It's 3 p.m. Do You Know Where Your Teenager Is?

First Jamie Lynn Spears gives birth at age 17, and then comes news of a pregnancy pact at Gloucester High School in Massachusetts, where a group of sophomores reportedly promised to get knocked up and raise their babies together. It’s enough to make a mom with three girls (that would be me) turn grey overnight fretting about teen pregnancy.

Fortunately, our 15-year old has a good head on her shoulders. She’s also seen firsthand both the pain of giving birth and how hard it is to care for a baby or toddler. But I still worry about her and her little sisters. As a working mom, I’m not there in the few hours between school letting out and the end of the work day. And I know that’s when children are most likely to get in trouble.

Readers, how do you reassure yourselves that your children aren’t making mischief while you’re wrapping up work? What solutions do you have for teenagers who are too old for formal afterschool programs? Please share.

Photo Credit: Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images.

More:

• A Parent's Look at the Teen Pregnancy Pact
• 10 Essentials Your Teen Needs to Know About Sex
• Single Parents Talk About the Pregnancy Pact
• How to Talk About Sex to Teenagers