Hi, I'm Dr. Laura Schlessinger.  Welcome to our YouTube channel, where I get to answer your questions that you've written in.  This is from Luisa:

"Recently, my 13-year-old daughter, my 2 1/2- year-old son and our 16-year-old German exchange student went on a weekend trip with my mother for a church event.

My mother left the kids in the hotel room to go to the pharmacy down the street. My daughter and the exchange student decided to leave my 2 1/2-year-old son in the room alone and they went to the hotel sandwich shop. [Look of concern on face.]

Yes, this was a bad decision in so many ways, but to make things worse, a church member was passing by the room and saw my son looking out the window. Then my son even opened the door to talk to the church member!

This could have been so much worse.  Dr. Laura, what course of action should I take with my daughter? How could she not know that this was a dangerous thing to do? Is this a preview of events to come due to her lack of good judgment?"

Let's see, your daughter is 13?  That's not that mature.  16-year-old exchange student...you didn't say whether that was a male or female.  If it was a male, I think that their little attraction to each other might have obliterated any common sense whatsoever.  But my suggestion for you is, when you have teenagers going on a trip you don't have a 2 1/2-year-old with them.

Don't get mad, but I think that was not good judgment on your part.  The activities and behaviors of teenagers out on the loose are not conducive to focusing in on taking care of a 2 1/2-year-old.  And grandma I guess didn't lay down the law [says in a stern voice]: "You people stay right here until I get back."  And it just...no. 

The 2 1/2-year-old should stay with you.  The only time the 2 1/2-year-old should go with grandma is when grandma doesn't have anybody else around because she probably would never have left the 2 1/2-year-old kid alone. 

So, rule: teenagers [motions with hand to the right], 2 1/2-year-olds [motions with hand to the left].  They are not on the same trip.

I'm Dr. Laura Schlessinger.  Until next time right here on our YouTube channel.

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