Teen Weather Report

 P R E D I C T A B L E


When a parent says "yes" to a teen, it is sunny skies and 75 degrees out. Beautiful! 

parenting

behavior

teens

When a parent says "no" to their child? Suddenly and without warning it is 10 below zero and a full on rattle-your-windows blizzard! Brutal. 

How does any teen think that they will change their parent's mind by changing the "weather" so dramatically?

Beyond Reason

Teens tend to have two reasons for doing a thing: 

one that sounds good 

and a real one.
NOTE: Parents just happen to have an innate decoding ability to determine the real reason.

parenting

behavior

teens

Remember to forget

Why is it that kids seem to forget most everything that matters to the adults in their life? Conversely? They seem to have an elephant's memory when it comes to recalling whatever it is that is on their agenda.
It is madness I tell you!

And yet, as parents? It is our job to love our kids when even when they aren't very lovable.

parenting

behavior

teens

Freedom?

Isn't that the wish of every teenager? All they want is freedom.

I have one teen who can't wait to "graduate" and have all the "freedom" in the world. Then I have another teen who can't wait to get their driver's license because then they can "go wherever they want and do whatever they want." Neither of those two teens seem to be able to hear that freedom costs.

Teens seem to think that their parents live to rob them of their freedom. They probably won't see for years to come that these years are some of the most free. Free of bills, free of landlords, free of a full-time employer. If they think that parents exact a lot from them, just wait until they get the "freedom" they live for.

That first teen? Once you graduate then you have a landlord to pay rent to, a college to pay tuition to, a job to not call out sick from, an electric bill to pay, cable/Internet/cell to pay for, car maintenance, etc. All you parents out there know full well. The second teen? Just getting a license to drive does not mean that you have full license to go where you want and do what you want. First, you have to get a job to be able to get a car, or if family has given a car, then you need to work to provide gas, and need to earn the privileges to go places.

To try and tell teens this? It is like I am speaking a language that they have no comprehension to translate. Freedom is not a right, it is a privilege earned. Freedom is not free, it is expensive. I guess every generation has to learn the hard way, huh?

parenting

behavior

teens

"He who is contented is rich." - Lao Tsu