What is Up With these Teenagers?!
I remember being a little too loud, a little too smart assed and a little too obnoxious when I was a teenager....ok, maybe I don't actually remember, but I am admitting to this because all teens are pretty damned obnoxious at one point or another....but teens nowadays are taking the cake.
Now, I'm sure that as with anything there are exceptions to the rule, but what I am personally witnessing is scaring the living daylights outta me because before I know it my toddler and infant will be hitting 13 and I'll be a parent to this lovely age group.....
Why am I writing this...well, every day that I drive my son to & from preschool I have to pass by the local public high school. And every day hordes of these kids literally jump out into the road to go to class or the Dairy Queen across the street without so much as looking to see if a car is coming only to proceed to s l o w l y saunter across the street while cars sit idling waiting for them to get the hell out of the way. Today in particular, on our way home, a group of 6 kids literally stopped in the middle of the road in front of my car and stood there waiting for one of their friends to catch up with them. WTF? Are you kidding me? And I am talking about the middle of the road...not even a crosswalk. Do these kids have absolutely no respect for anyone else? Where did this sense of entitlement come from?
I know that I always respected my elders and people in general when I was a teen. I was raised to be that way and never doubted that that was what one should be like. So are today's teens just not getting "raised"...or what the hell is going on? I don't get it. And don't get me started on the kid that flew in front of my car on a skateboard while talking on his cell phone and made me slam my breaks with my two little ones in the back. Or the little attitude filled Bratz doll look a likes that look more ready to swing from a pole than take Geography 101. Ugh.
It's really disheartening. I pray my kids are respectful and socially aware individuals. I pray that they don't want to look like punks and whores. I pray that they turn out good while surrounded by what I see every day.....and I pray we can afford for them to go to private schools with uniforms. Screw the individuality factor. They can be individuals on the weekends and after school....but I, for one, do not want to see my son looking like a Goth grim reaper or my daughter like a porn star. Give me plaid skirts, khakis and a blazer, thank you.
My husband and I are doing our best to set good examples and bring our kids up right even at this early of an age....but peer pressure is a scary thing and kids seem so much more insouciant and "advanced" (in negative ways) then when I was a kid.....*Sigh*.....maybe it's too early for me to worry about all this....but those freakin kids I have to avoid running over every day are just too much for this old girl!
Man, I sound old & bitter. Ha!
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Great post, our ModelMom!
Yes, I quite agree, teens can be a frightening sight, these days. Not so long ago I was one; but like you, I still held some semblance of respect. I did NOT sass teachers or elders in general; I knew that if I did, I would catch merry hell upon arrival home, should my parents find out. And, you must know, our ModelMom, that I certainly did NOT stroll across the road in front of traffic. Yet, I have seen teens do this often, and it annoys me very much.
I will be honest: The naughtiness I daily observe has made me feel resistant to having kids at all. When I see how these children dress for school, how they parade themselves with cell phones and loud prattle about sex, swearing and littering, I feel a deep sense of disgust. Much of the blame, though, may lie with parents. It is true that some kids fall prey to group pressure; but kids derived from solid, stable homes--that is, with parents who care and are consistent with rules and boundaries--have a better chance of surpassing those difficulties as normally as you did. A lot of parents fail their children, our ModelMom; I see it all the time with the way some of them handle their spoiled, unruly little brats, when they carry on in public. Scarcely any discipline and seemingly zero consequences; it is no wonder so many young children behave rudely and grow up with a sense of entitlement, quite oblivious and uncaring to the needs of others. If they are not taught when small, those lessons may not be there to guide them as they mature.
So, be encouraged, our ModelMom. You and your husband are doing your best, and I think that's great. If these efforts are maintained, you retain a good chance of raising respectful children, even in perilous times like these. Your deep concern gives hope for their future...and ours :)!
thank you IOAW! :-)
i really appreciate your reply to my post. i do hope that you're right and my kids turn out fine because of the boundaries and discipline we are giving our kids and plan to continue doing so for years and years to come. and i wholly agree with you....i think alot of parents aren't providing their kids with true guidance and discipline.
it seems like a lot of parents want to be their kids' friends rather than a parent or are afraid their kids won't like them if they set rules, etc. i guess when you raise your kids to expect to always be catered to and never have to answer to anyone else for their behavior, they are going to expect everyone else in the world to be just as tolerant of their crap as their parents have been/are. it's sad. i am definitely not the mom that allows her child to smack her in public and just grin and bear it. the thing is, parenting is a lot of work and it is a lot easier to turn a blind eye to a child's misbehaviour than it is to address the issue and be consistant about it. i am no perfect mom, but i have laid the ground rules and little by little my son is starting to get it (he's three). i rather be exhausted by this now then end up getting a call 10 years from now that he's locked up in juvie.
