My Little Girl's a Teenager
My Little Girl’s A Teenager
I almost feel like breaking into a rendition of Sunrise Sunset, but I will spare you from having to read my singing. Bowing to family pressure, I’ll just write. My daughter turned thirteen last summer and I had to face the fact that my little girl is growing up. The discussion came up as to how we were going to celebrate. Reflecting on the past, my wife and I talked about how the celebrations have changed.
1 year old – party for the adults, after all, the kid is too young to understand.
2 through 9 – “theme” parties (IE. Barbie, clown, singing dinosaur, pony, Chuckie Cheese, etc.).
As the years past, less percentage of adults, more kids.
10 and 12 – cosmic bowling or the “cash alternative”.
Well, now that she’s older, normal birthday parties have long become a thing of the past. A couple of years ago she was getting tired of birthday parties, so my wife and I came up with the “cash alternative” for her. She could either have a party or, go for door-number-two, the cash alternative. The money we would have spent on a party would be combined with the gift money we would have spent and all go for one big gift. I like the cash alternative. Time wise, it is much easier on us and let’s face it, as the kids get older, parties get old. The past two years she has opted for the cash alternative.
Now I hope I’m ready for the next change. This past summer she wanted to have a dance at the neighborhood Community Center. So the invites were handed out and we were all set, or so I thought. The plan “was” to have a handful of kids back to the house after the dance for pizza and pool. I was “assured” that only five to ten kids would return to the house. That of course, did not happen.
After the dance, 34 of my daughter’s classmates arrived at our house. A quick telephone call to the pizza place to triple the order and a stop at the convenience store for more soda and we were all set on refreshments. The boys helped move extra table and chairs, the stereo started playing, and food arrived. Now to sit and watch as the events would unfold…
…Things went great as the kids had a wonderful time. Not too noisy, not wild, and only one boy had to be spoken to about his attitude/behavior. My wife let me handle that one in my ever so peaceful and understanding manner. I pulled him aside and when the discussion with this young man was over, with the rules of my house clearly understood, I was known as “Sir” for the rest of the night.
While cleaning up, after everyone was picked up and had gone home, I began to realize how my daughter and her friends were turning into young adults. The party was a success because the kids that were there are being brought up with a good set of values. They are learning to respect authority and to “police” each other so as not to have a good thing ruined. After all, would you host the next party if the one you just went to was trashed?
The whole evening helped to restore my faith in the newest teenagers in our town (I will not let the one minor incident mentioned earlier spoil my opinion).
As an additional note, I thought the following paragraph would provide an idea.
Having your classmates know it is your birthday has also changed. In the Middle School where my niece is in the seventh grade, the girls “balloon” each other on their birthdays. Instead of the “kiddie” way of knowing it’s someone’s birthday (you remember, Moms bringing cupcakes to school), the girls buy the big Mylar balloons for the birthday girl. She then has to carry them around all day from class to class. The girls like it because then the boys can break the ice by saying their congrats. The teachers accept the practice of “ballooning” and it has been a tradition for years. It’s a nice touch and is not abused.
I know that this is her first teenage year and that we have plenty more to go, but it’s comforting to know that my wife and I are raising our kids correctly and we hope and pray that the seeds we planted continue to grow.
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