I'm not an expert at parenting, not by a long shot. But I do know one thing - if you let your kids "date" at an early age it will only lead to negative outcomes. Trust me, I know this from experience. It makes me sad (and almost sick sometimes) to see 12, 13 & 14 year olds hugging on the opposite sex and talking about who's the new girlfriend/boyfriend this month or even week. It makes me even more sad when this behavior is actually encouraged by the parents! Do you like seeing your child completely focused on a boyfriend or girlfriend? Does it not bother you when they they are depressed from the latest breakup? At that age they have no idea what being in a relationship really means and I don't believe that even if they did intellectually understand what goes into a relationship that they can emotionally handle any of it. We all know that these kids will not end up together in adulthood, so basically they are just wasting their time and lots of energy on "flings". And the sooner they start "dating", the sooner they will do things that should only be done by adults in marriage - this is a proven fact.
My son is not happy about having to wait until he's at least 16 to start dating and brings it up once in awhile with the argument of "everyone else is doing it". I tell him I feel sorry for the kids whose parents don't care enough to at least try and prevent their kids from getting caught up in the boyfriend/girlfriend drama, but I DO love him and want only the best for him. And because I know personally the heartache that can last for years and years due to choices made at these tender ages, I want to do whatever I can to spare my kids from having to deal with that.
*I'm not trying to point fingers at anyone in particular so please don't take it that way. I just had to share my feelings on the subject as it's been on my heart for quite some time.
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