We have talked about two different mistakes parents of teenagers make: expecting the worse and looking for parenting answers in others. Today’s mistake is making mountains out of molehills. Of which I am sometimes the queen.
The best example I can give in my parenting experience is when my daughter first began to wear makeup. She thought the raccoon look was the way to go. I absolutely hated the thick, black lines that surrounded her eyes.
It would cause constant arguments between us. One time I even pulled her out of our church’s youth group to make her go into the bathroom and rub it off.
Did she look ridiculous? Yes, I believe she did. But was it worth the battles? Looking back, it really wasn’t.
In fact, I had a mom with an older teen tell me this. She said it was a phase that my daughter would grow out of and sure enough, she has. In fact, she is quite artistic when it comes to her makeup (she wants to become a cosmetologist) so now I actually ask her for makeup tips.
Whether it’ makeup, hair or clothing, most times these are molehills. In other words, not worth getting worked up. Of course, there could be exceptions to this, such as believing a teen daughter is dressing too provocatively or a teen son’s pants hanging to his knees. But for the most part, these are phases that will pass.
It’s important to consider ahead of time what will be mountain moments in raising a teenager. For instance, drinking is one of mine. This is a danger, so a big deal would be made about an issue with this. But bright-colored hair, I have decided is a molehill.
You might even take time to write down a list of common issues that can come up with raising teenagers. Next to each one decide, will this be a mountain or a molehill? It can help prepare you when the battle comes.