I think putting rules on it is fucking stupid. Not going to sugar coat it. And 18? Are you one of those people that says “as long as I can help it (while they’re a minor) my child isn’t allowed to have a life lmao”?? Like what do you think dating is? If you think it’s just having sex and making bad decisions maybe you should reconsider your own relationships. Children JUST dating can be as simple as them holding hands in the playground and saying they’re together, it probably doesn’t really mean anything. It’s not going to kill them either, why say they can’t?? They will do it whether you “allow” it or not. I’ve dated plenty of people, and not had sex or anything with one, so why on earth should I have not been allowed to date anyone? Jfc if you can’t trust your child to so much as have a crush on another human, you making such rules isn’t going to help them, NO child will trust a parent that doesn’t trust them. Just, for real, what do you actually expect to gain by putting an age limit on dating. Someone. Please do tell. What exactly do you think you’re going to save them from? Why don’t you think they can still date without your permission? Dating can be simply “hey we’re bf/gf now” and nothing else, why do people have a problem with that??

In our family we prefer courting over dating. And my daughter is only 2 but we probably won’t allow her to start courting until at least 17/18. Before that she can focus on school and enjoy being with friends.

Same approach my mom had. Her approach is called more “European” than the rest of my families though🤷🏻♂️ Her approach was literally “have your friends, have your middle school ‘boyfriends’, have your cute little group dates to the theatre, but no going solo dates until 16+”. She was super open about sex, consent, everything reproductive and relationship wise she was there to talk to. Do I know if this is European? Pfft no, my family just calls anything not conservative courting/immediate marriage “European”.

When they’re ready to start thinking about marriage. Thats anytime from 18 +

I'm not entirely sure yet, but probably at 15 or 16. I don't think before that bc I think girls spend so much time stressing about dating when at that age they should be having fun with their friends and focusing on school/ sports/ activities. I want my daughter to stay young for as long as possible bc it's such a short lived time. Of course I'll let her date, but I won't allow it to consume her whole world. If I could go back in time I wouldn't have dated anyone in highschool bc I should have just enjoyed being young. Dating becomes stressful and distracting😩

I think they can have their crushes over and go on supervised hang out/dates when they start middle school. Once they hit like 8th grade, I think I can give them a bit more privacy and let them go do their thing. I wasn’t allowed to date until 16, but I ended up not dating until 18. It sucked, but it kind of kept me from making really bad mistakes.

13. As long as it doesn’t affect her life. (School, friends, etc). I don’t understand why people need them to wait until 18. Its good to learn about relationships and practice. Besides, they’ll probably end up dating behind your back. It’s better to be open with your child. Also I don’t think people realize that some people don’t need or want to be married

I’ll be teaching my daughter age appropriate relationships at whatever age she begins showing interest. Probably around 10-13, she’ll be able to go on dates. Walk around the mall, go to the movies, go out to eat, etc with supervision. But even before that, my husband will be taking her on “dates”. Basically, daddy/daughter time, and he will teach her how a gentleman is supposed to treat her and how to interact on a date. Basically, we aim to show her what’s appropriate and give her the tools to stay safe and in a healthy relationship.