7 Reasons that Parenting Teenagers Doesn’t Suck (And 3 Reasons It Does)

I’m gonna jump right in with these ten important things.

First my top 7 reasons that parenting Teenagers doesn’t suck:

1. They tie their own shoes.
2. They catch their own vomit.
3. They wipe their own butts.
4. They fall asleep on their own.
5. They can text me their food requests (less steps to climb).
6. They remove their own snot.
7. They sleep in.

And now the three reasons it does :

1. They don’t need me as much as they used to.
2. They are becoming more and more independent and now I have to look at who I am outside of them.
3. Our time living under the same roof is closer to ending.

I bet you see what I did there. A little play on what you might have been expecting when you saw the title. Let’s be real here, parenting has its challenges and rewards at every single age and stage.

My challenge to you would be the next time you are gathered with your friends and a complaint about parenting rushes to the tip of your tongue, replace it instead with a celebration. If there is something pushing you to the edges of your own comfort, instead of blaming your child for being challenging ask your community for support. It is not easy to be a child in the world either. They have little control over when they can do what they want, where they live, their schedule and the financial resources they have any say over. So meet them with compassion as they are expanding out into the world and grow from there together.

I give you permission from this moment forward to be your child’s biggest, loudest, most adoring fan, – especially in the moments when they eye roll their way behind a slamming door. Sit in your own discomfort and marinate on the lessons available to you. Then defy the societal norms to say nasty things about your kids and instead say something you appreciate about them. Or take it a step further and write them a note about something you admire about who they are becoming in the world. Keep returning your focus over and over again to the positive. There are endless mindset resources available for turning your thinking about yourself, your business, your potential around – use that same framework to reset how you see your ever changing awesome child in the world. Stick notes on the mirror that remind you to compliment your child each day if that’s what it takes to make it a habit.

I know you will still feel the pile up of frustration that happens when you are working through hard parts in any relationship. If you can take this challenge and turn your eyes to what is working, or reach out and be vulnerable about your challenges, you will see things beginning to shift even if it’s just in your own mind. It is the subtlety of changing your thoughts that will absolutely change your parenting life for both you and that child you love more than you thought possible.

So go out there reader and change it up. Love large and chase a positive parenting mindset.