sfgirl2005

Hi there!

I'm a single mother of a teen-ager too. Thank God that my son is a well-adjusted kid who really pretty much follows 98% my rules around the house.
The ones he does fail to follow is not worth me getting upset about it so I let it go, for example, keeping his room clean or putting his dirty clothes in the hamper or not taking the dishes to the sink when he's done eating.

I might sound harsh, but in my humble opinion, most of the kids in America nowadays are spoiled. I am lucky enough to earn good money and travel to some places around the globe. Instead of me buying a new car every year, I went 4 years with the same car and took that money so me and my son can travel. I could've bought a million dollar home in San Francisco, but settled to buy one in the suburbs for much less than that and took that money so my son and I can travel. What we saw during our travels is how other people live and the poor conditions - in other words, we saw how good we have it here in America. When my son saw the poverty and the dire conditions people are living in around the world, he became humble and appreciative to what he has. He knows at least that he doesn't need to work in able to support the whole family, he has indoor plumbing & bathroom, he doesn't sleep on the kitchen floor, etc. In other words, I think every teen-ager needs to go outside the USA and see how other people are living there so they'd appreciate what they have here including parents.

I don't know what your situation is. Your son sounds like he's rebelling, thinking his life sucks and unappreciative of you. Save some money and take a trip with your son like in Asia or in the South American countries. Show him how other people really have it badly. Show him that what he has here isn't so bad and guide him. Don't just go once... even down in the Appalachian countries, take him there. Or volunteer with your son - for example, we are regular volunteers for Second Harvest Food bank. When my son and I hand boxes of food to hungry Americans, our eyes were opened to the point on appreciating how lucky we are. Our children needs our guidance and they follow pretty much by what you set as an example. Take your son and volunteer. We also volunteer at our local soup kitchen. Every scoop of food my son dishes to the homeless, I know he's appreciative that he has a roof over his head.

Your son needs guidance and as parents we need to take responsibility. Maybe your son might need a "purpose" like helping the less fortunate. A lot of people need that something in their lives so they can straighten themselves out.

Good luck and I hope I'm able to give you some ideas.

SFGirl