I think parenting a teen is the most difficult stage of raising kids! I'm on my second teenager and have two to go. I can't say that I learned too much from the first one because they are two very different girls. The only thing they have in common is their beauty!
Otherwise, they're day and night.
Their personalities, their interests...all different!
Hormones, high school, and all that comes with it.
If you've read any of my parenting page at the top of my blog, you'll know that I've already said that I am NO expert! I'm just plugging away trying to figure it out. I'm trying to be the mom I was created to be. I'm trying to give each of my kids the best life I can. It's trial and error in many cases. What works for one child doesn't work for another child.
Although the one error proof thing is LOVE.
They all need love.
The one thing I think of when I think of the things I wish I would've done more of is give each of them my love. I'm not just talking about telling them I love them. I'm talking about loving them. Loving them in their love language. Does it do any good to speak to someone in English if they don't speak English? No. We need to speak to people in the language they understand. Same goes with the way we love our kids.
Each of them has their own love language. Just like we do. There is a certain way that we feel loved the most. If you don't know your love language or the love language of your spouse, I highly recommend "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman. Because kids can't necessarily tell us what their love language is, we may have to do some work to figure it out. There is also a book called The Five Love Languages of Children. If you click on those links it will tell you about assessments and other stuff.
I'm recommitting to myself that I am going to take time to discover each of my kid's love languages. I find that at this time, specifically with my teenager, it's a little more difficult to reach her at times. So...all the more important to speak her language. Sometimes it seems as though there's a lot of "static" on the line and communication gets broken up.
No matter if I'm trying to love my 8 year old, my 10 year old, my 14 year old, or my 21 year old...they all have a special way they feel loved the most. It's my job to seek and find.
When we have a heart connection with our kids, they are more receptive to what we have to say. When our heart connection is amiss, they're harder to reach.
One thing is for sure...you can't go wrong by simply listening to your children. That much I am definitely learning.
My goal I'll be focusing on:
Less talking and more listening.
I'm so thankful for the blessing of my four children!
If you've read any of my parenting page at the top of my blog, you'll know that I've already said that I am NO expert! I'm just plugging away trying to figure it out. I'm trying to be the mom I was created to be. I'm trying to give each of my kids the best life I can. It's trial and error in many cases. What works for one child doesn't work for another child.
Although the one error proof thing is LOVE.
They all need love.
The one thing I think of when I think of the things I wish I would've done more of is give each of them my love. I'm not just talking about telling them I love them. I'm talking about loving them. Loving them in their love language. Does it do any good to speak to someone in English if they don't speak English? No. We need to speak to people in the language they understand. Same goes with the way we love our kids.
Each of them has their own love language. Just like we do. There is a certain way that we feel loved the most. If you don't know your love language or the love language of your spouse, I highly recommend "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman. Because kids can't necessarily tell us what their love language is, we may have to do some work to figure it out. There is also a book called The Five Love Languages of Children. If you click on those links it will tell you about assessments and other stuff.
I'm recommitting to myself that I am going to take time to discover each of my kid's love languages. I find that at this time, specifically with my teenager, it's a little more difficult to reach her at times. So...all the more important to speak her language. Sometimes it seems as though there's a lot of "static" on the line and communication gets broken up.
No matter if I'm trying to love my 8 year old, my 10 year old, my 14 year old, or my 21 year old...they all have a special way they feel loved the most. It's my job to seek and find.
When we have a heart connection with our kids, they are more receptive to what we have to say. When our heart connection is amiss, they're harder to reach.
One thing is for sure...you can't go wrong by simply listening to your children. That much I am definitely learning.
My goal I'll be focusing on:
Less talking and more listening.
I'm so thankful for the blessing of my four children!
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