Airing my dirty laundry at: Peacocks on Leashes
Yes, 'tis true, our ModelMom.
You are quite right--many parents want to befriend their children, and they shouldn't, at least not while their children are growing up. Yes, it is good to be friendly with them, but not a friend, for this is something children neither need nor ultimately want. Children, inevitably, will find friends for themselves, outside their homes; what they require from Mum and Dad are supervision, rules, support, and direction, each on a premise of love and all things their friends, being children themselves, can not give them!
How many times have we heard, on television, the confused youngster moan about how his or her parents did not provide guidance and discipline? Children do that: they will come back and say what they feel parents or a parent failed to do. What seemed a thing of a approval now will become a point of failure later, and parents generally end up absorbing the blame. Hence, it is best to create a strong, positive foundation early, on which children can build and learn, whether children, for the moment, like it or not. In this respect, you and your husband are well on your way, our ModelMom. Later on, I am certain your kids will thank you, if not by word, then by the decent lives they choose to live. What could be worthier? :)
You are very welcome! Best wishes with your efforts to be a good parent.
Yes, 'tis true, our ModelMom.
You are quite right--many parents want to befriend their children, and they shouldn't, at least not while their children are growing up. Yes, it is good to be friendly with them, but not a friend, for this is something children neither need nor ultimately want. Children, inevitably, will find friends for themselves, outside their homes; what they require from Mum and Dad are supervision, rules, support, and direction, each on a premise of love and all things their friends, being children themselves, can not give them!
How many times have we heard, on television, the confused youngster moan about how his or her parents did not provide guidance and discipline? Children do that: they will come back and say what they feel parents or a parent failed to do. What seemed a thing of a approval now will become a point of failure later, and parents generally end up absorbing the blame. Hence, it is best to create a strong, positive foundation early, on which children can build and learn, whether children, for the moment, like it or not. In this respect, you and your husband are well on your way, our ModelMom. Later on, I am certain your kids will thank you, if not by word, then by the decent lives they choose to live. What could be worthier? :)
You are very welcome! Best wishes with your efforts to be a good parent.
Great post, our ModelMom!
Yes, I quite agree, teens can be a frightening sight, these days. Not so long ago I was one; but like you, I still held some semblance of respect. I did NOT sass teachers or elders in general; I knew that if I did, I would catch merry hell upon arrival home, should my parents find out. And, you must know, our ModelMom, that I certainly did NOT stroll across the road in front of traffic. Yet, I have seen teens do this often, and it annoys me very much.
I will be honest: The naughtiness I daily observe has made me feel resistant to having kids at all. When I see how these children dress for school, how they parade themselves with cell phones and loud prattle about sex, swearing and littering, I feel a deep sense of disgust. Much of the blame, though, may lie with parents. It is true that some kids fall prey to group pressure; but kids derived from solid, stable homes--that is, with parents who care and are consistent with rules and boundaries--have a better chance of surpassing those difficulties as normally as you did. A lot of parents fail their children, our ModelMom; I see it all the time with the way some of them handle their spoiled, unruly little brats, when they carry on in public. Scarcely any discipline and seemingly zero consequences; it is no wonder so many young children behave rudely and grow up with a sense of entitlement, quite oblivious and uncaring to the needs of others. If they are not taught when small, those lessons may not be there to guide them as they mature.
So, be encouraged, our ModelMom. You and your husband are doing your best, and I think that's great. If these efforts are maintained, you retain a good chance of raising respectful children, even in perilous times like these. Your deep concern gives hope for their future...and ours :)!
AHA!! Welcome to my world ModelMom
Sassys
My son is still only 18 but when he was 13 my household was a veritable battle field! For some strange reason my daughter was not nearly as bad at that age.....she would get very snotty, but never to the point that she wouldn't realize how close she was to some serious "YOU ARE GROUNDED TILL YOU ARE 40" but my son...no, no he apparently would "borrow" my car when I was sound asleep at 3 a.m ...now I only just found this out about 6 months ago and to say I was shocked is an understatement...he was 13 years old driving my car at 3 a.m and I had NO clue:(...the mere fact that he still doesn't know how to drive leaves me wondering how the hell he did that!...but I did learn to pick my battles with him as you will with yours...I allowed him to get his "Mohawk" but did not allow him to get his lip pierced. See? The hair grows back...but the hole doesn't go away...Next kid that does that to you blare your horn at them and rev your engine...it might scare them enough to "get it". LOL.
