leave it be?
01:02Help in all caps.
01:04Okay, Miranda, we are going to help you out.
01:06So, I mean, I think the threat to call Jimmy's mom is good.
01:13That is good parenting.
01:15Yeah.
01:15Because if I was 17 and my mom made that threat to me, that's kind of, like, embarrassing between your
01:21friends.
01:22But I think as a parent, you need to, like, put aside being your child's friend in this moment.
01:28Right.
01:29And just be that strict, stern person for them because it can be dangerous.
01:35You're right, Miranda.
01:35Like, the lying and the drinking can be dangerous.
01:39Yeah, and Shannon, I completely agree with you.
01:41And I think something that Miranda wrote, which is she was insinuating the lying is worse than the underage consumption
01:49of alcohol,
01:50which, respectfully, I don't want to upset people.
01:53Obviously, underage drinking is dangerous, especially if anyone's getting behind the wheel, which you absolutely should not do.
01:58But the lying is even scarier because they can be up to that and other things.
02:04It's important to have that mode of communication with your child, even if they are going to a party that
02:11might have something unsavory.
02:12You want them to be like, hey, mom, can you come get me?
02:15Dad, can you come get me?
02:16Hey, there's something here.
02:17That communication is so important.
02:18It's something I had with my parents that was, they said, hey, listen, we'll never get mad at you.
02:23You just call us.
02:25Like, we would rather you call us than try to be sneaky.
02:28Yes.
02:29So I think Miranda, my advice would be, now, granted, I have a three-year-old and a newborn, so
02:34I'm not even close to these days.
02:35You're not.
02:36But I would say, okay, I think you've already asked him.
02:40You've already given him a chance, to be honest.
02:42But I would call Jimmy's mom today and I'd say, hey, listen, this is what happened.
02:47This is what I found.
02:47You might be able to find out more about Jimmy and the situation.
02:52Not saying it is Jimmy's fault.
02:53Well, I mean, that's the age-old excuse.
02:56It's not, I was holding it for a friend.
02:57It's not him.
02:59It's not me.
02:59It's him, right?
03:00But maybe they'll say, oh, yeah, you know, we've been struggling with Jimmy a lot lately.
03:04He's been sneaking out drinks of our fridge or whatever it might be.
03:08And you might think, okay.
03:09But I think the return to your son, you can sit down and be like, listen, whether you did or
03:15you didn't, this is our home, right?
03:18You brought this onto our property.
03:20Yeah.
03:20Right?
03:20You're responsible for the kids that are at our house, as am I as mom, right?
03:25As dad and mom, if they're on your property, in theory, you're responsible for them.
03:29And so just, I think, pushing too hard to get the truth when he could be telling the truth, go
03:36on the angle of whether Jimmy brought them and you didn't have any or not.
03:40It was behind our shed.
03:42It was at our house.
03:43Yes.
03:44So maybe there are parents who have 17-year-olds or have been through this, and they can help us
03:52out.
Comments