Teenage Girls & Homecoming

[Mike]

It's not often I start threads these days, but dad needs a shout out to his fellow prison wardens.

That's me... the prison warden in my house. The hard guy to does the garment check whenever he can and more times than not, sends them back to their cells to change into standard issue. Our 18 year old son never pushed like this.

Question about girls and the Homecoming Dance. She's 15 in the 10th grade. She's a cheerleader going dateless with girls from her cheer team, and they had quite a plan. Keep in mind, this is NOT her Senior Prom. Very reluctantly, I agreed to an expensive (IMO) dress, there is the limousine, there is the professional photographer, there is a trip to the nail salon, and there is the trip to get her hair done.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? If this is 10th grade Homecoming, I'm afraid we'll be flying her group to the pre-party at a yacht in a helicopter for her Senior Prom! This warden denied the request for the limo, nails, and photographer. She got her dress and she'll get her hair done. Julie and I are on the same page, so at least I have an alliance with my co-warden.

Is this what high school Homecomings have come to in 2013? Are there plans like this being made all over the land? Some 30 years ago, I took a shower 30 minutes before the dance was to begin and picked up my date in my own car. Have we escalated this tradition to something comparable to a wedding, and I wasn't notified?

 

[farouk]

It's not often I start threads these days, but dad needs a shout out to his fellow prison wardens.

That's me... the prison warden in my house. The hard guy to does the garment check whenever he can and more times than not, sends them back to their cells to change into standard issue. Our 18 year old son never pushed like this.

Question about girls and the Homecoming Dance. She's 15 in the 10th grade. She's a cheerleader going dateless with girls from her cheer team, and they had quite a plan. Keep in mind, this is NOT her Senior Prom. Very reluctantly, I agreed to an expensive (IMO) dress, there is the limousine, there is the professional photographer, there is a trip to the nail salon, and there is the trip to get her hair done.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? If this is 10th grade Homecoming, I'm afraid we'll be flying her group to the pre-party at a yacht in a helicopter for her Senior Prom! This warden denied the request for the limo, nails, and photographer. She got her dress and she'll get her hair done. Julie and I are on the same page, so at least I have an alliance with my co-warden.

Is this what high school Homecomings have come to in 2013? Are there plans like this being made all over the land? Some 30 years ago, I took a shower 30 minutes before the dance was to begin and picked up my date in my own car. Have we escalated this tradition to something comparable to a wedding, and I wasn't notified?

I know what you mean...

Of course, Many Hispanic young ladies get married at 15...

(I guess in our day, when the female persuasion did nails, it was shades of red to pink; now it's also blues and greens plus kaleidoscopic variations and designs thereto appended....)

Yes, we are living in a strange world. My lovely wife doesn't feel dressed if she doesn't 'put on her face' before going out, but nothing like the extent to which you describe.

Blessings.

 

[Obadiah]

No, it's only become this way because parents have allowed it. Congratulations on taking a common sense stand.

Sure, if a family is rich and living in a mansion this may be acceptable for a 10th grade girl, but not for the average family. Our kids need to learn that they can't always have all the luxuries they want just handed to them, and you did her a great service by helping her learn this.

 

[stovebolts]

Ha!
So glad our daughter is past all that! Also glad my wife is frugal and knew how to say no well before I was involved lol! (I probably would have said yes!)

Boys are much easier to raise! Ha, tag, your it!

 

[Deborah13]

Four teens, three of them girls ....

I think you made wise decisions. Dress, nails or hair, not both.

They can take their own pictures. Or share the expense for one pic of the group and have copies made at, Walmart.

 

[farouk]

Ha!
So glad our daughter is past all that! Also glad my wife is frugal and knew how to say no well before I was involved lol! (I probably would have said yes!)

Boys are much easier to raise! Ha, tag, your it!

A stage that they go through, right?

 

[stovebolts]

A stage that they go through, right?

Sorry, I didn't think that through lol! It's like 4 months after our son was born and somebody asked my wife and I, "So, is he sleeping all though the nite?" I enthusiastically said, "YES!" My wife looked at me and replied, "Jeff is sleeping through the nite, or son isn't". lol. Oppps !

errr.... ummm... uhhhhh.. Stage huh? Well, she did graduate and then move away for awhile does that count as a stage?

Deborah, you have 3! How in the world did you do it and survive to tell about it!

 

[Mike]

Here's my real beef. You have some parents who, out of guilt, make up for being uninvolved in the lives of their children by compensating with "stuff". God forbid, the child gets mad at them. So they raise the bar to ridiculous levels, and we're faced with having to tell our kids that they can't do whatever it is with their friends.

Fortunately, they all agreed to tone down their plans in this case, but what if they hadn't? We're dropping our daughter off at the dance alone. I would do it, believe me, but I don't like that they put that on her or us. I'm sure our daughter isn't all innocent in this. I could well imagine her not speaking up or even adding to it, but the parents should know better. It's like if I were to plan a golf outing with some friends. I wouldn't book tee times at the most expensive course. I'd get a feeling for the lowest threshold of pain is among our wallets, and go with that.

Private photographers for a 10th grade Homecoming Dance. Back in my day...

 

[farouk]

Here's my real beef. You have some parents who, out of guilt, make up for being uninvolved in the lives of their children by compensating with "stuff". God forbid, the child gets mad at them. So they raise the bar to ridiculous levels, and we're faced with having to tell our kids that they can't do whatever it is with their friends.

Fortunately, they all agreed to tone down their plans in this case, but what if they hadn't? We're dropping our daughter off at the dance alone. I would do it, believe me, but I don't like that they put that on her or us. I'm sure our daughter isn't all innocent in this. I could well imagine her not speaking up or even adding to it, but the parents should know better. It's like if I were to plan a golf outing with some friends. I wouldn't book tee times at the most expensive course. I'd get a feeling for the lowest threshold of pain is among our wallets, and go with that.

