Saturday Night Rant- Be a Parent

The Handy Man and I went to the movie last night.  The Woman in Black. Yup, little Harry Potter is all grown up and chasing ghosts.  I liked the movie, even though it made me jump at least six eight times.  My heart got a better workout than I get on the elliptical.  But, that isn't what this post is about.  No, this one is about the fifty or so children who were at the movie.

Children.

First of all,this was not a children's movie. It scared me. Granted, I scare easily.  I don't like dark corners and dang you if you don't shut the closet door before bed. But, still. This movie was rated PG-13 for a reason. All these 9-12 year-olds were clearly in the wrong place.  What were their parents thinking?  Not much, since there were no parents in sight.

Am I saying that there were 50 kids there without parents? Yes.

Kids- texting on their phones, swearing like sailors and drinking Monster.  All. Through. The. Movie.  I could've told them to shush. I've been known to do that to whispering pre-teens. But, I would have had to shout it to the whole theater.  They were everywhere.

I often feel like a bad mom.  My kids watch TV and play video games.  We have junk food in the pantry.  But, on a Friday night I know where my kids are and what they're doing.  I don't drop them off at the mall or the theater or anyplace else. I know their friends and their friends' parents.  If they go for a 'late night' and the movie is questionable, they call.  These are the rules and they have known about them forever.

Rules are a good thing.  Rules, and learning to obey them, build respect and trust.  They respect me and I trust them.  My kids have learned that when they break a rule, they have to re-earn my trust.  Their friends know we have rules and they respect them.  Does that mean their friends don't want to come around? On the contrary.  I love summer nights when I can hear a group of teenagers out on our tramp.  Girl talk and giggles coming from Sadie's room makes me smile.  Friends know our rules, but they also know they're welcome here.

I understand that parents may not want to go to the movie their kids want to see. Yeah, well, that's the deal you made when you had them. I can't count how many lousy movies I've suffered through for my kids' sake.  Their physical and mental safety is more important than whatever else you want to do.  To just drop them off on a Friday night and let them loose is pure laziness. Plus, it infringes on my ability to enjoy the terror.

So, the moral to this story?  Go to the late show.