Wouldn't life be great if our kids behaved the way we assumed they would before they were born? I hereby officially apologize for any parenting advice I doled out before having my own. Now, as a mother of three teens, I'm far quicker to say, "I don't know what you should do but I'll pray for you."
With most parenting books, I come away from them with an odd mixture of empowerment and defeat. The problems seem too big, I've made too many mistakes, and it's too late. "Planet Middle School" was no exception. While reading this, I found myself wanting to pray, "Please God, let the rapture happen today because otherwise my kids will fall prey to drugs since I didn't tuck them in with words of affirmation every single night. Plus, the other day, I accidentally fixed my son's collar in front of his friend so I know he's going to end up sleeping with the girlfriend he's likely hiding from me." However, after my momentary panic, I think, "Wait a minute. My kids love being at home. They are very respectful and quick to help. Why am I assuming the worst? "Planet Middle School" by Dr. Kevin Leman doesn't only point out the dangerous traps your child faces. It also shows how a parent might accidentally push their child into one. Thankfully, it also talks about pulling them out.
This book arrived just as I was discovering one of my kids was hiding something from me; something that could have dreadful long term implications if not dealt with immediately. "Planet Middle School" does a great job of laying out when to go with the flow and when to take command. This was definitely a 'take command' situation and I believe this book helped me to understand what I was up against clearer and how to deal with it calmly. (not to mention the importance of calmness - something my Italian genes don't compute)
In a nutshell, here is what I learned from this book:
You are the boss but don't boss your kids around. Don't let them boss you around either.
Food is the way to a middle schooler's heart.
Calm wins.
The rule about food is a good one. My mother and I used to go downtown to tell people God loves them and hand out bibles. If we came with only bibles, no one wanted to talk to us. When we came with bibles and oranges, we made instant friends who would talk and want prayer. This is one tip that I intend to implement in our home.
Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.
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