"Am I doing the right things?"

Have you ever asked yourself the question, "Am I doing the right things?" Well I know I do ALL the time! Having teenage kids can sometimes be a trial and especially when you feel like you are always the "mean" or "bad" parent. We have had to deal with this a lot lately because it seems like there are so many parents now that just don't care what their kids are doing or if they even come home at night!! I know it may sound crazy to a lot of us but I deal with it ALL the time because we will not let our kids do the same things. Our kids get teased that their "mommy" is calling checking on them all the time, or they have to actually come home at night and not just get to stay wherever, they might even have to be home at 10:30!!! Imagine that! Well I received this email today that I would like to share and it just reassured me that I am doing the things that I should be and hopefully it will help my kids even though they may not think so!!

Mean Moms

Someday when my children are old enough

to

understand the logic that motivates a

parent, I will tell them, as my Mean ole Mom

told me:

I loved you enough....

to ask where you were going, with whom,

and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough to be silent and let you

discover that your new best friend was a

creep.

I loved you enough to stand over you for two

hours while you cleaned your room, a job that

should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough to let you see anger,

disappointment, and tears in my eyes.

Children must learn that their parents aren't

perfect.

I loved you enough to let you assume the

responsibility for your actions even when

the

penalties were so harsh they almost broke

my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough...to

say

NO when I knew you would hate me for it.

Those were the most difficult battles of all.

I'm

glad I won them, because in the end you

won, too.

And someday when your children are old

enough to understand the logic that motivates

parents, you will tell them.

Was your mom mean? I know mine was...

We had the meanest mother in the whole

world!

Mother insisted on knowing where we were

at all

times. You'd think we were convicts in a

prison. She

had to know who our friends were, and

what we were

doing with them. She insisted that if we

said we

would be gone for a hour, we would be

gone for an hour or less.

We were ashamed to admit it, but she had

the nerve

to break the Child Labor Laws by making

us work. We had to wash the dishes, make

the beds, learn to

cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry, empty

the trash

and all sorts of cruel jobs. I think she

would lie

awake at night thinking of more things for

us to do.

She always insisted on us telling the truth,

the

whole truth, and nothing but the truth. By

the time

we were teenagers, she could read our minds

and had eyes in the back of her head. Then, life was

really tough!

Mother wouldn't let our friends just honk

the horn

when they drove up. They had to come up to

the door

so she could meet them. While everyone else

could

date when they were 12 or 13, we had to

wait until we were 16.

Because of our mother we missed out on

lots of

things other kids experienced. None of us

have ever

been caught shoplifting, vandalizing other's

property or ever arrested for any crime. It

was all her fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all

educated,

honest adults. We are doing our best to be

mean

parents just like Mom was.

I think that is what's wrong with the world

today.

It just doesn't have enough Mean Moms!!

author unknown

So.....because I love my kids I will keep being the "mean" or "bad" mom!! :o)