Kerri I agree with you, if you can’t give your child a valid reason for your decision then do you even really have one? And I’m sorry Harley but the “because you’re a girl” excuse is not a valid reason to me. Infact not only is it an invalid reason but it contributes to sexist attitudes.

I have two daughters and two sons and survived the teen years! I Love Diane, and happy she named her daughter after me: Jasmine!

OMG! Diane Lane has a child with Christopher Lambert? The Highlander??? what, where, hu? LOL I just fell off my chair. (To my defense, I’m too young to know, this is just sooo random to me.)

Also, let’s remember to take everything with a grain of salt. She could mean, “everything” or she could mean a majority of decisions don’t need to be explained.

Like anything, it all depends on the kid. I know that regardless of what my mom’s decision was, even if she explained it to me, it was still, “Totally unfair”. No teenager wants to hear, “It’s this way because you are the girl and it’s safer” when you have older brothers who don’t always fall under the same guidelines. Yes, now that I’m in my 20’s, I get it. Whether mom explained something to me or not, it depended on the situation of the rule. “Why can’t I go out with my bf past 10?” didn’t really need an explanation. However, “Why am I grounded” always did.

A parent isn’t there to be your friend and you’re explain all, they are there to set boundaries and limitations, reason or not.

Kerri, I agree. As someone just getting out of the teenage years, the whole “because I said so” reasoning was one of my biggest annoyances. It felt so dismissive. But thankfully, my mom did explain many of her decisions to me. While I might not have always understood her right then, it would eventually sink in and help me to understand my mom’s position better. I think I would’ve felt a bit patronized if she had just smiled at me and refused to explain.

I love hearing ‘hands on’ parenting by celebrities.

I actually think explaining why rules are rules instead of just having them seem arbitrary would be a better idea. At 14 and 15, the girls can surely understand the reasons behind her decisions…I’ve never been a big fan of the “because I said so” stance. You can be authoritative and still teach your children the “whys” of the way things work.