How old is too young?

I'd like to know how young is too old, dammit.

Goddamn common sense and knowing one's kiddos!  Most parents worth their salt get what is the right thing to do.  Don't damn others for choices you might not make.  Variables are different.  PEOPLE (even children!?) are different.  Thank god for that.

I've no children and haven't seen any at the shows I've attended (except for myself, first one at 12 - KISS and Cheap Trick...handled that pretty fucking well, and no parents with me save for the shameful drop-off and pick-up at the venue).

(*JH, dago probably high-tailed it somewhere around page 2 )

brianlux said:

When I was a little kid my parents like to do adult things with their adult friends and us kids stayed home with the baby sitter.  I had no problem with that and I had no interest in doing adult things with my adult parents.  So why is the current parenting generation so hung up about wanting their children to participate in adult activities?  Are they themselves having a hard time being adults?  Is it because they want to show off their kids to everyone around them?  Do they want to turn their children into miniature adults? Honestly, I don't get it. (And yes, though not a biological father, I have had parenting experience.)

yes unfortunately some (not all) parents today treat their kids as accessories. they want to do things so they get a lot of likes on facebook and instragram. it's as much or more about the parents than the kids.  also parents today rather be the "cool' parent instead of the discipline parent.  again not all parents are this way but if you take a 5 year old to a concert...

brianlux said:

pjhawks said:

brianlux said:

When I was a little kid my parents like to do adult things with their adult friends and us kids stayed home with the baby sitter.  I had no problem with that and I had no interest in doing adult things with my adult parents.  So why is the current parenting generation so hung up about wanting their children to participate in adult activities?  Are they themselves having a hard time being adults?  Is it because they want to show off their kids to everyone around them?  Do they want to turn their children into miniature adults? Honestly, I don't get it. (And yes, though not a biological father, I have had parenting experience.)

yes unfortunately some (not all) parents today treat their kids as accessories. they want to do things so they get a lot of likes on facebook and instragram. it's as much or more about the parents than the kids.  also parents today rather be the "cool' parent instead of the discipline parent.  again not all parents are this way but if you take a 5 year old to a concert...

Couldn't agree more and working with the public, I see that a lot.  The irony though is that kids are better off and happier in the long-run when given boundaries and reasonable discipline and by bringing them up that way, when they get older, they're actually more likely to be cool with their parents anyway.

Wow, as someone who works with dysfucntional families and on child development as a profession, I gotta say to both of you Brianlux and pjhawks: you are jumping to a wild number of conclusions about the links between parents saying they want to bring young kids to a concert, their parental motivations, and the lifetime outcomes for those kids.  To assume that parents who want to share a show with their kids (including some kids who begged their parent per above) are therefore being raised with no boundaries or reasonable discipline?  Brianlux I admire your concert resume forever but seriously?  You know more about this and are more qualified to judge that than pediatricians who've been asked about this or other folks who've successfully raised multiple kids into thriving adults?  That is really presumptuous of you and - more importantly - factually and scientifically ridiculous. 

I deal every working day with: parents who either want to be out partying themselves and don't really want to parent at all; parents who want to be friends with their kids more than parents; and the group who feel bad about holding boundaries and disciplining their kids, think they're being "Too harsh".  And I see and have to help others see the often damaging impacts of those situations.  And then help parents understand how setting and holding more boundaries now will make their parenting lives better now and in the future, and be way better for their kids, and help them with how to do it (there are even multiple reasons that different parents struggle with holding boundaries, so helping them learn how to set them has to be differentiated too).  

There are miles of space and other factors between a parental decision on whether you take your kids to certain events or not, how you're raising your kids overall, and what your kids life outcomes will be.  You're entitled to your opinion, but wow... folks with no kids telling other people if you take young kids to a show your kids don't have boundaries or reasonable discipline?  Now I've heard everything on this board!

OP got a bunch of dissertations on parenting. Haha! 

No matter what it just comes down to common sense like everything else. It is the most important job on earth. 

Want to teach them something?  Show them the merch line.

Took my 2 yr old to ACL'14.  Found a nice place in the shade and put down a blanket. Not a lot of foot traffic on the outskirts. We played games everyday and listened to great music. 

nicole said:

My husband just took our 6 year old to Iron Maiden... our son's favorite band since he was 1 years old! We drove from winnipeg to St. Paul so they could go and made a family trip out of it. He fully knew going into the show that they may have to leave early, he wouldn't be able to drink, and had to accept this show would be a different experience than other times he has seen them. Our son LOVED his first concert and now shares a love and appreciation for live music, just like his mommy and daddy. He rocked out and air drummed the entire night and came home with a t shirt that might fit him in 4 years... and a priceless memory of seeing his favorite band with his daddy.  Music is important in our family and our kids appreciate and love music as much as we do! 

Sounds fantastic!  Although, according to many in this thread, you are only doing this to: look cool, become best friends with your kid and avoid parenting, GET A TAMBOURINE (although I fully admit there are those who use kids for this and it's ridiculous), and you're raising your kids with no boundaries or real discipline.  And no doubt at this show he was exposed to live sex, rampant drug use, outrageous and consistent cursing, and a bunch of other stuff that happens in R-rated movies.   

