When Nick came to me a few days ago to ask if he could get a lip ring my immediate response was absolutely not, no way, never gonna happen. He asked why not a million times and I gave responses that made me sound really old, like at least 50 or something. Then I thought about it for a few minutes and I decided to offer an alternative. I told him he could get his ear(s) pierced if he really wanted to, but that was the best I could offer before he turns 18 and I don’t have a say anymore. He asked at least two more times why I wouldn’t agree to a lip ring and then finally decided that getting his ears pierced was an acceptable compromise. Then he immediately asked me to take him to the store to buy hair dye. After a short discussion I told him to get ready before I changed my mind and we hopped in the car and headed to the nearest drugstore. He was torn between a funky shade of red and an emerald green, both of which I simply couldn’t agree to because I’m an awful prude and the most uncool mom on the planet, apparently. He finally decided that black was a safe decision, especially since I was the one paying and he knew he was never going to convince me that his hair should ever be the color of something out of The Wizard of Oz.
Parenting is Hard
I realize this entire scenario might freak out a lot of parents including my husband, but let’s face it, there are way worse things teenagers are (or could be) doing these days so I’m really not going to stress too much over hair color and piercings as a form of self-expression. I mean, it’s just hair and a couple of holes and since none of them is permanent I don’t see any reason to freak out. I’ll admit there was a time when I would have looked at a teenager, or any person for that matter, whose appearance was a little different and passed an unfair judgement. Now though, it’s the character of a person that matters more to me than what they wear on (or in) their body and I not only owe Nick a lot of credit for that, but also some of the wonderful people I have met in the blogging community. I’m grateful beyond words to be surrounded by such a diverse group of amazing men and women and to have this kid who often challenges me and pushes my buttons, but in the end opens my eyes and my mind in ways I wasn’t sure were possible in the past. Now if I could just get him to let me take a photo and share it with you because his new look is pretty darn handsome. And I’m not just saying that because I’m his mother, I’m saying it because it’s totally true.
So…..would you let your teenager color their hair and/or get something pierced?
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