On a more serious note... alcohol awareness...

I try and keep things light around here. I try not to dwell on negative, but sometimes talking about a negative situation or scenario may help avoid that same one in the future. Some of you may know, alcoholism hits close to home. I'm married to a recovering alcoholic and its not an easy battle. I know he struggles, although I'll never truly know how he feels. I know its a disease that taunts and tempts and can play tricks on your mind. Though alcoholism is a disease, we can do things as parents to keep it from flourishing in our kids. At least I like to think that every little bit helps...

Did you know that 40% of kids have tried alcohol by 8th grade? And the kids who start drinking by the time that they are 15 are SIX TIMES more likely to have alcohol problems versus those who wait til after 21 to drink. I know that I'm no angel, and yes, I drank before I was 21, a lot... but I'd hate to see my children end up with a dependency to alcohol or other issues in their lives due to alcohol. The Ad Council and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have come together to bring a resource to light that can give great tools and action plans for talking to our kids about alcohol.

Sometimes I don't know what parents excuses are for NOT talking to their children when there are so many resources available. Why not just do it? You can set yourself up for success in the conversation if you do your research and create a plan for yourself to talk to your kids. At the underage drinking website, you can create your own action plan, and they make it so easy to do. Simply click down the list and they'll give you great resources so that you can make the discussion go as smoothly as you can. Being an informed parent is definitely a good thing and informing our kids about the dangers of underage drinking is even better.


Talk early. Talk often. Get others involved.