Holiday Rules for College Kids: Keep It Fun So They Come Back
(My oldest son on graduation day at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. When he was walking, his younger sister asked, “When do they hand out the wands?! Lmao!)
Your college kids are coming home for the holidays like a bunch of half-trained German Shepherds who just discovered freedom and tequila.
This is the part where parents start resorting to old habits better avoided, unless you want to push your kids away.
Hovering, lecturing, and trying to run the house like it’s still their sophomore year of high school.
Don’t.
If you’ve done the Puddle Jumpers work (May 2026 release), you’ve already built decision-makers.
Let them make them…
Now your job is to loosen your grip without losing your standards.
Here’s the play: set a few clear house (your red lines) rules up front, then get out of the way.
Example:
Be respectful, don’t wake the dead or the dog at 4 a.m., and if you’re too wrecked to drive, call me or I’ll pay for the Uber with no questions asked.
Friends are welcome anytime. Just give me a heads-up on plans so I don’t run into your entire college friend group while I’m half naked making coffee.
You’re an adult now, so you get privacy. And I (we) get the same. Knock before entering. That goes both ways.
You’re not approving of bad choices, you’re keeping the shipping lanes clear for good ones.
You’re still the captain, you’re just not micromanaging the crew.
And remember, this season isn’t about controlling them. It’s about keeping the home base strong, and them coming back.
Do something super fun with them and their friends.
Plan a banger dinner out that will leave them and their friends talking.
Indoor sky diving. Treat your daughter and her friends to a spa day or your son to a sporting event. Plan a game night. You get the picture…
My oldest came over for Thanksgiving this year and brought five of his friends, and I couldn’t have been happier.
One of his friends, Scout, brought a projector, and we all sat around the living room and played Tee K.O., a hilarious t-shirt design game where everyone can join and play on their smartphones. You create drawings and phrases, then mix them up to create the funniest design and slogan.
https://jackboxgames.fandom.com/wiki/Tee_K.O.
The t-shirt that won the first round was a stick-figure drawing of a person hauling off another person on a stretcher, with the text: “Why can’t we just be friends?”
This is the age where you’re building the Forever Family culture, the one that pulls them back year after year. Let that marinate for a bit…
Make home welcoming, fun, and safe to land in. Stock the fridge. Let them know their friends are welcome (even if you don’t like them…it happens, trust me.)
Treat them like the adults they are. Laugh more than you lecture. Because here’s the real question: would you rather have them home dealing with late nights and a little chaos… or have them decide your house is a f’ng drag and spend Christmas somewhere “more fun” with people who don’t care if they make it back alive?
Let them be adults. Hold the line. Keep the door open.
That’s how grown kids keep choosing home or you’ll push them away.
***Special thanks to Sarah, and the Authors’ Equity team for the inspiration for this post!