My take on the teen issue Modelmom
I am like you--don't even get me started. But, I agree with IOAW about the parents being the biggest influence with these kids and the fact that yes there is peer pressure. You as a parent of a young child are starting the process as we speak. Starting now with the teaching of good manners, having respect for oneself and other people is the best thing. All you can do is your best at teaching this to them, and after their teens, you can only hope that everything you have taught them and continue to teach them, they think and act on. I know some parents that have done this and still have a fight on their hands, however, those are few and far between compared to the ones who's parents just threw it all to the wayside because of laziness.
I as a parent still get on my girls for being a little disrespectful here and there, it doesn't stop just because they are of age, I am still a parent, no matter their age.
As far as the peer pressure thing goes, I as a teen really never caved to it all, and I didnt find it hard to say no, or not to be involved with things I flat out new were wrong. So I really hate hearing that ' little johnny fell into the peer pressure of it all ' . Little Johhnny could have said no, it's all about the choices they make. I have always respected others young and old and I believe that it should be this way.
These teens today know that when your the driver and they are the pedestrians, that they have the right of way, using that to their advantage of course for being disrespectful, and that you have to stop for them. I would have laid on my horn and scared the hell out of them and told them to get their butts out of the road. I am not above yelling at them , dont care who's kids they are.
It is a scary thing to raise kids today, because even if your teaching all the right things, it's all a matter of whether they are going to listen and remember what you taught them, and also, as long a parents rights keep diminishing away, these kids will take advantage of that and continue this form of behavior and that in turn makes our jobs a lot harder than they have to be.
Those kids were around when I was a teenager too
There were plenty of !@#hole teens around when I was a teen. I simply wasn't one of them. I'm pretty sure that's the case today too. Since we aren't immersed in the high school culture, we don't see all the good kids - just the pains in the ass that stroll down the middle of the street.
And yeah, you sound old, ModelMom. HAHAHAHAHHAA! How are you?
I'm behind in the blog because the kids have been doing lots of doctors appts. and such and I've just been struggling to keep up with regular life. The baby has an immune deficiency disorder, which may not be as bad as it sounds. Oy!
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Brenna
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brennaaaa!
aaah! sorry...sounds like you are going through it right now. i hope the baby is okay! please keep me posted. is it associated with the allergies? i know allergies can affect the immune system. ugh. sending healthy thoughts your/her way!
and yeah...i think you are right....i remember there being a bunch of punkasses when i was a kid too. i just think there are more now. maybe not, but they definitely wear a lot less clothes then back in my day! lololol!
Airing my dirty laundry at: Peacocks on Leashes
I believe this child was put on earth to make me wrinkled & gray
Yeah, we're going through it, it's crazy. Apparently the immune system thing is separate. We're just lucky. Found out yesterday that she does NOT have Celiac disease, so I'm fortunate on that. Still waiting to see if my son does.
I agree on the clothes. Clothes are smaller now!
www.labelitorloseit.com discount code = tiger
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Brenna
Blog at Writing UP!
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celiacs
that's good news! i'm sure your son will be fine as well. i am still so overwhelmed by how many kids these days have allergy issues. i just dont understand. i really wish we could find out the true root to all this. we are more careful than past generations were with food & their kids yet our kids are getting kicked in the ass by their own immune systems. i mean, my husband's grandmother fed her kids lamb, beef, wheat, cheese, etc. starting at 2 months of age! gave them brandy on their gums when they were teething....for god's sake...and they are all healthy and fine. my mom gave me LOW FAT COWS MILK instead of breastmilk or formula (and how my pediatrician didnt say anything to her kills me) and i have some mild allergies but otherwise turned out fine (although maybe i could've been an astrophysicist and 6 feet tall had she given me breastmilk or formula). i just dont understand. seems unfair. pisses me off to be honest.
i really hope your bebes outgrow all this. and in the meantime you are able to keep your sanity!!!
Airing my dirty laundry at: Peacocks on Leashes