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Dinner for Four

Posted on April 30, 2010 by auburnchick

A rare sight these days is that of the four members of my family sitting at the dinner table together, at the same time, eating the same food.

Such an event happened last night, and I almost cried as I saw it unfolding.

I am not very good at planning dinner.

Oh, I sometimes remember to pull meat from the freezer, but actually getting it cooked, with starches and veggies is like a Halley’s Comet sighting.

Bad, I know, but true.

So yesterday, I actually had the foresight of:

1) Buying the meat ahead of time
2) Keeping it in the fridge the night before in preparation for dinner.
3) Researching recipes the night before.
4) Putting everything in the crockpot early enough to get stuff cooked.
5) Watching items on the stove so nothing burned and everything got done at the same time.
6) Setting the table, all by my lonesome self, and even filling glasses with ice.

Now, when we eat dinner together, someone usually winds up getting mad, for whatever reason.

Sometimes, because I’m not that great of a cook, something will be said about dinner, and I, wearing my feelings on my sleeve (guess I am a feeler after all – see Random Dozen post from this week), I either get upset or mad.

But all of the planets must have aligned, because everyone was…

Hold your breath now…

HAPPY.

There.  I said it.

And, the kids actually…

Hold your breath now…

Started telling us about their day…

Without being prompted.

I KNOW!!!

I could hardly believe it, but I dared not draw attention to this mini-miracle in fear that it would dissipate as quickly as my paycheck every other Friday!

I dare say that our conversation resembled…

Hold on to your hats…

Adult conversation.

I KNOW!!!!

And you know the kind of sad thing?

This happened just a few months before the Party of Four turns into a Party of Three, when Chicky leaves for college.

It’s yet another memory I’ll tuck away.  What might seem like an ordinary evening for some truly became a special moment for me.

Filed under: children | Tagged: , , | 4 Comments »

Sibling Bonding

Posted on April 20, 2010 by auburnchick

Chicky and Rooster have taken on a new challenge:  lifeguarding classes.

The course runs for seven nights (6 to 10) at our community college.

I figured this would be a neat sibling-bonding experience, and this is exactly what it’s turned out to be!

The first night of class, the Mr. and I anxiously waited for them to get home.

Chicky came in first, loudly announcing, “That was the worst thing I’ve ever had to do.  If I was a quitter, I would never go back.”

She then headed to the bathroom to grab a shower.

Rooster came in next and filled us in on the details.

See, although we’ve lived in Florida all of the kids’ lives, Chicky has never been particularly fond of “formal” swimming.

The kids learned to swim right after we moved to Miami.  This was the time I got to quit my job and become a stay-at-home mom.  Needing something to do with two children under the age of four, I took them swimming twice a day.

We would eat breakfast, let our tummies settle, and head out.  We went home in time for lunch and a nap.  Then, after a snack and a brief tummy-settling time, we headed back out for session #2.

Rooster learned to swim the summer he turned two, with Chicky learning around the same time.  She was four.

I paid for swimming lessons a few years later, just so they could learn how to do the strokes properly.

Chicky was not super fond of these sessions.

So, the kids grew up, attending pool parties and swimming pretty good.

Rooster swam on the middle school swim team during seventh and eighth grade.  He loved it!

Rooster’s coach was the nicest lady.  She also coached the high school team.

When Chicky tore her ACL in 9th grade, Coach offered to let her do laps with the high school team.  Swimming is one of the best cardio workouts and because it is non-weight-bearing, it is the perfect exercise when rehabbing.

Chicky showed up one morning, did a few laps, and declared herself non-swimming material.  She never went back.

With this history in mind, it’s a wonder she decided to take the lifeguard class in the first place!  But, the desire for a job and the money that goes along with it overruled her objections.

While she was in the shower, Rooster told us how she struggled during the 300 yard warm up.  100 freestyle, 100 breast stroke, and the last 100 whatever you wanted.

Chicky had no idea how to execute the breast stroke.  Kicking her legs out sideways really made her nervous given her knee stuff from years ago.  She’s uber-sensitive to some motions.

She doggy-paddled the last 100 yards, literally dog-tired.

Next, they had to swim from the shallow to the deep end of the pool, take a breath, and dive down to retrieve a 10lb brick and tote it back to the shallow end…in two minutes.

Chicky did pretty good, only coming up for air once before successfully grabbing the brick.

