Keeping track of your teens

We just got back from our cruise, and I swear I spent a quarter of my time looking for my teens!! I would go up to Lido, and they would go down to the cabin. I'm trying to think of ways to make it easier to know where we all are.

What tricks have you used? I saw people with walkie talkies but I know that those would just get lost, and I'm not sure they'd carry them. I thought about a white board, but with separate cabins I'm not sure how that would work.

We just got back from our cruise, and I swear I spent a quarter of my time looking for my teens!! I would go up to Lido, and they would go down to the cabin. I'm trying to think of ways to make it easier to know where we all are.

 

What tricks have you used? I saw people with walkie talkies but I know that those would just get lost, and I'm not sure they'd carry them. I thought about a white board, but with separate cabins I'm not sure how that would work.

walkie talkies only work if: 1 - they carry them 2 - they don't lose them 3- they are where they say they are (been beside little idiots on Lido while they are telling parents they are at the arcade). Use postits - leave a sticky on cabin doors or have prearranged meeting places and times. If they don't adhere to rules of engagement then have consequences and hold to them. Being confined to cabin (time out) works wonders just make sure to take away gadgets.

I made them check in with me at certain times--every two hours I had to see their faces. They had to be at lunch , dinner and breakfast with us as well. I never had to go looking for them as they knew I would not let them have the privledge of having any freedom if my rules were not followed. If they had to check it at a time I had gone somewhere then I would leave that as a note on the door and they would have to come look for me.

How old are they?

Big difference in what you'd ask a 13 year old to do as opposed to a 17 year old.

Post It notes always worked for us. She would leave us a note on the mirror every time she went somewhere and if she was changing locations, she had to post a new note (no exceptions). If I wanted to find her, I'd go to my cabin, check the note and there she would be.

They are also nice for leaving notes for other cabins, when we travel with family, we can just leave them a note on their door that says, "At the pool"

Our kids are 14 and 15. We made the rule that if they are going somewhere other than where they told me they would be, then they had to leave a post it note in the cabin telling me where they went. It has to have a time on it too so I know how long ago they left the note. If they aren't where they're supposed to be they lose their roaming privileges. One time losing their privileges and having stay with me for the rest of the day was all it took to make them stick to the rules. ;)

Mandatory check in every 3 hours (unless otherwise arranged beforehand) for my 17 yo. My 13 yo carries a walkie talkie and it is her responsibility to keep hers charged. As long as I am footing the bill they will be respectful enough to keep me informed. Otherwise, they know that if they don't follow certain rules, then the next cruise they will stay home. Some rules have lighter consequences, but me having peace of mind about my children being safe is non-negotiable. So far it works well for us.

we finally allowed our girls to roam at 18, had prearranged meeting times places and always checked in. We did dine and go to shows together, in addition spent majority of deck time together as well. They knew to call/show at prearranged times or they would loose priviledges. Call me over protective but all worked out well. Enjoy:)

We use a dry erase markers on the mirror, post it notes to leave messages on our friends doors. My teen son tends to stay close to me and when he does go off with his cousins he isn't Gone very long. But it's nice to have a way to communicate if needed.

When traveled with our 18 y.o. grandson and 13 y.o. grandson, this is how we approached it. We always ate breakfast and dinner together. We did all shore excursions together.

When we were onboard, I would find out where they were going when we parted ways at breakfast. Whenever they left that location and went somewhere else, they would call the cabin and leave a message on voice mail. If I wanted to find out where they were, I simply listened to my messages and the last message would tell me where they were. There are house phones all over the ship, so this allowed for easy tracking and they didn't have to keep running back to the cabin to leave a note.

This worked well last time, and we intend on doing the same thing in 5 1/2 weeks, when we sail with them again :)

Just like anywhere else not on a cruise... When they tell me they will be somewhere, I expect them to be there. When they have to be back to check in, they better be back to check in.

If they are going to change locations, they come tell us first.

