Kids with coffee???

I saw this article the other day.  It was titled (something like this) "yes I give my kids coffee!",  with a picture of a toddler holding a Starbucks cup.  My first thought was WOW, what is this about.  I read the article in which this mom was defending her choice to let her kids have a cup of coffee with her on Sunday afternoons.  She defended with it is decaffeinated, only a small shot of coffee, and the cup is then filled with milk,  This sounds more like milk with a shot of flavor.  It is a way for her to enjoy her weekly coffee break without having to fight with her kids.

First thought after this article.  Why is that being a parent has become a chore more to defend our choices than it is to deal with our kids??  We are supposed to live in a country where Freedom is defended, sometimes to death (retired military family here, we get this point very well), however if we correct our children or give them something that someone has a problem with, we are making our children victims and defending ourselves as people pull out cell phones to record our problems so they can sell them to the media or internet.  I once had a lady try to report me for spanking my toddler.  The situation was that they thought it was funny to unbuckle their seat belts while driving down the road.  I would pull over, pop their butt ( well padded with a diaper), and buckle them back in.  This told them how serious unbuckling the seat belt was, because I only spanked their butts for dangerous items, and it only took three times for me to pull over and the message has never been forgotten.   I then had to defend myself while this lady was calling the police to report me.  I calmly told her that if I did have to go to court I would ask the judge if I was doing more harm by driving with them loose in the back seat, and a possible accident and injury, or was it better to give them a swat on the backside (which was more sound than pain) and put them safely back in their seats.  She was not happy but let me be.

Second thought. When I was growing up I used to have a cup of coffee with my dad once in a while.  This was NEVER decaffeinated in our house and my dad made it strong.  No one ever questioned it because back in the 70's parents still had a few rights with their kids.  I would always but some milk and sugar into my coffee and usually never finished more than about a third of the cup.  However, now that my dad has been gone most of my kids lives, I still remember the smell and taste of that cup of coffee when I would get the chance to have my daddy's full attention, even if it was only for a little bit.  I don't drink coffee now that I have grown up, mainly because it never taste as good as I remember it being when dad was right there.  I'm sure it has nothing to do with the actual taste of the brew, but the company was the only thing that really mattered.  Sorry, had to dry my eyes.

So does it really matter if a mother or father wants to give their kids a cup of coffee?  Does it hurt the child more to miss out on the memories or to get a small taste of what is in the grown up cup?  I'm glad my dad never cared about what other people thought, and I will always have the wonderful memories of those shared times!