Moms Talk Q&A: Can You Trust Your Teenager?

Moms Talk is a new feature on Harrison Patch that is part of our day each week dedicated to mothers and families. You are invited to join our panel of mothers to support families right here in Harrison.

Each week in Moms Talk, our Moms Council will take your questions, give advice and share solutions. Moms, dads, grandparents and the diverse families who make up our community will have a new resource for questions about local schools, pedestrian safety, nutrition, work-life balance and the thousands of other issues that arise while raising children.  

Moms Talk will also be the place to drop in for a talk about the latest parenting hot topic. So feel free to share your thoughts, tricks and opinions with your neighbors every Wednesday at 1 p.m.

For the second week of Moms Talk, we'll talk about how parents can know that their teenager is telling the truth.

Everyone was a teenager at some point (even if our kids would never believe it!) so we all know that one of the main missions for many teens is ever-so-slightly skewing the truth for mom and dad.

The teenage years are also very much about experimentation and social acceptance, and along with that can come drinking, drug use and perhaps following the lead of the less angelic members of their social circle.

So how do you know if your child really is having an innocent sleepover, or could Mr. Jones' son know where his dad keeps the key to the liquor cabinet?

This isn't, of course, to say that there aren't kids out there who are totally open with their parents, or at least don't have anything to hide! Nevertheless, sometimes figuring out which path your child is choosing can be tricky.

Our Moms Talk question this week comes from Debbie Mazza:

When should the parents stop calling other parents when their teenager says they are going over to so-and-so's house tonight? Should you trust your child or just give a quiet little call?

What do you think? Here are some questions to keep in mind before you weigh in in the comments section below:

• Does it depend on the child? Are some kids more likely to tell the truth than others?
• How do other parents handle these types of situations? If parents are calling you too, does it mean they also feel the need to check in too?
• If a child is lying about where they're going, how would you get them to tell the truth? What consequences would you set for fibbing?