One other thing the students had to do was, while treading water, use the motion of their arms and hands to propel themselves up and then down through the water to touch bottom of the pool (11 feet, I think) with their toes.

Chicky has always been coordinated, but she could not get the hang of the motion.

Rooster said she kept going sideways under the water instead of straight down.

Poor girl.

Chicky came out of the shower, and it was Rooster’s turn, so we got Chicky’s side of the story.

She pretty much repeated the same things Rooster had said, but she told us something funny.

She said that at one point during the 300-yard warm-up, she got to the end of the pool, took a moment to catch her breath, and looked up at Rooster, asking, “Am I doing this right?”

Rooster squatted down and clapped his hands for her, encouraging her.

Oh my gosh, but when I heard this, my heart swelled with joy.

For those of you who have children who argue more than they hug, and I’m not talking hugging to squeeze the life out of the other, then let me give you this hope.

They do grow up.

They do wind up, most of the time, liking each other.

See, they have a commonality with each other that others don’t have.

They know what it’s like to be raised by their particular set of parents.  They can share the injustices of being grounded for “nothing,” doing chores til their fingers fell off (yeah, right), and eating burned food three nights in a row (heaven forbid).

The kids take the final test on Monday.  I have every confidence they’ll pass.

I also know that though my kids will have their own lives as they get older, they’ll always have this special week together.  It’s something they and I will cherish.

Filed under: children | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

An Award AuburnChick Won’t Win

Posted on March 12, 2010 by auburnchick

This seemed like such a longggggg week!

Rooster got sick on Monday, throwing up on his carpet despite the bathroom being less than ten feet from his room (he did clean it up, by the way).  He stayed home from school on Tuesday and missed that day’s FCAT testing (state exams).

He was feeling a little better on Wednesday, so he went back to school and took the second day’s exams.  He also attended school on Thursday, but by that afternoon, he was feeling sick again.

No throw up this time, thank goodness, but he had a fever and a sore throat.

I dosed him up with Extra Strength Excedrin, which does wonders for sore throats, but two hours later, his fever had actually risen a bit.

This morning, Rooster was dragging.  Still, he got dressed and went to school.  Today was makeup day for students who had missed the FCAT.  Since he had missed the first day, he had to report to the media center by 7:30.

The poor thing was in no shape to sit in an examination room for three hours.  After discussing it with the testing coordinator and a guidance counselor, we decided to send him home to rest.  There is one more day of makeups next week.

Meanwhile, since I had a class to sub for, the Mr. pulled parent duty, dragging himself out of bed to pick up the boy.

I called the doctor’s office and got him an appointment for 11:00.  My classes would be finished by 10:30, so the timing could not have been more perfect.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I LOVE my pediatrician.  He is a gentle, kind man who’s diagnoses are always right on the money.

Before we entered the examination room, I suggested that Rooster get on the scale.  I was curious about how much he weighed.

119lbs.

He’s skinny.

Then, I asked the nurse to check his height…again, out of curiosity.

5’10”!!

WOW!  The boy has grown!

He and I talked about the last time he’d been measured.  We argued in a friendly way, with me faintly remembering that he was 5’5″ the last time.

The nurse played referee by checking his file.

When last measured, Rooster was, in fact, 5’5″…way back in September 2008!

Oh my.

It had been that long since he had been in for a well check-up.

I felt horrible.

I am the anal mom who takes her children in for well checkups every single year without missing a beat.  They’ve always gotten their shots on schedule, and illnesses get checked promptly.
He’s a second child, though.  You know how it goes…second children get the shaft.
Anyhoo…

We went into the room and waited for the doctor.

He came in and listened to Rooster’s symptoms:  sore throat, headache, fever, throwing up, and stomach ache.

Diagnosis:  Strep Throat.

Oh

My

Goodness.

Rooster had been suffering from Strep all week.

And did I even think to take him in?

Noooooooo.

Why?

Because I had a mommy brain fart.

Ugh.

I wanted to crawl into a hole.

You see, I know the symptoms of strep.  In fact, every time my children complain of a sore throat, I always ask if their stomachs hurt and check for fever.  I also ask about rashes (which Rooster didn’t have this time).  I usually make a doctor appointment just to make sure that all is well in Throat Land.

Not this time.

I have no idea why.

