What's a Family?
Who decides what constitutes a family? And what do you do when yours isn't recognized as one?
This comes from Anne, one of the mothers on the Ellicott City Patch Moms Council:
My parents watch my daughter during the day, and I consider them to be part of our basic family unit. However, if you go looking for family memberships to things, most businesses define it as parents/child. So I can't let my parents use our family zoo membership to take my daughter there without me, and if we all go, they pay separately.
It seems like there should be more flexibility in today's world about how a family is defined. I'd be interested in knowing from other parents in the area how they experience this, and any tips on places that include grandparents in their family definitions.
Do you feel as if your family isn't recognized as a unit? Have you found places that accept families that go beyond mom/dad/kids?
Tell us in the comments.
Kim Lemmonds
7:13 am on Thursday, February 17, 2011
I'm not sure I can think of anywhere that is that inclusive -- except one change in the right direction I am thankful for are family bathrooms and changing rooms. My husband can bring our girls to the pool without me and get them in and out of their bathing suits in private! That is certainly a great step towards understanding the needs of families.
As far as memberships -- shouldn't a family membership just be two adults and children? Does it matter which adults those are? I can understand, from a business point of view, that if you all go to the zoo together your parents should have to pay. But why can't they bring your daughter without you and be the "adults" on the membership card?
Anne Gonnella
10:08 am on Thursday, February 17, 2011
If a family membership were based on the child, so I could go with my daughter, or my parents could, or my husband and father could - any combination of two adults going with her, would be nice. But the membership to the zoo, and some others I have found, seem to all be based on the adult, not the child. Which means we must have two separate family memberships to allow the flexibility of going with different sets of people. I'm not opposed to paying to get in, but it seemed to me some more flexible options would help. I'd pay more, for example, to have a bigger family membership, that allowed 4 adults, because it would feel more flexible and tailored to my family, than two individual family memberships.
As for bathrooms and changing rooms - I'd love to see a directory of restaurants or shops that have family restrooms or changing rooms. Or, just to know which ones have changing tables in the men's room, because there are still many I've run across that only have them in the women's room. And some still none at all. This would be a great resource for parents!
Kim Lemmonds
1:10 pm on Thursday, February 17, 2011
I know that the Aquarium has a family restroom.
Jill Berry
1:09 pm on Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Family restrooms were just becoming popular in 96 when my oldest was born. Back then time, anytime the baby needed a diaper change I had to do the diaper duty. I wondered if there were changing tables in the bathrooms...my husband would say no, but wonder! When our son was born in 03 the family bathrooms were standard. Another plus was the changing tables in the Disabled stall. I could manhandle the double stroller in to the stall without a problem.