Does it ever get easier with teenagers?
My son does not respect boundaries and tends to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants to do it. It's little acts of rebellion, such as taking things to his room like snacks or the phone, even when he understands why those boundaries exist.
Today, it came to a head. He decided to take my credit card out of my husband’s wallet and spend his birthday money with it. (We opened a bank account for him, but his card has not arrived yet.) He was preparing to spend $125 on my account without my permission. He thought it was fine because it was “his birthday money,” even though that money is sitting in a separate account and he only had $100 available. He had also already spent $5.99 on a mobile game without asking.
My bank flagged the purchase attempt and basically said, “Hmm… PlayStation Network? Nope.” They put a fraud hold on my card. As a result, I spent 30 minutes on hold and another 25 minutes talking to a representative explaining that it was a purchase made within our household and asking them to please release the hold on my account. Thankfully, they had not fully canceled my card.
I’m so frustrated.
His punishment is 120 hours of volunteering and three months grounded from all electronics. Since he is underage, I now have to complete 120 hours of volunteer work alongside my already busy schedule as a mom of four.
I’m not a strict parent, but I’m incredibly frustrated by the lack of good decision-making because he absolutely knows better. I’m at the point where I just want to scream.