Guest Author – Julie Zine Coleman shares her parenting wisdom for parents of preteens and teens. Children are unique, and not every strategy works for every child. However, there are some general principles.
When my children were little, it seemed like every parent my age was dreading the day their children would become teenagers. We all knew horror stories of sweet children who did the Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde thing upon hitting adolescence, turning into almost unrecognizable monsters. In our minds, adolescence was certain to be the end of family peace and happiness as we knew it.
They entertained us with their wonderful humor, broke our hearts with their struggles, and encouraged us by their fledgling commitment to the Lord. Friends stopped over all of the time, and descended on our pantry like locusts. I don’t mean to give you the impression that life was perfect, or that my teens did not present huge challenges to my husband and me. Those years kept us on our knees as we watched our children begin to spread their wings. However, I can tell you there was never a dull moment in the Coleman household.