The preteen years can be tough for parents. Like, really tough.
A few years ago, I wrote about it here:
Parenting Pre-PRE-Teens | AllMomDoes
I was reminded of how hard this parenting phase is when I had two pre-teens staying with me this summer. Yikes! After months of dealing with their tween issues, something occurred to me:
Preteens and Babies are very much alike!
That new realization helped me deal with their tantrums and mood swings.
Here’s what I mean:
Growing bodies. Both tweens and babies have bodies that are changing faster than they can keep up with. It’s exhausting to try and maneuver a strange new body and that is true for both ages. I remember my son grew seven inches in one pre-teen year. His bones literally hurt from so much growing. Add to that, hormones and puberty and it’s no wonder tweens are a crabby mess at times.
iStock: MD Brockmann
Clumsiness. Falling and breaking things go along with growing and changing bodies. It’s totally understandable. How can a baby or a tween be expected to operate a strange new body?
iStock: Woraput
Whatever they can reach is theirs. Babies are known for grabbing at everything and turning whatever they find into their own personal toy. Preteens do the same thing. Hair clips, make up, art supplies, it all tends to disappear into their rooms. It doesn’t matter who it belongs to, it becomes “theirs”.
iStock: FStop123
Sleep schedules. Do I need to go into detail about a baby’s sleep schedule? I didn’t think so. Like babies, tweens have weird sleeping habits. Suddenly, they want to stay up late and sleep in until noon. They may even need a nap after all the growing and changing and angst that fills their days.
iStock: Miodrag Ignjatovic
Always hungry. Babies are happiest when their tummies are full. It’s the same with tweens. I had one tween ask, “What’s for lunch?” WHILE he was clearing his breakfast plate. And, their palates resemble a baby’s. Give them something sweet and they’ll probably eat it, otherwise they will whine and complain and possibly even cry.
iStock: Михаил Руденко
Conversation skills. Babies aren’t known for their conversation skills. They babble a lot and don’t really say much. It’s the same with tweens. If I hear another long and involved computer game story, I will seriously scream.
iStock: Miodrag Ignjatovic
Cry Babies. You will find that both babies and pre-teens tend to be weepy. The tiniest inconvenience in their day sets off a fountain of tears. It may seem silly to you, but everything is monumental in their worlds.
iStock: Simply Creative Photography
Temper Tantrums. Temper tantrums are a given for both ages. Looking at it logically (which we can’t always do) it makes perfect sense if you take in all the learning and changing they’re doing in these phases of life.
iStock: Aaron Amat
Cute factor. Fortunately, both babies and pre-teens are adorable. Although a screaming baby at 2:00am and a sullen, argumentative tween are not so cute in the moment.
iStock: Romrodinka
I found that by comparing the tweens in my life to babies, it made it easier to just love them. Babies aren’t expected to rush into adulthood. They are allowed to learn at their own pace. It should be the same with pre-teens.
These awkward tween years are tough for everyone, and I needed the reminder that important growth is happening during this phase. It is a phase, after all, and it will be over before you know it.
iStock: ljubaphoto
So, this summer I gave cuddles and hugs and even held them in my lap at times. They snuggled in and appreciated the reminder that no matter what the world and their peers are telling them, they are still just kids who have a lot of growing left to do.
Read more of Ann’s contributions to allmomdoes here.
