by Cynthia Springsteen

Created on: December 23, 2009

As the Christmas season is approaching us quickly, we are faced with our teenager’s home for the holidays. This is a very exciting time for teenagers, as the stresses of homework and tests will be put aside for a short time. So what will they do with their time? This is something that should be discussed ahead of time and put into prospective. Parents will not want to spend the next two weeks arguing with their teenager, so if all the expectations are set forth ahead of time, there will be less chance of conflict during the vacation.

Should there be any family obligations such as visiting with relatives and special meals it is important to not wait until that day to spring this on your teen. They should be made aware of plans made; this is not to say that they have any say in what plans were made. This will just prevent arguments when they are told they must attend something with you when they would prefer to be with their friends. Even though this is a busy time of year take the time to sit with them and let them know where they are expected to go with you and when they can make their own plans.

Christmas time is a wonderful time of year to spend time with your family and friends. Parents will finally get to relax after the hustle and bustle of the last month. Teenagers on the other hand are not looking to sit and relax. Try to remember what life was like when you were a teen. The stresses on the teens today are much greater and they look forward to being with their friends. Make sure to allow for friend time. Your teens are not going to be happy sitting around the house for their entire vacation. In school they work really hard and do deserve some fun time. As long as you know who they are with and where they are going let them have some fun. Life gets complicated as time goes on and those teen years are some of the ones you will remember for a lifetime.

There are teenagers who enjoy that family time and there are some who just want to be with their friends. While friends are important to everyone, family is to be the most important. Make sure it is clearly explained your expectations of them during this wonderful time of year and together everyone will have the chance to enjoy the holidays. 

Learn more about this author, Cynthia Springsteen.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.