AuburnChick's Adventures

The Mr. and I accidentally scared Chicky last night and got quite the chuckle out of it.

She and Rooster were getting ready to leave for youth group when the Mr. told me that when Chicky left, he’d tell me something.

I asked if it was something bad, and he said no, but he didn’t want her to get mad.  You know how it is…teens are unpredictable in their reactions to things.  It doesn’t take much to set them off.

So, I made my way to the garage to see if they had left and ran into Chicky in the laundry room.  She sensed something was amiss and asked what I was doing.

“Nothing,” I said.

She gave me THE LOOK that said she didn’t believe me but left anyway.

I went to the back of the house to get the Mr. to spill the beans.  All he told me was how she was planning on adding workout sessions with her physical trainer next summer to get ready for college.  She also wants to find some good camps to attend to keep her in shape.  They had this conversation on the way back from practice, and it shocked him that she initiated it.

I told him, “I told you so,” because a few days before I had told him that she was finally taking ownership of herself…not complaining about practices and getting serious about prepping for next year.

As we talked, Chicky rushed into the room asking, “Am I in trouble?”

We started laughing.

“You mean you turned the car around and came home just because you thought you were in trouble,” we asked her?

You could see the look of relief on her face when she realized that all was good.

See, she had been grounded the week before.

The punishment?

No cell phone.

It was a travesty…the worst punishment you can inflict on a teenager.

Guy Friend had just left for college, and she couldn’t text him minute-by-minute updates…”Eating a sandwich for lunch…” “Wiping my mouth…” “Getting up from the table…”

You know what I’m talking about.  Unlimited texting amounts to about 3,000 texts per month.

She told us that she thought something was up when she encountered me in the laundry room, but then Rooster had come in the house (we didn’t hear him) and heard my, “I told you so,” and assumed that I had “discovered” something Chicky had done.

Um…we won’t go there.  Let’s just say that there are little horns that reside just below the girl’s halo.  I’m sure you parents don’t have any idea of what I’m talking about (insert wink and a tinge of sarcasm here).

So, we fessed up.

Sure, we were talking about her, but in a GOOD way.

I think we’ve learned a lesson that we can just say what we want and not worry about how she reacts.

She left, able to enjoy her evening at the church, and we smiled, thinking that maybe…just maybe…we’re finally getting somewhere.  There is light at the end of the tunnel.

Filed under: children | Tagged: teenagers |