teens

How to Stop Worrying About Teens
parenting

How to Avoid Becoming a Tween/Teen Mom Worrywart

Just the word "teen" conjures up stress for many moms.

Just the word "teen" conjures up stress for many moms. But in many of our conversation threads, moms admit that they also don't want to become stressed-out worrywarts. So what's appropriate to worry about? And what's not if you have an emerging tween or teen? We asked moms on the front lines for their advice and tips for navigating the tween and teen years without living in a constant state of anxiety.

Prepare Yourself (and Your Tween)

The best way to hold the anxiety at bay is to make sure your soon-to-be teen knows the ground rules, says Emilia A., mom of a 16-year-old daughter. "I worry about many things," but "the thing is to be open with your teen so they won't make the same mistakes we did." She recommends moms "meet all the friends and know all the places your child likes to go with friends and watch the environment they are in."

Keep reading for more tips!

Helping Siblings Get Along
Sibling Rivalry

5 Tips to Help Teens and Younger Siblings Get Along

It's not always easy maintaining household harmony whether you have one — or more — children.

It's not always easy maintaining household harmony whether you have one — or more — children. When there's a teen and younger sibling around, it's especially difficult to tell what rivalry issues will arise. Older children also may resent having to take on extra household responsibilities or look after their younger brothers and sisters. For instance, "a baby is scary for a 14-year-old, and definitely not cool," says mom Karen S.

On the other hand, younger children might resent not being able to do as much as bigger kids. Brandie P., for instance, says her 6-year-old daughter doesn't always understand that her older brother doesn't want to play all the time, and "she has a problem realizing that he is older and he knows more."

To try to keep harmony at home, we turned to Circle of Moms members for some tips.

1. Give Your Teen Responsibilities
When you want your teen to help his younger sister or brother, Circle of Moms members say it helps to assign specific responsibilities so your teen knows how to assist but doesn't feel like someone's taking advantage of him. For instance, Melanie T. said her three kids were fighting all the time until she assigned the oldest some tasks. "I was at my wits end when I tried giving the oldest some responsibility for the youngest. Like at snack time, the oldest will serve the youngest, after bath he'll help dry off and dress the younger. Any responsibility he can do to aid in the younger I let him do. It has helped cut down the fighting and taught them to look at each other differently."

"In [large] families, mine included, the older sib[lings] are expected to help with the younger ones," Tara K. agrees. While her older children are not expected to change diapers, enforce nap times, or help with feedings, they are expected to pick someone up who is hurt or upset, help with reading, and help around the house.

This helps build the bond between siblings, Meagen P. agrees. Her 13-year-old son loves helping his 6-month-old sister. "He talks to her and holds her and is very involved," she says.

Keep reading for more tips.

Teen Text Creates Mob Scene
family life

Teen Movie Night Turns Into Mob Scene

Do you allow your kids to have friends over in the evening when you can't be there to supervise?


Do you allow your kids to have friends over in the evening when you can't be there to supervise? As one mom recently discovered, the allure of a house with no parents around should not be underestimated.

The Aptos, CA-based mom left her 16-year-old daughter and three friends at home one night to bake cupcakes and watch a movie while she went out for a couple of hours. But as the Huffington Post reports via CBS San Francisco, the small gathering quickly turned into an "out-of-hand mob crime scene" after one of the teens sent out a text message about a party taking place at the home. The message quickly made the rounds of social media outlets such as Facebook, which resulted in about 300 people rushing to the neighborhood, invading the house, and causing tens of thousands of dollars in property damage.

To find out why the homeowner remains unfazed, read the whole story at the Huffington Post.

Source: Flickr user GoodNCrazy
How to Ask a Girl to Prom
nostalgia

See How Kids These Days Are Asking Dates to Prom

When I was a teenager we didn't have iPhones, we didn't text, and our prom photos are actual, physical photographs (they are pre-Facebook, luckily).
See How Kids These Days Are Asking Dates to Prom

When I was a teenager we didn't have iPhones, we didn't text, and our prom photos are actual, physical photographs (they are pre-Facebook, luckily). But it's a whole new world out there for high schoolers these days. I was curious about how modern teens do prom, so I started browsing Instagram — something we also didn't have in high school — to get a glimpse into the proms of today. While the fashions may be a far cry from what we wore a decade or longer ago, the ways teens ask their potential dates haven't changed much, besides, of course, the ones utilizing modern technology (yes, there are some texts in there). So this prom season, see the creative and not-so-creative ways the teens of today are asking their dates to their high school dances!

Source: Instagram User kt_michelle95 Source: Instagram User sirswaggalot27 Source: Instagram User eloriestirling Source: Instagram User emoon15 Source: Instagram User gurlyoucrazy123qwe Source: Instagram User alyssanicolemyers Source: Instagram User annewoster
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Vacations With Teens
teens

How to Make Family Vacations Fun For Teens

Is it really possible to take teens on a "fun" vacation?

