Today my teenager was upset because.....

I never had kids, but I was a pretty awful teenager. I remember my mum offering to take us on a theatre weekend to London and I sighed and rolled my eyes, feeling bitterly exploited. I think anything that distracted from the possibility of mating with the opposite sex struck me as a painful waste of time.

Also when she tried to make conversation with me, I'd often say coldly, "Haven't you got a book to read?"

Half a century on and I am still trying to make it up to her. I'd give anything now to turn the clock back and be able to have a London weekend trip with her, or just have her in the room chatting to me. These things seemed so simple and boring and normal back then, and I wish I knew why.

I'm sure your daughter will realise one day!

It took the best part of an hour to wake me up when he came home at 2am without his key.

To make matters worse, I’d shut the kitchen window so he couldn’t get in through there.

He tried everything to get into the house and was locked out in the pissing rain.

Take his key?! You’re kidding. I ought to know he’s forgetful…. 🙄

Because I wouldn't drop him and his mates off at their chosen destination, come home then go back and pick them up again at the end of the day, on my day off, you may think I was being slightly mean as it's not a lot to ask, the chosen destination is 2&1/2 hrs away from us, so a 5 hr round drive both ways, his way round this was to suggest I busiest my self somewhere nearby where they were to save myself some of the drive 😩

I’m the guilty party here.

When I was little, my parents & older siblings had to work in agriculture during the summer months to make ends meet; they sent me to live high up in the mountains with my grandparents in the meantime.
When they’d visit, I’d cry and tell them they didn’t love me because they abandoned me to go off to live without me — anything to make my mum feel as guilty and horrible as possible. It started when I was 5.
I still cringe 50 years later — they spent that money on school clothes and other essentials for me for school and food for our family.
What a horrible little child.

@LaetitiaASD, so should leave a 16 years old home alone and go away for a couple of weeks? I know I wouldn't do that. Although, so far, mine are quite happy to go away with us.

Placemarking.

Just had a row over the work placement I have arranged for 15 year old DS. Set in a very 'naice' hotel with its own golf course and leisure centre. (He is sport mad) Apparently all his friends have much better ones arranged by the school in places like McDonald's 🤔🤔🤔 To add insult to injury I also suggested that he doesn't go on a 5 mile run before his first day, until he knows exactly what is expected of him. Now I just want him to never exercise again 😁😂😅

She was maybe hoping for a party with her friends.
I know at her age I didn't get on that well with my sister, it was annoying she was 18 months older than me and it frustrated me, that she was blowing all her pay (part time job) I didn't have one, but she loved rubbing, all her purchases in my face, knowing I would love to have, the same thing but without a job, I was too young, my parents couldn't afford to buy it for me.
So I hated my sister as she was making life more miserable.
So I can see spending the day with, her sisters, who you might think get on, perhaps they don't get on that well, will not make her feel special, to her it's just another day, (yes, it's expensive and at a spa) she will see it as being stuck with her annoying family.
Sorry, but she will not see it as special, like you do.

My DD15 and DD13 are very annoyed when I tell them the the songs they have just ‘discovered’ are NOT, in fact, TikTok songs, but are well known songs that I know all the words to. I do enjoy winding them up about it!

As much as having a teen with an attitude at home is a pain, let's all remember that your children behave like this because they have safety and security from you. I know teens who never went through a rebel stage because they knew they would have ended up on the street if they said/done something wrong.
I never rebelled either, I was too busy working after school to pay rent because my father was drinking his wages away and my mother was too depressed to work. I had the anger with me but survival took over.
For me all your teens sound like very happy children, well done Mumsnet mums 🙂

My 12 year old hates when I point out that the 'latest' songs he loves came out when I was a teenager, he practically seethes if I dare to sing them when they're playing. London underground was a fun one because he thought he was being Edgy and cool after 'discovering' such a 'rude' song so imagine how angry he was when I sang over it 😂😂😂

No I don’t your are correct. My DD is 25 and my DS is 22 .

That’s what you call ungrateful. Say she doesn’t have to go and you and her sisters go have a spa day instead!!!

Teach teens to wash, dry, and iron their own clothes. There will be far less trying on/spoiling clean things if they have to deal with them themselves.

@honeygriff- At my house, the hair tongs would have gone missing, as in a plastic bag and hidden in cat food bin/sewing stash/father’s fishing waders. Burning bed and head means she is too reckless to use these.

And then I completely destroyed her life by my not just knowing of a little niche band called Nirvana, there was photographic and video evidence of my doing so at a festival where the setlist contained numbers from other little known groups such as Soundgarden, Nine Inch Nails, The Vaselines, Alice in Chains and Hole. Whilst looking very blonde and slim . She didn't appreciate the discovery of this online treasure trove (which I hadn't known about, she's the one who went looking), nor did she the fact that this sort of thing was literally how I paid for her dance/music/pony lessons whilst she was staying at her father's place EOW.

Jesus. That's horrible. Your son needs a wake up call or he's going to end up being a right abusive arse. Throwing something heavy like a hoover down stairs is mad.

Well I think your daughter has had other ideas such as a party with her friends say. Or doing something with her friends of her choice. Don't forget she is a teenager and everything is dramatised,🙄. You have offered a beautiful gift aswell as her other gifts and cake etc. But she is obviously wanting her independence and freedom to choose what she wants. But don't feel bad for offering your daughter a lovely present. Good luck,❤️

My teenage DD wouldn't invite her friend round on pancake day because we squeeze real lemons on them, not Jif 'like everyone else'.

I was also yelled at a few times for 'hiding' her coat (I'd moved it from the doormat to the coat rack).

The best one was when she was 13 and she accused me of being a bully because I told her it was time to muck out her pony.

I opened my sons bedroom blind it had been down for days/weeks maybe months … he still shouts about me touching his stuff !

I’m in the bad books for being so mean & telling her to concentrate on her Maths tutor Zoom call as I caught her paying no attention & was in fact writing her Christmas list!

snowflake29f This is not a very nice or positive thing to say, we are doing our best. 😡