Category: teens


  • Shopping with teens

    Shoe shopping with a teenage girl: we visit every shop in an enormous shopping mall. Shoe shops twice, some three times, milkshake bar once, chocolatery once, and all other clothing shops at least once. After two and a half hours, we find a nice summer dress, whichโ€”of courseโ€”she canโ€™t wear this autumn anymore, but itโ€™s…

  • At last, the long-awaited first kid-free break of the year has arrived. Itโ€™s only been a few hours, and Iโ€™ve already ticked off my carefully curated bucket list of guilty pleasures: Ripped open a bag of candy as loudly as possible, then abandoned it on the living room table. Went to the bathroom with the…

  • Working with teen

    When I do rarer household chores, like changing lightbulbs, cleaning dishwasher filters, assembling furniture, etc., I often ask my teenage son to help me. I always say, “You should learn to do these things so you know how to do them when you move out to your own place.” I always get sentimental, thinking that…

  • Flight delayed

    Flight delayed. Teenager cranky. I pay an arm and a leg to get to lounge with a buffet. I say to my son, โ€œNow eat as much as you want, so we donโ€™t have to buy bad, overpriced food on the plane.โ€ The menu is full of delicious food. Boy takes one slice of chocolate…

  • Teen and a freezer

    After a bad nightโ€™s sleep, I get up and start making coffee. While waiting, I think Iโ€™ll eat the last ice pop Iโ€™ve been saving. Maybe it will cheer me up. Then I notice that the freezer door is ajar. Water is oozing out; everything in it is wet. And thereโ€™s no icy pop. The…