In 2020, a mother of two found herself parenting her 15-year-old nephew after he moved in due to family instability. Initially thinking that raising a teenager would be easier than managing toddlers, she quickly realized the complexities of adolescent parenting. Her nephew's transition was a significant adjustment for their family, but it offered a chance for him to grow in a stable environment away from the challenges of his past. This new journey highlighted the unpredictability of parenting and the lessons learned through unexpected experiences.
I was in the messy littles era, a physically taxing period of parenting. Maybe I was dumb and naive to think that parenting a teenager wouldn't be much harder.
I envisioned him hunched over the wooden table, cramming for a calculus test or writing his college entrance essays. But much of what I had planned for him was different from the detailed picture.
I like to think that going in blind is what helped me raise him through his high school years.
When my 15-year-old nephew moved in with us in 2020, although I didn't know it at the time, I was graced with the gift of ignorance.
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