lifewithboys:

I was reading thedaddycomplex (VERY funny, btw) and finally figured something out.

I am the most amazing, awesome, totally rockin’ Mom to teenagers in the entire world!

Yep, I said it…now where’s my tiara?

HOw did I get this title?  Well, it seems that I have it all figured out!  Sure, I get into it with my kids-I am speaking of my two oldest right now.  They are 17 and 16.  We fuss, argue occasionally.  Once in awhile, they REALLY piss me off.  Sometimes, I totally piss them off, but (and here’s the shocker!) I actually like my teens!  And (OMG, get ready for it…)I think they actually, kinda really like Roy and I.

Bull S**T! you say.  No, really!  They really, really like us.

We must not discipline them you yell.  Well, no, we don’t discipline them a whole lot.

You KNEW it!  (I know that’s what you’re thinking!) We are lazy, lax parents.  Nope, we just have pretty good kids that understand what is and isn’t acceptable in our house, and they rarely cross that line.

OHH…so they’re scared of you guys?  Why yes we really are monsters. 

NO, we aren’t!  I’m being sarcastic.  Ok, yeah, I have a temper and if you piss me off it can get ugly, but I think (wait for it…wait for it…) our kids respect us.  They know we have their backs.  They know we trust them, but they also know we’ll call them on their crap, and since I used to be full of crap as a teen, they also know that we know all the tricks out there.

So, if you are the parent of a newborn, baby, toddler, kid or tween I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to ‘ruin your teens life’ to parent them right. 

I will be offering my new Parenting a Teen classes on Tumblr in the future.  Stay tuned. ;)

I am a proud member of this club if I may call it that and I have worked hard to develop the relationship that I have with my daughter. She is 17 the hormones give it an interesting twist at times but thank God for drugs(for her), I have wine and chocolate. I am definitely the parent but there is room to acknowledge her unique personality and gifts. I’ve taught and modeled how to apologize when wrong, disagree respectfully and to have the persistence to go after her dreams. I don’t think I will ever be her “friend” but I have learned that I need to be flexible, challenge behaviors when needed and acknowledge her maturity as she develops into adulthood trusting that I have given all that I can and believe she is capable of making decisions.