Teenagers

My daughter turned 13 last week - YIKES!  Where does the time go, and what is all this talk about teenagers being so difficult?  I guess I will find out soon enough (if at all)!  This is a picture I drew of her that was from a photo taken at a beach in Monterey about a year ago.  I liked the easy going feeling of the hair flowing in the wind, and her happy, relaxed expression.  I hope I captured that in the drawing.

There is definitely a change in how my daughter behaves versus a year ago.  Besides having a TON of homework this year, she is more strong-willed, and more independent, and takes longer to choose what she is going to wear each day!   But this is all very innocent, and not difficult to handle (the homework seems to be the most difficult part).  Last week, I gave in and gave her a cell phone.  I hope this was a good decision.  There will definitely be limits on how much time she spends on the cell phone with friends, but  I think being able to get in touch with her as she is out doing sports after school, or hanging out with friends will make life much easier for everyone!

I try and look at this teenage phase as the beginnings of becoming an adult. It is nice to have adult conversations with her as we start to see her opinions on different things. But on the other hand, it isn't always the best idea for us to include her in all the adult topics, they can be scary and stressful.  We'll see how this year turns out, I hope she can enjoy her new-found teenage life, but still maintain that joyful youthful side to her.  In fact, I would hope we all keep part of our lives "young".  I think kids like to see adults act youthful at times.  Makes us look more approachable I suppose...