<p>I totally agree with Iglooo. I would add that when parents insist on knowing every little thing, it can end up sending a message to the child that they are not competent to run their own lives.</p>
<p>And quite frankly, I learned the hard way that sometimes it’s better not to know because when you get TMI…then what? You can find yourself in between a rock and a hard place with information you really didn’t need but now feel compelled to act on. </p>
<p>Obviously, there is a sliding scale here based upon the child’s age but by college, you really don’t need to know everything your child does. As cptofthehouse so elegantly put it - you often end up with a child who will lie to protect themselves from you, the parent who insists on certain behaviors. By college, I think it’s better to take the role of wise sage than controlling parent. JMHO.</p>