In article ,
(Nevermind) wrote:

My 9 YO has been invited to go about 12 hours away for an entire week
with the family of a friend of his. This friend is a good friend, but
not someone he spends a ton of time with. Two overnight get-togethers
have gone well. My son is very sociable but also gets cranky and needs
alone time on a regular basis. The family is not an issue; I trust
them safety-wise, and they're also nice people. However, 9 seems too
young to me to have a child be that far away from home for an entire
week, and I worry about him getting sick of the family (his friend and
two younger sisters, mom, and dad) half-way through the week.

Problem is, the place they're going is a great place to go, both fun
and educational. I feel guilty about not letting him go, both because
I know it would be a great place for him to go (not that that means he
has to go this year) and because the other mother really wants him to
go for her son's sake.

Any thoughts? Are we just being babies about our "baby"?


How does your son feel about it?

If you trust the family, and he gets along well with the whole family,
I'd say let him go. He'll have a good time, and will be glad to get
back home. The other boy will have a better time with a friend along,
and it will be easier for the parents to have a friend along for their
son. You will want to tell the other family that he gets cranky if he
doesn't have some time to himself.

And you will be extra glad to have him back home again.

In my opinion, the vast majority of nine year olds are old enough to be
away for a week.

And it's REALLY hard to let go!
--
Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care