The teen years can be trying -- for everyone in the family. Teendom is when our kids straddle childhood and adulthood and there are many days when parents have no clue as to who is inhabiting their child's body or what language they are speaking. Here are some things that our Facebook followers say they hope their kids know by the time the terrible teens take over.
1. Common sense and safety.
No my children, you are not invincible. Los Angeles-area real estate agent Teresa Bunnell Penner reminds all teens to "Stay away from the back of windowless vans. If a stranger asks you to help them find their puppy, run. And if a stranger has the hood up on his car and asks you to get in and try to start it for him, don't and run." Just because you aren't five and can't be lured by a candy-promising stranger doesn't mean you should always trust everyone.
2. But do trust yourself.
As Mary Nell Burgeson Stapleton put it, "Some things aren't negotiable." Line Donnelly cuts right to the chase: "Don't be an ass. There is always someone bigger and badder than you!" From Susan Ott, know that "you are a person of worth and value."
3. Sex, sex and more sex.
The practical: "How sexuality works, how sacred it is, and how to prevent unwanted pregnancies," offers Kat Russell. "Use condoms. No means no," says Lora Pfundheller.
