When your children are babies or toddlers, you're pretty much attached at the hip (or attached at other parts). If they're invited to a birthday party, it's a no brainer: you're going, too.
But the expectations get fuzzy as the child enters preschool and elementary school and becomes more self-sufficient.
At what age is it OK to drop off your kid at a party? And, if you're hosting a birthday party for your child, when should you expect parents to start dropping and dashing? Is it rude to ask them to stay to help supervise an 8 year old's party? Do the rules change if the party is being held at, say, a swimming pool?
