The #1 Question Parents Ask Their Teens

I absolutely love love love this cartoon. I KNOW this must resonate with any parent who has a teen. The 'OUT" retort is probably not a total avoidance techniques. It is because most teens don't usually have a clue as to what they will be doing. As most of you know, the furious texting begins after school on Friday and post wake-up on Saturday morning. It is this teen generation's version of the song from Bye Bye Birdie, " What's the story, morning glory, what's the word hummingbird? The texting is their version of getting the word from the street about potential action for the day/night ahead. There are options...many options, an overwhelming amount of options, and wading through, analyzing each one adnauseam for the particular pros and cons and potential consequences for missing out on the best event ever, causes excessive stress and final decision avoidance!

So their first destination, is only the first hurdle in the plan making. Because while they are out, depending on who tweets out what to whom, plans can change on a dime. And the plan they gave you at 7 is not the plan that gets made at 8!

To combat this noplanitis, you must somehow stay in the loop. A change of plan notification via text should be a requirement. I have known parents to do some weekend sleuthing, just to see how honest their teen is being as they location hop. They get in the car, and do a drive by to see if the second stop on their teen's weekend itinerary is indeed where they said they were going. This is not a totally bad thing. You want to encourage your teen to be honest with you. If they end up somewhere where they know you will disapprove, they will lie and say they are elsewhere. This can be unsafe. I'm not suggesting you become a weekend warrior of checking up on your teen. In fact I don't want you to do that at all. I want you to support truth telling and safety. Even if they are going to a party in the woods, I would rather you know that they are there, and perhaps put a time limit on how long they can stay, and plan a pick up time around the corner. They can put an appearance, save face, and know that there is structure and safety awaiting them down the street and around the block.