Perhaps the fact that Rooster called me while I was grocery shopping to tell me I needed to clean up his puke had some impact.  I thought he had a stomach bug and totally overlooked his sore throat issue.  I figured it was due to nighttime drainage and allergies.

AuburnChick slaps her forehead.

Now, I can hear you saying, “AuburnChick, you’re a good mom.  Don’t beat yourself up.”

But see, I have always tried to be a good mom…better than my mom.

My mom routinely forgot about my sister and me.  When it was time to pick us up from school, she wasn’t there.  She was either working in the yard or laying out in the sun.  We once had to wait a couple of hours to get picked up.

If we were sick, we sucked it up and got over it.  There was never a, “Let’s run to the doctor and have him swab your throat.”  Nope.  Vicks and Comtrex fixed everything back then.

The only time I remember going to the doctor was when I had ringworm.  I got a topical cream for that.

So you see why I’m giving myself a hard time?

Rooster has been a trouper.  He put a funny spin on it when he said, “Mama, the one time you don’t take me to the doctor, I actually have something!”

LOL.  Cute kid. I think I’ll keep him.

So, I think that this year’s Best Mom Award will probably go to someone else.  Someone who’s at the ready with the thermometer and has the doctor’s business and cell phone numbers memorized and plugged into her iPhone.  There must be an app for scheduling an appointment.

Filed under: children | Tagged: , | 2 Comments »

A Typical Day in My Life

Posted on March 8, 2010 by auburnchick

Readers, the byline on my blog should give some “indication” that a day in the life of AuburnChick is no ordinary, blah-blah day.

Take today, for instance.

First of all, it was a Monday…but no ordinary Monday.  It was a Monday after a weekend of soccering, which meant that I was already starting behind the 8-ball.

I got up my usual 15 minutes past when I should have.  I’ve become a night owl and just cannot seem to get into bed before 12 or 12:30.

Ugh.

The kids and I did devotions.  This was the only calm part of my day.

Somehow, on the way out the door, Chicky and I managed to have a knock-down-drag-out argument.

Great.

I despise starting the day like that.

Next, I went to school, where I had the pleasure (and I mean that in an evil-grin-sort-of-way) of surprising a few students who were not expecting me to be their sub for the next two weeks.  Envision this:

Said students lazily walk in to class…semi-smiles on their faces…chatting it up with other said students.

They briefly glance up to see Your’s Truly standing at the podium in front of the class.

“Cough, grumble, grumble,” was all I heard out of their mouths.

I smiled a Cheshire Cat Smile.

Gotcha!

“You better watch what you say,” one student says to an unsuspecting classmate.  “She hears everything,” he continues.

They know me well.

I then overhear something said about me and say something in response, to the surprise of the guilty offender.

He looks up, surprised.

“Told you so,” says the other student.

I laugh.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that first period was not as bad as last semester’s class.  Second period was a dream.

That was the best part of my day.

I had Planning after second period and went to pick up the dogs.  Ok.  This was another good part of my day…seeing their happy, waggy behinds greeting me.  I had paid a little extra to get all three bathed, and they were soft, fluffy, and smelled like doggy perfume.

Pele thought I was up to something…I think he was worried I would be dropping him off at the doggy hotel again…

Aubie was her usual happy self, but you can’t tell it in the picture below.  She assumed her “I Didn’t Eat for a Week to Fit into My Outfit Model Face” when asked to pose…

I hurried to gather a few coupons together, planning to head back to the grocery store for a few more items before the current sales end.  However, it was just at that time that I received a text from Rooster…

“Mama, can you come get me at lunch.  I’m sick.”

Oh no.  I get visibly upset when my children are sick.  I mean, you’d think I’d don a professional “doctor” attitude…semi-cold and all business when the kids don’t feel well, but noooooo…I have to get all weepy-worried still!  Ugh.  Remember…I have turned into a cryer.

Anyhoo…I ran back to the school, this time in Mom-Mode, not Substitute-Mode.

Now, you have to understand that when Rooster gets sick, he REALLY gets sick.  He’s not your sniffly kind of kid.  He has a strong immune system, so when a virus hits, he goes down hard.

He went straight to bed when he got home.

Ever the practical gal and wanting to get my free spaghetti sauce, I headed to the store, where I got this for $1.83, saving over $20…

During my trip, though, I received a phone call from Rooster.

“Mama, where are you?”

“I’m at Publix.  Are you okay?”

“I threw up, and I need you to come home and clean it up,” he said.