We just got back from our cruise, and I swear I spent a quarter of my time looking for my teens!! I would go up to Lido, and they would go down to the cabin. I'm trying to think of ways to make it easier to know where we all are.

 

What tricks have you used? I saw people with walkie talkies but I know that those would just get lost, and I'm not sure they'd carry them. I thought about a white board, but with separate cabins I'm not sure how that would work.

We made sure we told each other where we would be at and if that changed the person moving locations had to go tell the other party where they were going to. If they could not find the other person then they needed to leave a note in the cabin. Communication had to go both ways in order for it to work. We had seperate cabins but we got extra keys when we boarded so we could get into their room.

I'm the one the kids can't find on a cruise...I tend to wander. But within the family there tends to be a sort of radar that works, we are always running into each other. Shore excursions and dinners are non-negotiable as to everyone will be there, at least to check in. If the kids want to eat breakfast and lunch on their own that's great...I know they won't starve and we trust them to behave at the buffet. They've had enough "please don't embarress us" talks to understand their parameters. We also use the post-it note route, kids and adults alike, if we are trying to touch bases.

She tells me where she's going and I tell her where she'll find me. Her options, if I go looking for her, are where she said she'll be, the Lido (my parents are ALWAYS there) or the room. If I need her for something, I check the closest one and work my way out.

We usually just say when we'll touch base again and where (most of the time, it's for dinner or a show). And most of the time, I find her sitting on the balcony if she's not on the water slides.

Mandatory check in every 3 hours (unless otherwise arranged beforehand) for my 17 yo. My 13 yo carries a walkie talkie and it is her responsibility to keep hers charged. As long as I am footing the bill they will be respectful enough to keep me informed. Otherwise, they know that if they don't follow certain rules, then the next cruise they will stay home. Some rules have lighter consequences, but me having peace of mind about my children being safe is non-negotiable. So far it works well for us.

Where do you get the walkie talkies?

Apparently, you haven't seen many of the posts about teens on the ship. It's a cruise. You don't have to keep track of your teens. You just let them run wild and hang in the elavators and scream in the hallways. :)

Really, we never sit still or stay in one place for very long, so we run into our kids on a fairly regular basis. This also has the benefit that they never know when or where we might see them. (as in... if they know you are at the pool for two hours, they know they can cause a mess somewhere else for at least an hour and a half).

Where do you get the walkie talkies?

Any electronics store or sporting goods. If you do buy them make sure not to go too cheap - you want a set that will be able to pick up bands and not be on the same band with everyone else. Personally, I hate the suckers almost as much as I hate cell phones (or I should say the users of these). If you do get them - two points: 1. be polite and don't yell into them order talk loudly around others and 2. be aware that even though they may carry them they will not always be where they say they are (I have been beside little idiots saying they are at the arcade when they are being dickheads on the Lido). There are people who swear by them and others who say don't waste your money

I will be taking my 3rd cruise on the Carnival Breeze 12/1/13. This will be my first with my children. They will be 8, 10, and 12. I was more worried about my 12 year old because my sons I can sign in and out of Camp Carnival, so I will know where they are when they are not with me. As for my 12 year old daughter, I was having difficulty with the "free roam" of Circle C.

Our cabin is on lido deck. I believe Circle C is on deck 5. I was thinking about the walkie talkie way, but am not sure she would keep up with it (have went through 2 cell phones in 1 year). The post it notes seem to be a bit easier to follow with as well as setting a meeting time/place every few hrs.

Where do you get the walkie talkies?

I got mine at Costco and they have been wonderful to have. Great quality without being too expensive (under $40 for a set of 2).

Apparently, you haven't seen many of the posts about teens on the ship. It's a cruise. You don't have to keep track of your teens. You just let them run wild and hang in the elavators and scream in the hallways. :)

Really, we never sit still or stay in one place for very long, so we run into our kids on a fairly regular basis. This also has the benefit that they never know when or where we might see them. (as in... if they know you are at the pool for two hours, they know they can cause a mess somewhere else for at least an hour and a half).