But you know what must be said to those naysayers?  "RUN TO THE HILLS!!!  RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!"      

Your kid has developed a love of music, enjoys this specific band in particular, and sounds like he had an air-drummingly amazing time at this show - OH, the HORROR... Not!  Even if the details of his first show blur as he gets older, he experienced JOY and it was all shared with your husband.  Even joy that babies experience and that they'll likely never remember still goes a long way towards positive brain development and positive strong emotional development.  Joy experienced by 6 yr olds (or any yr olds) doing something positive with a parent is no different.  

Most of the kids I see at shows look either joyful or ambivalent.  I'm not speaking of parents who take their kids against their kids' will and their kids seem truly miserable the whole time - I think that sucks and should really not happen.  But kids who are fine, and especially kids who love it, this can be a great and developmentally positive experience.

Glad your son and husband had a great time!  We took our young kid to Rodrigo Y Gabriela a few weeks ago, she was transfixed, rocked out, and has been asking for a guitar ever since (and playing her ukelele that much more passionately).  And by the way, if you put on "Run To The Hills" in our household, she'd drop whatever she was doing and start running around, air-guitaring like a madman and singing all the words.  Where's the devil-horns emoji here?? 

what dreams said:

I like to socialize with my peers at concerts. Five year olds are not my peers. I don't understand people who think they are. I hope I'm never seated next to a five year old. I won't think it's cute, and I sure as hell won't refrain from lighting a joint right next to that child. I believe I read a post in this thread with a parent saying she/he calls security on the pot smokers? Holy Batmobile. Please tell me I misunderstood that.

You don't have kids do you?

what dreams said:

I like to socialize with my peers at concerts. Five year olds are not my peers. I don't understand people who think they are. I hope I'm never seated next to a five year old. I won't think it's cute, and I sure as hell won't refrain from lighting a joint right next to that child. I believe I read a post in this thread with a parent saying she/he calls security on the pot smokers? Holy Batmobile. Please tell me I misunderstood that.

Well... whether you like it or not the 5 year old has just as much right to attend the show as you do.  

Man... its shame the world is being deprived of all these would be great parents who don't have kids

JH6056 said:

brianlux said:

pjhawks said:

brianlux said:

When I was a little kid my parents like to do adult things with their adult friends and us kids stayed home with the baby sitter.  I had no problem with that and I had no interest in doing adult things with my adult parents.  So why is the current parenting generation so hung up about wanting their children to participate in adult activities?  Are they themselves having a hard time being adults?  Is it because they want to show off their kids to everyone around them?  Do they want to turn their children into miniature adults? Honestly, I don't get it. (And yes, though not a biological father, I have had parenting experience.)

yes unfortunately some (not all) parents today treat their kids as accessories. they want to do things so they get a lot of likes on facebook and instragram. it's as much or more about the parents than the kids.  also parents today rather be the "cool' parent instead of the discipline parent.  again not all parents are this way but if you take a 5 year old to a concert...

Couldn't agree more and working with the public, I see that a lot.  The irony though is that kids are better off and happier in the long-run when given boundaries and reasonable discipline and by bringing them up that way, when they get older, they're actually more likely to be cool with their parents anyway.

Wow, as someone who works with dysfucntional families and on child development as a profession, I gotta say to both of you Brianlux and pjhawks: you are jumping to a wild number of conclusions about the links between parents saying they want to bring young kids to a concert, their parental motivations, and the lifetime outcomes for those kids.  To assume that parents who want to share a show with their kids (including some kids who begged their parent per above) are therefore being raised with no boundaries or reasonable discipline?  Brianlux I admire your concert resume forever but seriously?  You know more about this and are more qualified to judge that than pediatricians who've been asked about this or other folks who've successfully raised multiple kids into thriving adults?  That is really presumptuous of you and - more importantly - factually and scientifically ridiculous. 

I deal every working day with: parents who either want to be out partying themselves and don't really want to parent at all; parents who want to be friends with their kids more than parents; and the group who feel bad about holding boundaries and disciplining their kids, think they're being "Too harsh".  And I see and have to help others see the often damaging impacts of those situations.  And then help parents understand how setting and holding more boundaries now will make their parenting lives better now and in the future, and be way better for their kids, and help them with how to do it (there are even multiple reasons that different parents struggle with holding boundaries, so helping them learn how to set them has to be differentiated too).  

There are miles of space and other factors between a parental decision on whether you take your kids to certain events or not, how you're raising your kids overall, and what your kids life outcomes will be.  You're entitled to your opinion, but wow... folks with no kids telling other people if you take young kids to a show your kids don't have boundaries or reasonable discipline?  Now I've heard everything on this board!

i'm not in politics but i can form a reasonable opinion on what a crappy politician is
i'm not a musician but i can form a reasonable opinion on what bad music is
i'm not a designer but i can form a reasonable opinion on what shitty fashion is (ok maybe this one isn't always true)
i'm not a brewer but i can form a reasonable opinion on what lousy beer is
but since i'm not a parent i can't form an opinion on parenting....got it (insert eye roll emoji here)