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“Parenting” in the New Year…
By Betsy Richter | 11:28 amWhen tween asked me oh-so-very-nicely if she could have a sleepover on New Years’ Eve, I sighed… waffled for a day or so… hoped she’d forget about it already… and then finally acceded — against my better judgment.
Two dramatic tweens in my very small living space at full volume & all psyched about staying up until midnight? Kill. Me. Now.
Until I saw the tweets flying about low low low hotel rates for NYE, that is. From nice hotels in the PDX downtown area, even.
And then I made one of the smartest “parenting” decisions I’ve made in quite some time. Why not get a hotel room for the three of us instead?
Why not? Well, it’s not as if I’m independently wealthy, for starters. But after I did the math, I realized that I’d spent more on NYE in years past — with far more marginal results. (I’d like to have the money I spent back in the day to make a very fancy-schmancy dinner at home for at least one relationship that later crashed & burned, for example.) Why not make this a NY that we’d both remember? With a bonus gift for the teen, who’d not have to endure 2 girls cluttering up his living space, besides?
So I congratulated myself on my brilliant idea & started the hotel search — only to run into the first roadblock: Cranky buzzkill teen himself (as expressed in several text messages…).
I think a hotel room is overkill, especially for a sleepover…
This just sounds…Dumb. I really don’t see the point at all. It’s just a waste…
I think all around it’s a bad and unnecessary idea…
(and this kicker…)
Recipe for disaster, in my opinion.
Did I end up listening to him? Of course not. (Would you?)
And after putting my superior Internet juju to work, I managed to score a two-room suite at a place we’d been before near the house. A hotel with room service and a pool — for far less than I’d blown on several failed NYEs in the past. (If I told you how little I paid? You’d want to kill me….)
The girls spent most of their time in the pool. When they finally got tossed out of said pool at 11 pm, they then hung out in the living room, snacking and giggling and being excited! tween! girls!
I hung out in my own room, curled up on a king sized bed with a book, my iPhone and a bottle of wine. Thoroughly enjoying the peace & quiet.
My tween thinks I completely and totally rock. (It’s credit I’ll surely need in the years to come, no?)
And the teen ended up coming around to my superior POV, as expected (although he’ll never, ever admit it..).
The beginning of 2010 is already looking much more peaceful. And the moral of the story?
When the teen says you have a horrible idea? Run with it already….!
(…there will be a future rant later on about I hate the use of “parent” as a verb, oh yes there will…)
Topics: Bossing the Kids, Drama Mama | 2 Comments »
January 1st, 2010 at 10:23 pm
I really enjoyed your tweets about this adventure and admire your inspired plan and how you took care of yourself in the middle of it.
January 6th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
awesome! what a great way to meet the desires of the kids and the needs of the mom!
as a single parent i give this a big stamp of approval!
rock on sistah!