The Parent Trap

Should parents consume less alcohol in front of their kids? It has been proven that the kids of parents who drink around them are more likely to start drinking at an earlier age. Also, the more the parents drink, the more the kids usually will. I personally don’t believe its bad for parents to drink in front of their kids, as long as no personality change is detectable. Parents need to set a good example and model good behavior in order to develop a sensible attitude toward drinking for the child. If parents are not able to model good behavior, then they are more than likely not able to properly care for their children. What would happen if there was an emergency, but the parent was to drunk to properly respond? I also think that when parents come home drunk it induces a positive attitude toward that type of behavior. The child views it as well my parents do it so it must be ok.
I baby sit for this family where the mom often comes home a little drunk. It’s not usually too bad, but I can definitely tell a personality change; she gets really loud and goofy. However, one night she comes home belligerently drunk and goes straight to her bedroom. The little girl I was babysitting usually takes her nighttime showers in her mom’s room. When we went into her bathroom there was throw up all over the floor, obviously the mom had missed the toilet. Then we hear the mom crying hysterically on the bed. Two minutes later she was passed out on top of all the sheets in her cocktail dress. Her daughter then started cracking up; she thought this was absolutely hilarious. To her, her mom was just so silly. To make things worse, my 10-year-old step sister was also at the house, and she viewed this type of behavior as funny and normal too; her mom has come home countless times reeking of wine and just passed out on her bed. This is what all adults do, right? I think this type of behavior is absolutely pathetic and irresponsible. I definitely didn’t want my little step sister to think this was ok or for her to think that people are funny when they get drunk. I think parents should set a better example for their kids in order to postpone drinking as long as possible. What do you all think?