Among Friends

[JeanLouiseFinch]

Just noticed the updated info that she just turned 18.  True that you legally can't stop her but I still think it's risky to throw her out there when she hasn't had many local opportunities to prove herself.  Then there's the whole "living under your roof thing" too and her level of respect for you.  Yes, ultimately she may decide to go even it it's against your wishes.  You need to decide how much of that you're willing to tolerate. 

[Mindy D]

SAFETY DETAILS AND A DISCUSSION WITH HER ABOUT ALL OF THEM.

I'd be mostly concerned about all the safety details worked out for this trip and I'd want to vet each and every detail. 

What hotel? What transportation? What friends? What recreational activity are planned and what are the safety strategies in place at those destinations?

What about alcohol use? How will she be handling this? How do her friends plan on dealing with this?

Same for drug use. A discussion about the rash of street drugs adulterated with deadly additives such as fentanyl. 

What about meeting men? How will she and her friends safely handle this? Talk about trafficking. How they find victims.

Preset her phone, so you can find her iPhone and have her lock the phone.

What about the safe use of her money? 

Same question as another poster. Why are friends that graduated a couple of years ago going on a senior trip?

[Othereeeen]

Have her watch a few days worth of programming on the ID Network, or Dateline, or 48 Hours....

I watch those programs all the time...and now I won't go out with telling 12 people where I'll be, when I'll be home, the coordinates of the place I'm going, what my license plate and year and color of car are, a  photo emailedto them on the day I go out showing my outfit...

I take mace, a gun, a knife, and a taser. And a can of bug spray.

I lock my car doors and have someone load my groceries so I'm not alone in the parking lot....

I have an extra cell phone,  turned on at all times, sewn into my clothes so the police can track me, and I ONLY take routes that I know have street cameras and homes with cameras aimed at the street.

I take a shower fully clothed in case I have to run out if someone breaks in while I'm bathing, even though there's a deadbolt on the bathroom door.

I only go to full serve gas stations, and hand the clerk my card thru the window opened 1/2". I tell him I took his picture.

I call the police BEFORE I go out and if I get  my mail from the box after dark. If they're not too busy, I ask for an escort....

Kidding of course BUT....there are a LOT of crazy opportunistic people out there today.

( See ID Network, Dateline, 48 Hours, etc.....!!!!)

She is 18, so it's really game over if she wants to go. 

Hopefully she is NOT naive.

But  young people have to  fledge, or you'll be making these decisions for her when she's 30.

And if you hold on TOO tight, you won't have to go further than her basement bedroom or childhood room to tell her. 

You don't want her to be too afraid to spread her wings!!!

 She's 18. Let her go.

[qualitygal]

Same as it's ever been, someone's just asking for a problem.  We know what to avoid and what to give into.  That's not changed in my book.  

Do boys understand NO?

Give them a chance to be winners and take away the chance for mistakes.  Save them!!!

[PickyPicky3]

The drinking age in Georgia is 21. If her friends are 21 (or have fake IDs) they might want to go out drinking. Or maybe not. People don't always drink just because they can. The drinking/not drinking on the trip is my only concern. She might be really disappointed if her friends leave her in the motel and they go out at night.

[emmy and ruby]

I raised 3 daughters and in my experience there is lots of underage drinking. I always said no.  Too many bad things can happen.

[ECBG]

My girlfriends and I went to Myrtle Beach right after graduation. 

We were lucky enough that one of the parents knew a 30ish yr old lady that could go with us.

We rented a house and shared her rent.

She paid for her own food.

It was nice in case we had an emergency like stepping on something or getting a sun stroke

[Janey2]

Do you know these "friends" whom she wants to go with? If you don't know them I would think twice about letting her go. Also that they are 2 years older than she is would bother me. It does not sound like she has enough experience so far to take this trip at this time. Maybe she really wants you to say no. Personally I would not let her go, but I do not know your family dynamics. Offer to take her on a trip to celebrate her graduation. I know it is not  the same as her going with friends, but it could be lots of fun.

[gidgetgh]

Back in the Laura Ingalls Wilder days, the day after I graduated from high school, at age 17, I went to the Bahamas with 3 friends from my senior class, all female.  We did fine.  And I have to add that I'm sure this was a big deal for my parents because they'd never even left me overnight by myself in our house.  But they trusted me and so off we went and we were fine.  Had a great time.

That September, still at age 17, I went off to college 4 1/2 hours away....with no car of my own.

We can't answer this question for you OP because only you know your daughter.  Is she going off to college in the fall?

[Imaoldhippie]

@chrystaltree .................yes I am a mom and they were teenagers once.

What we are referring to is she is of LEGAL age and can do what she wants.  She no longer has to have parental consent.  Its up to her.