Private photographers for a 10th grade Homecoming Dance. Back in my day...

You got some great family photos on your profile also .

Blessings.

 

[reba]

Sheesh..... give me the days of sock hops when dancing was a major sin....

 

[Mike]

[MENTION=41474]farouk[/MENTION], thank you, kind sir. And very outdated, obviously!

 

[farouk]

[MENTION=41474]farouk[/MENTION], thank you, kind sir. And very outdated, obviously!

YW. Your wife probably wouldn't let you say she looked any less young now, though.

I'm sure your 'troops' are taller now.

Blessings.

 

[farouk]

Sheesh..... give me the days of sock hops when dancing was a major sin....

@reba : You mean you're not going with @questdriven to her Christian hard rock concerts... that she has often talked about?

Blessings.

 

[jasoncran]

lol [MENTION=41474]farouk[/MENTION] that would be one odd couple. hmm lovely. when jaci hits 15 I will be eek 55, and I will have to put the foot down.

 

[WIP]

It's not often I start threads these days, but dad needs a shout out to his fellow prison wardens.

That's me... the prison warden in my house. The hard guy to does the garment check whenever he can and more times than not, sends them back to their cells to change into standard issue. Our 18 year old son never pushed like this.

Question about girls and the Homecoming Dance. She's 15 in the 10th grade. She's a cheerleader going dateless with girls from her cheer team, and they had quite a plan. Keep in mind, this is NOT her Senior Prom. Very reluctantly, I agreed to an expensive (IMO) dress, there is the limousine, there is the professional photographer, there is a trip to the nail salon, and there is the trip to get her hair done.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? If this is 10th grade Homecoming, I'm afraid we'll be flying her group to the pre-party at a yacht in a helicopter for her Senior Prom! This warden denied the request for the limo, nails, and photographer. She got her dress and she'll get her hair done. Julie and I are on the same page, so at least I have an alliance with my co-warden.

Is this what high school Homecomings have come to in 2013? Are there plans like this being made all over the land? Some 30 years ago, I took a shower 30 minutes before the dance was to begin and picked up my date in my own car. Have we escalated this tradition to something comparable to a wedding, and I wasn't notified?

Wow, does this sound familiar! Our daughter's school just celebrated homecoming this past week and I concur with you completely. She got a dress, which I personally thought was a bit over the top for a homecoming. She and her friends (all girls) went without dates but I couldn't believe how dressed up they were. We limited ours to basically what you did. Since she also dreams of being a hair dresser after high school, she took care of all her friends hair for them.

 

[Mike]

[MENTION=45432]WIP[/MENTION], yeah, how about that? Same story. I guess everything is relative to our perspective as the previous generation. My parents probably thought the same thing about our Homecomings.

I specifically remember sitting on the couch when I was a kid, looking at my parent's 27 inch TV. I remember thinking if one day I had such a big TV, I will have "made it". For some reason, that's what I decided would be the measure of my success. Well, I guess I'm king of the world, because our TV is twice that size! And our house is over twice the size of the house I was sitting in. And we have central air. And etc., etc., etc. Everybody has bigger better stuff in general. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised or as disgusted as I am, but I am.

And as the grown up in this circumstance, that's my prerogative. ;)

 

[AirDancer]

I went to Homecoming Dances all 4 years of high schools, a few decades ago. My hair was done up ... nails painted ... nice formal or teen-version of a cocktail dress. The ride to and from the dance was provided for my date & me in one of the family's big cars (chauffeur acted as a chaperone). Back in those 'dark' days, limos weren't for 'young' people." And of course, there was a professional photographer to take the formal pictures, with several other photographers mingling with the dance participants.

After the dances, it was time to eat a lighter meal - it was more of a way of extending the evening if it had been lovely. Several restaurants would arrange an area/section for the post-dance teens. It was great fun at the time.

Only one of my offspring traveled by limo to and from a school dance: senior year Prom. It was a truly special event of celebration. At least the chauffeur of the limo did not act as chaperone, taking notes & names!

Anyway, [MENTION=24785]Mike[/MENTION] , if your daughter's heart is with our Lord, then she's doing great. All the hair & nail works & fancy dressing are just memory-makers.

 

[Mike]

[MENTION=89288]AirDancer[/MENTION], you're part of the problem! If you were the mother of my daughter's friend, I'd sneak out at night and egg your house!

 

[WIP]

For me homecoming was not a big deal at or school. As a member of the band it meant marching formations on the field at halftime and the dance was jeans and t-shirt or sweatshirt more likely.

Strike that. It was usually a jacket. As I recall more than once marching in snow and having to blow through that trumpet to keep it warm enough to work and stay somewhat in tune.

 

[AirDancer]

[MENTION=89288]AirDancer[/MENTION], you're part of the problem! If you were the mother of my daughter's friend, I'd sneak out at night and egg your house!

It would be interesting to see you try to egg my house, [MENTION=24785]Mike[/MENTION] . If you tried, you'd have to smile the entire time because you would be captured on film. "Smile, Mike, you're on security camera!" (It's pleasant to have 2 offspring involved in security in one form or another!)

Anyway ... when my offspring & her friends rented the limo ... the celebratory part of the special event was the full scholarship at the first choice of university. And since there were 6 sharing the expense of the limo, the cost was just under $34. In my opinion, money well spent because that limo ride is still a marvelous memory.

Parents have it a lot rougher these days than I did a decade ago. Parents rent limos to attend their children's kindergarten promotions in some areas. No thanks.