The hardest job in the world
Do you ever have those days when you just don’t seem to get anything done? There are a ton of things I could do, but nothing has a deadline of tomorrow and I’m in one of those moods where it just isn’t happening. Not at all. I’m all over the place, totally aimless and achieving nothing at all.
I think I was thrown off track by a row I had with my daughter. Now just tell me, how many of you out there think it’s appropriate for a 13 year old to go into the city with her friends to see a movie that only starts at 9pm? Anybody? No, really? You amaze me!
Apparently I am the meanest mother in the world and absolutely the only one who finds this not what a 13 year old should really be doing on a Saturday evening during term-time (OK, read ANYTIME here). We have grown wise to the fact that our daughter wants to have sleepovers with her best friend at every opportunity – in the main because the friend’s parents seem to exercise no parental control whatsoever, so who knows what is going on – but you can bet one thing and that is that it won’t be anything that we would condone. Sleepovers at our house are not at all attractive….funny that…
So I know you’ve probably all been there before me, but the mother of all rows ensued and while said daughter is just in a bad mood, it really threw me a loop and put me on the wrong foot all day. I KNOW we are right, but I just don’t get what is going through the head’s of all these other parents. It certainly makes it hard when you start dealing with kids who are totally differently parented from your own.
Anyway I am having to go back to basics here and try to do just one little job at at time and actually finish it, otherwise nothing at all is going to get done. I hate being on the wrong foot. It’s such a waste of a day.
Sometimes I find parenting just the hardest job in the world.
Helen
August 29th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Oh dear. You are completely right of course. It just isn’t reasonable for a girl that age to be out and about at that time of day without an adult. Still, it is hard to be the “bad guy” and the only one who seems to lay down any rules. Sigh. This too shall pass!
August 29th, 2010 at 10:18 pm
It’s bad but bearable when the kids scream “All the other mothers let their kids (do whatever),” but you know they don’t. But I do start to question myself when some of the other mothers DO let their kids (do whatever). And I hate that. I know I am doing the right thing. And yet these other seemingly reasonable mothers make me doubt myself. And of course my son picks up on that in an instant. Grrr.
But you are so right. Even in Switzerland, 13 is too young to go out on your own that late. Thank you for fighting the good fight on behalf of the rest of us!
August 30th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
Being the mother of a teenage daughter, in my experience, is the hardest job in the world. You seem to be doing it very well, though, even though I know it takes a lot out of you to do the right thing.
September 1st, 2010 at 2:37 am
I know I’m late in posting this but and by the way I agree totally that thirteen is too young… one thing that I have learnt in parenting that often if you touch base with the other parents they may feel the same as you and are not as strong…..their kids may well be telling them that all their friends parents allow it what ever it is at the moment. If you can touch base with the other parents you may find that they will back you and be very relieved.
In years to come of course you won’t be able to do that but instead will have to trust that you did a great job parenting and that you can trust your children to make the right choices…which is where I’m at now 🙂