“Weren’t you in the bathroom,” I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

“No, I couldn’t make it there,” he said.  “I threw up on the floor.”

Great.  This is just what every mother wants to hear when she’s in the process of putting food in her buggy.  Kind of takes the appetite away, you know?

Unfortunately, this is not the first time he’s done this.  The last time he got sick, he tried to be smart and threw up into his trash can.  The only problem?  It was a wicker basket.  Everything went right through.

Blech.

Well, I made an instant decision.  Rooster will be cleaning up the puke when he feels better, and as soon as we’re financially able, that carpet is getting replaced.  Between dog puke and human puke, we’ve covered almost his entire room.

Blech.

Sorry for the vivid imagery.  I know you didn’t ask for it.  However, when you load up my blog, you do so at your own risk.  All’s fair in love and AuburnChick’s blog, eh?

LOL

The rest of my afternoon was spent arguing with Chicky (as only moms and daughters can do), discussing my “issues,” and catching up on laundry from the weekend.

Oh yeah, and answering phone calls from Rooster.

Yep.  He used his cell phone to call me from his bedroom to ask me to take him a glass of water.

Seriously?

Yep.

Poor kid.  He has FCAT the next two days, and I’m thinking he’s going to have to make them up.

But, if you live in my world, today’s events are really not that unusual.  It’s just another day in my life.

Filed under: children, Saving Money | Tagged: , , , | 2 Comments »

Always Carry Eyeliner in Your Purse

Posted on February 26, 2010 by auburnchick

Guys, unless you’re Adam Lambert, you might not need the above advice, but ladies, if you’re reading this (and you know you are), press on.

You see, I am so thankful that I am somewhat smart and usually plan ahead.  I’m actually known for being organized.  If you saw my house, you’d think otherwise.

But I digress.

Now, you might be wondering why you might want to carry eyeliner in your purse.

If you’re a teenager, you might be meeting some hot computer nerd in the library for lunch, so you prep your face in the bathroom during 3rd period to get ready.

But, if you’re a mom who is about to attend her daughter’s last soccer banquet, you might find it especially prudent to carry an extra stick of charcoal in your mom-purse.

It all started with this afternoon…

Wait.

No.

It all started in August when Chicky began her senior year.

I thought I was in control of my emotions.  I’ve always been the mom who held to the philosophy that my job as a parent was to teach my children the skills they needed to function on their own (i.e. outside of my home) and love and serve the Lord.

So, milestones like tying shoes for the first time, getting drivers’ licenses, and attending proms have rarely made me cry big mom tears.

Something happened this year, though.  Suddenly it wasn’t about the “firsts” but the “lasts.”

Yes, as I type this, I am psycho-analyzing myself (a scary thought, eh?) and realizing that this is, in fact, what the deal is.

Anyhoo…moving on…

Since attending Chicky’s team to the Final Four playoffs, I’ve been busy creating a slide show for the soccer banquet.  Oh, not a small thing, I assure you, but one I really sunk my teeth into.  After all, I love technology, and I discovered that Macs are the way to go for this type of project.

I give God the glory for helping me create a great slide show.

As I looked through the pictures, searched for music, and edited the video, I found myself tearing up numerous times.

It didn’t matter how many times I watched the completed video…I still got choked up…especially during the portion dedicated to seniors.  For every picture Chicky selected for herself (she didn’t want any naked baby surprises), a memory rose to the surface.  I remembered the exact moment in time when each photo was created, and it tore at my heart.

Still, I persevered, creating personalized DVDs for each senior and coach (thanks, LightScribe!).

This afternoon after work, I headed to Hallmark to select a birthday card for Chicky’s coach.  He’s turning “hmmm-hmmm” years old today.  While I was there, my eyes lit upon a “goodbye” card.

Oh my, but hot tears rose to the surface as I read it.  In May, Chicky’s coach will be moving to Washington to be near his children, so this had been his last season with the girls.  The card was perfect.  I bought both for the girls to sign.

When I got out to my car, I allowed myself time to have a good cry.

I cried as I drove from Hallmark to the church where we were having the banquet.  I called Super Sis and told her I thought I was having a PMS moment.  She listened, agreed that part was probably due to hormones, but justified my feelings by reminding me that this was a year of “last’s” (there’s the word again).

I wiped my eyes and went into the church to finish setting up.  My heart felt heavy though.

