Raising teenagers is something most of us haven’t done yet. It’s a scary thought when we think about ourselves as teenagers. There’s no reason you should have to do it alone.
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Recently I’ve been sharing videos that I find valuable to the parent going into a new phase of their kids life. I’m both excited and scared beyond belief for what my children are going to be like when they’re teenagers. On the one hand, I can’t wait to have conversations about life and the decisions we make. I can’t wait to talk to my son about girls and sports and college. I can’t wait to talk about nerdy things like video games and wait in line for hours to buy the new Xbox console as we freeze together outside of a BestBuy.
I can’t wait to get to a point where I look back and say, “Man, I wish I’d have known that when Corbin was 13.”
There will come a day when my son and I sit on our back porch and talk about the parenting concerns he has for his children.
With all of these things I’m excited about, I’m also scared about my ability to do the right thing by my kids. I think it’s natural to be scared of new things and parenting is no different. I’m scared of whether or not I’ll be able to provide the proper insight when he’s filling out college applications. I’m scared of whether or not I’ll be able to say the right thing when he has his heart broken the first time.
I’m scared if I’ll be able to maintain my patience when he gets his first speeding ticket or when he misses curfew for the first time.
All of these things are going to be a reality at some point and as with anything else we fear, it’s the unknown we’re afraid of.
I find these videos comforting for several reasons. Because they remind me I’m not on this journey alone and that my fears are not isolated. They let me know that in spite of fear I’ll still get through those times with both my sanity in tact as well as give my children good advice as long as my heart is in it.
If there’s nothing else we can do, I think listening to what others have been through is a good place to land. These videos bring me comfort, and I think they will you as well.
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Photo credit: Flickr/Don Gunn