12 Year Old Know it All
That pretty much describes my son, Zach.
I know it's pretty much just a stage in his life, but it infuriates me. I have spent the better part of my morning today fixing our home computer because of him.
The little bugger! I could kick his ass!
It all started a few weeks ago when the speakers on the computer 'mysteriously' quit working. Imagine that! Then, suddenly, the mouse pointer was different, and, low and behold, nobody knew a thing about how it could have changed!
Needless to say, it was Zach, messing around with presets and places where he absolutely shouldn't have been.
I ended up having to restore the computer back to a time before he had started changing things he shouldn't have. God only knows what he had changed that I hadn't discovered yet.
Which brings me to the point of my topic.
I find myself struggling at times, wondering just what happened to the good little boy I used to have. That little boy has disappeared, I'm afraid, and I've been left with a sullen, disgruntled 12 year old who talks back to me when I tell him to take the garbage out and burn it. Then, as if nobody is going to notice a thing, decides he is too lazy to walk the entire 20 ft to the burning barrel and stops half way, burning the garbage in a pile in the center of the back yard.
WTF!!!
Perhaps my feelings are just hurt this morning. I'm sure every mother has gone through this stage in their child's life and somehow managed to survive it. I just hope it passes quickly.
I know it's pretty much just a stage in his life, but it infuriates me. I have spent the better part of my morning today fixing our home computer because of him.
The little bugger! I could kick his ass!
It all started a few weeks ago when the speakers on the computer 'mysteriously' quit working. Imagine that! Then, suddenly, the mouse pointer was different, and, low and behold, nobody knew a thing about how it could have changed!
Needless to say, it was Zach, messing around with presets and places where he absolutely shouldn't have been.
I ended up having to restore the computer back to a time before he had started changing things he shouldn't have. God only knows what he had changed that I hadn't discovered yet.
Which brings me to the point of my topic.
I find myself struggling at times, wondering just what happened to the good little boy I used to have. That little boy has disappeared, I'm afraid, and I've been left with a sullen, disgruntled 12 year old who talks back to me when I tell him to take the garbage out and burn it. Then, as if nobody is going to notice a thing, decides he is too lazy to walk the entire 20 ft to the burning barrel and stops half way, burning the garbage in a pile in the center of the back yard.
WTF!!!
Perhaps my feelings are just hurt this morning. I'm sure every mother has gone through this stage in their child's life and somehow managed to survive it. I just hope it passes quickly.
@ 10:33 AM
4 Comments:
Yep he is on the cusp of being a teenager! Well one suggestion is to talk wiht him (especially in the car since he can't go anywhere) and discuss the issues. Plus password protecting your computer can't hurt...
Are you running XP ? If so give him his own limited access account, then he cant mess with the settings.
I'm sorry, but it won't pass quickly. The pre-teen, early-teen stage is the trickiest, however. They are often going to be challenging boundaries yet again (think of it as an enhanced terrible twos - or terrible threes for boys, it seems).
Now is the time to buckle down with consistent discipline. He's going to try to draw you into an emotional confrontation. The best thing I can tell you to do is to not get into it. Pick and choose battles.
You've still got power are jurisdiction over the kid, so use it when necessary.
What? You were home today and didn't email me?? It's lonely without my email buddy! :)
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