I volunteered to attend a field trip with my daughter’s 8^th grade band class to a local theme park.  This was her last year in Middle School and I knew that I would have a fat chance accompanying her on anything once she was in High School.  Now my daughter knows it is difficult for me to handle to amount of walking that would be needed but I had never had to have any assistance in the past.  Well this time, I decided in order to enjoy the trip and last all day I would rent a motorized scooter once I got in the park.  I would need the stamina to ride the bus home with 30 teens.  My daughter was mortified.  “Mom, you can’t”.  “It would be so embarrassing!” Now I am not exactly sure what would be embarrassing to her since she wasn’t the one that would have to be sitting 2 feet below everyone else or bumping into people as we “stood” in line to ride a ride.  Mind you she is the best daughter in the world even if she is a teenager.  She is sensitive and a very caring person.  This was something new and different to her and she needed time to adjust. Once we got to the park I quickly located Guest Services and filled out the three thousand page application to borrow a chair for the next few hours.  My daughter stood off to the side with her friends, obviously agitated and anxious for the process to be over with.   The attendant then gave me the two second operating procedures which would license me as an “expert” of motorized mobility!  He then moved the chair just outside the storage area ready for me to jump on and start having fun.   The girls all stood behind the scooter just staring.  “All right girls, we are ready to go!” I said with excitement in my voice and I hopped on the scooter.  Not realizing that the attendant had backed the scooter out and left it in reverse, I hit the accelerator and zoomed backwards almost ran over three of the girls.  We all died laughing…adjustment period over!   

THINGS WE DO AS PARENTS:

1.  TRUST – I guess we trust until they give us a reason not to trust.

Yeh, I know that we have exceptional children.  They are “good” kids.  Good, to me, means they are hard workers, studious on their own, attend our church several times a week with us and have their faith on target, disciplined in some areas, respect others, volunteer to the service of others and pretty much are where we were at their age in life.   Trusting isn’t easy even if they are good kids.

2. EXPECT GOOD BEHAVIOR: 

I don’t mean they don’t do the usual goofy things like spit out the window and keep their rooms wrecked.  I mean they are respectful to teachers, other adults and those around them.  They don’t talk inappropriately such as cursing, they don’t intimidate others, and pick on others just for the heck of it.  I expect them to act the same as the behavior we model. 

3. SET HIGH EXPECTATIONS:

It has been our experience that our teens will perform to the expectations that we set for them.

4. PRAISE THEM FOR THE GOOD:

I know they do some things right!  You know it too.  Don’t pick a fight just for the purpose of getting stuff off of your chest.  It’s not worth it.  How can they know that we are proud of them if we don’t tell them.

5. LOVE THEM EVEN WHEN YOU THEY AREN’T SO LOVABLE:

So what if they screw up.  They were bound to do something eventually, they teenagers.  They need to know that regardless of their behavior…we still love them…we will always love them.