Pissed

[Joods]

Normally, I overlook some of the things she does because she is first and foremost going through puberty.

I had two boys and they were fine until they reached 14. Both of them were lucky to make it to 15. However, once they were approaching 16 they suddenly realized that I knew shit that they needed to know...like how to drive and get cars and such.

I had friends who had daughters. They were the apple of Daddy's eye in all cases....until they got to be around 11. Then the shit started. One described his 3 as "alternately crying or giggling, 24/7, 365 days a year" and it never seemed to stop. The other guy sounded like you. Girls grow up too fast.

So, I sympathize. Swear away. She has it coming.

It IS a lot and honestly, even though I have an older daughter who is 19, NONE of this happened with her because she has Down syndrome and she is honestly, out of all four kids (my two girls and my fiancee's two boys), the best behaved of them all. She like NEVER gets in trouble. She's got it figured out: Keep busy and stay out of trouble.

I've been challenged through five surgeries with my oldest. But my youngest...wow. What I'm going through right now with her makes all those surgeries seem like a walk in the park.

The kids are 19, 13, 12, and almost 11. Like - Holy crap. Girl, boy, girl, boy in that order. If these next several years doesn't kill me, I'm going to write a book about it lol.

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Wow, makes me look forward to being a parent!

But Judi I think it's good that you showed another side of yours and said you're sorry.

Thanks Alex. This is one of the parts of my parenting that I have, for the most part, been adamant about. Yep, I slipped up earlier. Shit happens. If I discipline, I do the following:

1. Give a warning of the consequence that will happen if the behavior doesn't stop.
2. Follow through the very next time the unwanted behavior happens.
3. Sit said child down after consequence is over and discuss what caused the behavior.
4. Make it clear that while I don't like to discipline, it was the result of their actions that caused the discipline.
5 THE MOST IMPORTANT THING: Say I love you very much and that it hurts me just as much as it hurts them when they have to be disciplined.

I do my best and I really hate when I fuck up and lose my temper. I think my Italian side definitely showed.

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Adolescence is nature's way of breaking up the family so you can go your separate ways. Want to get the kids out of the house? Sure, and they want to go.

I can clearly remember being brought up in a physically abusive home. If I had ever sassed my mom the way my kid does to me, I would have gotten the belt, a switch, a wooden breadboard or whatever else my step dad could get his hands on to beat me with.

As a rule, I don't do this to my kids. I don't believe in corporal punishment. I know what it's like to have to go through that on a near daily basis as a kid. Not something I'm going to put my own kids through. That said, teens are definitely challenging. I don't know how I'm going to survive in four years when she turns 16. UGH.