One of the other moms was there, and we sat down together to watch the DVD.  Nobody would be there for some time, so we had the place to ourselves.  We ate popcorn and drank soda as we watched the 19-minute video.

I fanned my eyes as the music for the senior section started.

Then she left, and I had some quiet time with my knitting before realizing that I needed to check my face in the mirror.

Oh my!  I raced back to my purse for my eyeliner, getting interrupted to unlock the church doors for a coach who had arrived to set up trophies for his team.

I sheepishly admitted that I had been reapplying makeup after having a cry party.  He chuckled in understanding.

The tears returned later that evening as Coach J gave his long farewell speech.

I cried when I started the video.

Sigh.

I teared up when the president of the booster club presented flowers to me…

I cried tears of laughter when Coach J joked about a “certain” player’s mom who, nine games out of ten, ran out on the field during warmups to take a “certain” player (the one who ate the most before each game but still managed to get hungry minutes before game time) a pack of crackers.

Guilty.  I even did this during the Final Four game.  Chicky was mortified, but when she sent out an SOS, I responded!
Regardless, I cried.

Ugh.

I’ve turned into  a cryer.

And the year isn’t over yet.  Chicky still has graduation.  Another BIG “last!”

Oy!

I think I’d better invest in a couple more sticks of eyeliner.  I think they are going to come in handy!

Filed under: children | Tagged: , , , | 1 Comment »

Mother-Son Weekend

Posted on August 1, 2009 by auburnchick

Soccer season has officially begun.

Chicky and the Mr. left for the other side of the state for her first weekend of practice.

That left Rooster and me at home alone.

It’s actually a good combination, as our personalities mesh quite well.

This morning, he casually mentioned how we had not been to Such-and-Such Restaurant in a long time, and how we’re the only two in the family who really like it.

Gee, boy, could the hint be any more obvious?

I had to laugh.  You see, when the other two members of the family are gone, we have a couple of things we like to do together…eat at this restaurant and watch movies.

We knew that a movie would push the budget too far, so we opted for lunch out instead.

But first, I wanted to get in my workout.  After biking 5.6 miles with a minimal amount of pain and a lot of sweat, and a nice long shower, we settled in to watch the X Games.  I find it difficult to watch these sports…too many people falling down wrong on ankles and elbows.  Ouch!

We finally got around to our lunch plans.

It was so much fun!  Rooster is a cute kid (did I actually just type that?) teenager with the personality to match.  The conversation was easy, and lunch was terrific.

Then, we drove to the bookstore on the beach.

Ahhh…the smell of new books.  It’s almost as satisfying as a a Godiva Caramel Chocolixer (almost but not quite).

I had a $2 coupon that I simply could not allow to go unused.

I headed straight for the knitting books.

In my heart, I knew what I wanted, but I looked, disinterested, at some of the other books before walking away from that aisle.  In my hands?

Ahhh…Cookie A…you’ve just got to love her patterns!  I’ve made a few of the patterns available on Knitty and love how creative she is!  I’ve already googled for pattern errata and found a list here.

Rooster was ready to go by then, but when he mentioned that Brad Thor has a new book out…well, I had to take a peek.

Thor is the author of the series of books I’ve recently read my way through…with the exception of the second to the last one.  Its paperback version was a temptation that proved too much for me.

I mean…I had to find out what happened between the last book I’d read and the final one in the series.  It would be like reading the first and third Lord of the Ring books and skipping the second (were there only three?).  This one went in my hands with the knitting book…

I figured we’d better get out of the store after that.

We had a rather mellow afternoon followed by more X Games.   We watched one gal, a deaf young lady, win her Super X race (dirt bike).  It was very inspirational to see her fly through the course using her other senses and raw talent.  Wow!

Tomorrow will be a day of church, NASCAR, and knitting…maybe even a little napping.

Boy, do I love these Mother-Son Weekends!

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

This Ain’t a Hotel

Posted on May 19, 2009 by auburnchick

Ok…so my grammar isn’t perfect, but if you’re from the South, it sounds like home to you.

This morning proved interesting, to say the least.

Chicky was up at the crack of dawn…straightening her hair and beautifying herself for her first day as an “unofficial” senior.  For some reason, I woke up raring to go.  We tend to be the early birds in the family.

I headed into the kitchen, fed Molly, but never saw Aubie and Pele.  They sleep with Rooster.  Apparently he had not gotten up yet, and they were still in his room.

