As a child we grew up in an environment of alcohol. We were exposed to alcohol at an early age, as dad would give us a sip of his beer while we sat around watching a football game, or socializing with friends. I was five years old. I remember looking forward to that 'swig' of beer as it was called, and wanting to go back for more, not realizing the effects that it was creating in my system was actually the driving force.
As a parent today, I drank while my children were growing up and felt guilty about it the entire way. When I began my personal recovery I talked about it at length with my children.
I think the key here is communication. I like the posts that discuss the 'adult' beverage with their children. I think that's a start in the right direction.
Regardless of who's right or who's wrong, our children are sponges to our actions, and only wish to be held in the highest regard by the parents, their idols in their younger years.
What role model do you wish your child to respond to??

Well, I grew up in Germany and we were allowed to drink at a young age, and it was no big deal. I think that kids in America think it is, because it is taboo and they become obsessed with it.

I think trick or treat raises a very valid point, in that cultural differences certainly have an affect on how the human condition reacts to situational forces. If per se, I had grown up in a culture that used alcohol as an apertif around dinners and special occasions, I may not have looked at it as such a forbidden fruit when I was a child. The emphasis was that children should not drink until they reached the legal age limit, and that alone created an alluring and suggestive rule that we wanted to break entering our teens.
Not everyone of course, but in my family, where drinking was a necessary tool for all social occasions it was evident. The emphasis was on whether we had enough alcohol to satisfy all attendees. Conversation and socializing was secondary.

What a definently don't agree with is when you have a birthday party for kids and it turns into a party for the adults because there is drinking involved. I see this happening alot and I don't agree with this at all. This is suppoused to be the children's party not the adults party.

I do not drink and i think it is inappropriately to drink in front of small kids, especially if you get drunk, that's even worse.
I would drink only if my children were more than 14 years old, i guess that is an age when their education has already been made and they are not anymore easily manipulated by what they see.

We rarely drink but I don't think it's a terrible thing to have a drink every so often around the kids. If you're having an open dialogue with them anyway about drinking and the concerns surrounding it it's easy for them to see the difference between one or two drinks and getting drunk.

I drink in front of my kids, and always have. I let my kids have a sip of my drink if they want one, as well. As a result, it's no big deal for them, and more often than not, they don't even want a sip. This is contrary to what my parents did with me: They made it such a big deal, and so taboo, that I had to find out what it was all about. As a result, I got wrecked the first time I had access to alcohol, at age 14. I hope to have a different result with my kids.

Sam

I don't think there's anything wrong with having a drink or two with your kids around. I think the best way to teach your kids about drinking responsibly is to set a good example, and that (as previous posters have mentioned) by trying to make alcohol a taboo you're just turning it into a forbidden fruit. It's like any number of other things which are "grown up decisions," and my son will figure out whats right for him when he's old enough.

Our kids have never seen us drunk. We made that decision long ago. We also don't have our kids fetch alcohol for us. I think that is extremely bad parenting and sets a very bad example.