Moms & Dads

South Florida parents share their stories and advice



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We don't live in a gated community...


We don't live in a gated community, but almost everyone we know does. And this has inspired some interesting conversations with my kids.
gate.jpg

After all, why should I have to show my driver's license to take them to their friends' houses? Why should I have to tell a security guard where I'm going? And why does the guard take down my license plate as I drive through the gate?

But such is the nature of life in South Florida, and I have to explain it to my kids every time we approach a gate.

I don't think gates make a neighborhood more secure, and I don't like the message it sends to the rest of the world ("Keep out of my neighborhood!") But I don't want to put down my kids' friends' parents, so I have to temper the way I tell my kids this.

Do you live in a gated community? What do you tell your kids about why you do or you don't?

Categories: Family Issues (228)


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About the authors
Gretchen Day-Bryant has a son in high school and a daughter in middle school. She’s lived to tell about the struggles of juggling little kids and work.
Joy Oglesby has a preschooler...
Cindy Kent Fort Lauderdale mother of three. Her kids span in ages from teenager to 20s.
Rafael Olmeda and his wife welcomed their first son in Feb. 2009, and he's helping raise two teenage stepdaughters.
Lois Solomon lives in Boca Raton with her husband and three daughters.
Georgia East is the parent of a five-year-old girl, who came into the world weighing 1 pound, 13 ounces.
Brittany Wallman is the mother of Creed, 15, and Lily, 7, and is married to a journalist, Bob Norman. She covers Broward County government, which is filled with almost as much drama as the Norman household. Almost.
Chris Tiedje is the Social Media Coordinator and the father of a 7-year-old girl, and two boys ages 4 and 3.
Kyara Lomer Camarena has a 2-year-old son, Copelan, and a brand new baby.


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