Parenting Teens is Hazardous and My Food Baby

Parenting teen girls is hazardous to your self-esteem. There are books on how to traumatize your children, like his funny book from KnockKnock.

There should be a warning label on every baby girl that indicates how brutally honest she will be at age 12. My daughters are not bad kids---but my girls have really taken a toll on my self-image over the last few months. I thought I was pretty tough...until the food baby incident.

It turns out I have a food baby, also known as belly fat.  My teen informed me last month that I looked like I had a food baby (if you saw the movie Juno, you may be familiar with the word).

Having my spawn tell me I look like I am pregnant was bad. But then my tween daughter NAMED the food baby, his name is Bob.

Can I get a collective groan of humiliation, ladies?

Before some of you tell me that I need to ground my daughters, please remember what you were like at age 14. I was a nightmare and it's a miracle I made it out of my teen years without my mom taking me out.

What goes around, comes around in terms of daughters. Karma is a funny thing and I am reaping the karma of my teen years. I knew it would come.

I did not realize how much it would hurt my feelings.  How do you cope with the brutal teen and tween years as a parent? I would love to get any and all advice on how not to take it heart.

If you're going to leave a comment, be gentle. Bob and I are sensitive right now.

This is a post written for Deep South Moms, adapted from a post on my personal blog, White Trash Mom.  Deep South Moms is part of Silicon Valley Moms Group.

When Michelle Lamar isn't dishing it out here at Deep South Moms, you can find her on her personal blog, White Trash Mom or trying to sell her book, The White Trash Mom Handbook.