I never looked at it like that!!!

Any electronics store or sporting goods. If you do buy them make sure not to go too cheap - you want a set that will be able to pick up bands and not be on the same band with everyone else. Personally, I hate the suckers almost as much as I hate cell phones (or I should say the users of these). If you do get them - two points: 1. be polite and don't yell into them order talk loudly around others and 2. be aware that even though they may carry them they will not always be where they say they are (I have been beside little idiots saying they are at the arcade when they are being dickheads on the Lido). There are people who swear by them and others who say don't waste your money

My kids know that I do random checks on them. I have been known to go to where they are supposed to be and while there call on the WT and ask where they are. So far, they have been where they were supposed to be. Heaven help them if they pull a stunt like you mentioned. They would be on lock down for the rest of the cruise...and they know it. I am not over protective, I just do not tolerate lying or rudeness/bad manners.

I will be taking my 3rd cruise on the Carnival Breeze 12/1/13. This will be my first with my children. They will be 8, 10, and 12. I was more worried about my 12 year old because my sons I can sign in and out of Camp Carnival, so I will know where they are when they are not with me. As for my 12 year old daughter, I was having difficulty with the "free roam" of Circle C.

 

Our cabin is on lido deck. I believe Circle C is on deck 5. I was thinking about the walkie talkie way, but am not sure she would keep up with it (have went through 2 cell phones in 1 year). The post it notes seem to be a bit easier to follow with as well as setting a meeting time/place every few hrs.

the 10 year old will have siging out priviledges too. 9-11 and 12-14 is the tough group because they are too cool for activities. you will find them hanging out a lot.

I suggest using the public phones located at every elevator--- you can find them all over the lido deck-- call the cabin number and leave a time and a place where you are expected to be.

you do not want the kids to bring kids to the cabin-- for any reason.

walkie talkies are not all what they are cracked out to be-- they constantly need charging-- and even though you have them with many subchannels-- good luck with finding an open channel--- and listening to all the screamming kids yelling into them for MOOOOOMMMMM and all the other Mooooom (s) screaming back--- WHAT>>>?

Please do not use them

I will be taking my 3rd cruise on the Carnival Breeze 12/1/13. This will be my first with my children. They will be 8, 10, and 12. I was more worried about my 12 year old because my sons I can sign in and out of Camp Carnival, so I will know where they are when they are not with me. As for my 12 year old daughter, I was having difficulty with the "free roam" of Circle C.

 

Our cabin is on lido deck. I believe Circle C is on deck 5. I was thinking about the walkie talkie way, but am not sure she would keep up with it (have went through 2 cell phones in 1 year). The post it notes seem to be a bit easier to follow with as well as setting a meeting time/place every few hrs.

The 9-11 year old group on the Dream would have some of their sessions on Deck 4 in the mornings sometimes. And they do group scavenger hunts, but for a child to do them, you have to give them the ability to sign themselves in and out. I was hesitant to let my 9 year old do this, but let him within certain rules. (1) He had to go over the schedule with me of what he was going to do with camp; (2) he had to go back to the cabin and let myself or my mother know he was gone from camp; (3) he was not allowed to go in anyone else's cabin or invite anyone else to his cabin; and (4) no running. The only other times he was by himself was when he would ask to go get a grilled cheese, an ice cream, a slice of pizza or a soda at one of the bars on Lido Deck.

He wasn't happy that I would often meet him checking out of Camp at the time he said he would be leaving, but I figured it kept him on his toes. He was a very good boy!

I will be bringing two boys, both 17 and one girl, 16. I was going to make dinner mandatory..any other suggestions??

My daughter is 12 and didn't know circle c let them come and go. Next time I would have her bring a friend or cousin. She wanted to roam, but I also spend alot of time hunting her down. It was not fun. I would try walkie talkies next time for sure.