Facebook Families

Do you have any thoughts about Facebook Families? I read a post Susan Allen on Parenting Twenty-Somethings. She considers the questions:

Is your family a Facebook family? If so, are you finding it to be a good thing? Or are you one of those that has a horrific story to tell about what you have found there? Are you “friends” with your twenty-something children? How is that working for you?

I don't have twenty-something sons -- my sons are both teenagers. Both of them have a Facebook page. One of the "rules" about internet use in our house is that we, the parents, will have access to whatever the kids do on the internet -- so, of course, we are their "friends."

So far, it hasn't been "TMI." I do look at the kids' pages, and at times I ask them about what is posted.

I do set a guideline for myself concerning what I post on their updates. I ask myself, "Would I say this to my son if he and I were standing in a room full of his friends. If the answer is "no," then I don't post it on his page. I just walk over to where he is in the house, and tell it to him in person. I don't want to embarrass him in public, so I'm careful about posting. In fact, I rarely comment on their status updates.

I do like being their "friends." Having access to photos in which they are tagged is especially cool. I see great pictures taken by their friends.