I saw Chicky heading to his door, just about to wake him.

This has become a daily ritual with them.  She yells at him to get up, and he grudgingly obeys.  He doesn’t want to miss his ride, after all.

Throughout the years, I’ve tried to train Rooster to get up to an alarm.  He just cannot seem to do it.  Well, he can, but only when it’s something important, like math team competition or a flight across country to attend a soccer tournament.  But any ordinary day…no way, no how.

It’s not for lack of sleep, because both kids hit the sack between 9 and 9:30 each weeknight.  Yeah, I’m a meanie, but I know that teens need more sleep than is the common perception.

So, I did what a good mom should do.  I stopped Chicky in her tracks and called her into the kitchen, where I explained my plan and the reason.  If Rooster doesn’t learn to get up on time now, he’ll never learn.  It’s a habit that he needs to develop.  If not, he’ll eventually miss college classes and even work.  I figured that paying the repurcussions now would be a whole lot better than losing pay or a job later on down the road.

And so Chicky and I read devotions (quietly so as not to wake up the sleeping males), and we headed off to school.

I gave my friend, the Attendance Lady, a heads-up and asked her not to excuse him when he arrived.  And then I headed off to file papers in the records office during first period, which happened to be my Planning.

And I fretted.

What would Rooster say?  How would he handle himself?  How angry was he going to be at me?

It didn’t take me long to find out.

The clock ticked until it was 8:20, nearly an hour into the school day.  The Attendance Lady found me in the file room and told me that Rooster had just arrived, looking a bit bewildered.  She asked her customary question, “Why are you late?”

She said he shook his head in confusion and muttered, “Nobody woke me up.”

The Attendance Lady and I both laughed, and I was relieved that he seemed to be in okay spirits.  However, I dreaded seeing him later and took great care to avoid him in the hallways.

As I waited for him in the car after school, I played out possible conversations in my mind.  And then I saw him coming.

He made eye contact, grinned a sheepish grin, and shook his head.  And then he relayed his morning.

He said he woke up with a start and noticed the dogs still sleeping.  He started to go back to sleep but took a peek at the clock.  Shocked to see it said 7:47, he jumped out of bed under the assumption that the clocks had stopped functioning.  He went through the house looking at the clocks, but all of them said the same thing.  At the same time, he discovered that Chicky and I were missing, as were our cars.

He heard the shower running and realized that the Mr. was still home.  He, too, had overslept and was late for work.

Like father, like son.

Rooster waited until the Mr. was ready so he could drive him to school.  Nary a word was said.

Rooster had figured that since the Chickster had been looking out for him, things would continue this way indefinitely.  To which I responded that, “This ain’t a hotel where you can request wake-up calls.  Just because we stayed at a Hawthorn last weekend doesn’t mean we’re the Hilton.”

Lesson learned.

Maybe (as evidenced by the pile of dishes that he mysteriously lets pile up every time it’s his turn to wash).

One day, I’ll share the story of how I got Chicky to be ready on time. It’s a good one.

Filed under: children | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

I’m Really Confused

Posted on September 12, 2008 by auburnchick

I had a good day.  At least I thought I did.

I went to work and even managed to find gas when I got off (pictures of the lines to follow in another post).  I took Soccer Chick and a friend to the high school football game.

That’s about when my day went south.

Life with teenagers is like a roller coaster ride.  There are a lot of ups and downs, and every day is filled with hairpin turns.  You never know what to expect, and you’re usually not prepared for what’s around the corner.

Soccer Chick and I have a tense relationship.  It’s almost like we’re both fighting for control.  I have a problem with this.  I am the adult.  She is the child.  We have huge respect issues going on, and I don’t know how to get through them.

You think that once you’re out of toddlerhood, you’re good to go.  I mean, you finally get your kids sleeping through the night, going potty in the toilet, and eating meals at normal times.  They are fairly self-sufficient.

Then they become teenagers, and they think they can change the rules on you.

I’m pretty much at my wits end.  Chick told me one day that even if I let her do whatever she wanted, she still wouldn’t be happy.

What’s a parent to do when their child tells them that?

Needless to say, I’m very confused.

I’m not exactly sure what my role is anymore.

Oh, I know that my eternal purpose is to glorify God, but what am I supposed to do with this earthling He loaned to me.

I’m hurt, confused, and frustrated.

Parenting is so hard.

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