It never ceases to surprise me how quickly teenagers can go from Pollyanna to Teen Wolf. I was in the kitchen helping my daughter collect ingredients for her cooking class when I realised we didn't have any carrots. So I suggested she ring a friend to ask her to bring some to class. My daughter was horrified.
"No way!"
"Why not?" I asked, mystified.
"Well...it's 9 pm. That's just rude!"
I looked at her sceptically. "Really. That is very considerate of you" I said dryly. "We don't have any carrots so I'm sure she would understand."
And before I could blink,it was on. "I gave you the list on Friday. It's all your fault!" She quickly progressed to accusing me of saying she was a liar (say, what?) so I quickly sent her to the Toilet Timeout to calm down. I was left feeling sideswiped again and wondering how collecting ingredients could lead to a scene.
Part of it is my fault. I am aware of my tendency to be excessively reasonable which tends to lead to debates which tend to lead to scenes. The trouble is, the reasoning side of teens' brains have not developed fully yet so it's like trying to argue with a 3 year old. PS. Don't tell a teen that - they really don't like it. So I have given my husband a codeword 'Pitbull' which he yells out when he can see me about to be 'reasonable'. Works great most of the time - when he's around. Need parenting advice? Read How to Raise a Child
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