Is it really possible to take teens on a "fun" vacation? With Summer just around the bend, many Circle of Moms members are starting to worry about finding Summer excursions that their teens won't roll their eyes at. To help you plan a getaway or staycation that both parents and teens will actually enjoy, we've rounded up Circle of Moms members' top tips on how parents and teens can find common ground when it comes to family vacations.

Keep reading.

Setting Curfews For Teenagers
Tweens

The Dos and Don'ts of Teen Curfews

When kids hit the teen years, many moms start worrying about curfews.

When kids hit the teen years, many moms start worrying about curfews. When should teens go to bed? When should they be home for the night? What are the consequences of not following through? But the biggest question of all is: how do you decide what's appropriate? Circle of Moms members say to some degree it depends on your child, but there are still key dos and don'ts to guide you when setting your teen's curfews.

Keep reading

Teen Sex Offenders
Sex

"Romeo and Juliet" Couples Treated as Sex Offenders

There's a major debate going on about whether teens should be jailed as sex offenders when they are having consensual sex with other teens.

There's a major debate going on about whether teens should be jailed as sex offenders when they are having consensual sex with other teens.

The groups fighting against the laws say that teens should be sent to treatment centers or counseling, not jailed and put on sex-offender registries. "The laws often don’t differentiate between a 50-year-old man molesting a 14-year-old girl, and two teenagers having sex," points out criminal-defense attorney Cheryl Carpenter.

And it's easy to see where they're coming from with examples like Ken Baldino, who spent six years in jail for being an 18-year-old high school senior having sex with his girlfriend, 14-year-old freshman Emily Lester. Now 26 and out of jail, Ken will be a convicted felon for life, isn't allowed to use a computer (he's never been on Facebook!), and is forced to wear a bulky GPS device at all times. His relationship was also cut off with the woman he loved, as he's still not able to be in contact with his "victim." Emily pleaded then that they were in love, and even today she says, "I'm not a victim. He didn't rape me."

But those on the other side say the law's the law. Assistant district attorney Joan Korb says, "I wish parents would teach their kids respect for authority, the law, and other people." And chief assistant prosecutor Paul Walton says, "You can disagree on the age of consent, but the law says that prior to that age, a person doesn't have the ability to consent."

When it comes to cases dealing with sexual offenses, the line is blurry and the debate is heated. After all, who needs to be protected with these laws? We want to be advocating for the victims, the kids, but what if the offender is a kid himself? Weigh in below.

Bullies Use Sexual Taunts to Hurt Kids
women

Study: Majority of Girls Face Sexually Charged Bullying

Kids dubbing a girl a "slut" is overheard far too often across the nation.

Kids dubbing a girl a "slut" is overheard far too often across the nation. And it's not just high school or college girls we're talking about here. Middle school tween bullies commonly label girls they don't like or are mad at as "sluts." The American Association of University Women released a study this month that found 56 percent of the middle and high school girls surveyed were sexually harassed in the past school year. And most of the time, these girls are not even sexually active.

One psychologist, Maureen McHugh of Indiana University, explains that as girls experiment with more grown-up fashion and makeup choices, their peer cans brutally police them: "There's monitoring of people wearing too much makeup or dressing too provocatively, so it's a weird fine line." And the sexual harassment doesn't end with the "slut-bashing." According to a 2010 study, students who are gay are bullied three times as much as heterosexual kids.

With all of the "slut walks" and grassroots movements taking place across the country to educate people on alternative lifestyles, and an attempt to reclaim the word "slut" itself, this research seems to suggest kids aren't getting the sex-positive message. I'm curious; did you ever experience these types of taunts?

New York Sex Education Curriculum
Sex

Is New York's Sex-Ed Too Sexy?

Beginning next year, sex education is going to be mandatory for middle school and high school students in New York City, but the new sex-ed curriculum includes some controversial lessons.

Beginning next year, sex education is going to be mandatory for middle school and high school students in New York City, but the new sex-ed curriculum includes some controversial lessons. The Department of Education's recommended workbooks include:

  • Comparisons of prices and features of different condom brands at stores.
  • Research of the confidentiality policy at clinics that provide birth control and STD tests.
  • Discussions about the safety and risks involved in having sex with a condom, mutual masturbation, French kissing, oral sex, and anal sex.
  • Resources like Go Ask Alice, which covers sex positions, sadomasochistic sex play, fetishes, bestiality, and more.

The Department of Education claims the curriculum enforces that abstinence is the best option for avoiding teen pregnancy and STDs, but parents are upset that it may go into too many sexy details for preteens and teens. The question is, would it be more preferable for kids to learn about safe sex practices in a healthy, school environment than the possible misinformation they'd receive from their peers and TV? How much is too much?