Who has Teenagers? I do..2 girls

I have 2 kids neither one of them live with me they live with their father in another state they chose to stay with him when we went through our divorce. My son is 23 and my daughter is 16.

Mine aren't teenagers yet but with seeing my niece's and nephews who are teens and from when I was a teen I think I will give space to an extent. If I feel like something isn't right or something is going on I will snoop and find out what that is. Mother's intuition is a very reliable thing from my experience. I would rather be safe than sorry with my kids and their lives. I will not try to be their friend since I'm their mother but that's a fine line since I do want them to come with me about things as well. =)

I only have one now, my youngest... But at one stage all four of my boys were teenagers as they are very close in age... Looking back, the stage wasn't too bad for us - my boys knew we watched them closely...

If you've already established a relationship with them from the time they were little, you should have no problem approaching them if you have concerns. They need to know you care and want only good things for them. You're not the enemy. Make sure they understand that. Every child is different. You can never predict what they will do. There are outside influences. You can just hope they do the right thing and don't ruin their lives. I have had 5 teenage girls. Working on Girl 6. MLT. My last teenager. By the way, if they are under age, it's OK to be nosy, if you have a strong suspicion that something is really wrong. Take the risk and if it turns out your suspicions were unfounded ... it was still worth it! Because the flip side of the coin is that if you didn't try to confirm what you thought was going on and it turns out you were right in what you were thinking, you will live with the regret. Children are precious. Do what you need to do to protect them because ... it's a cruel world out there. No mercy. Young girls are easy prey. Just telling it like it is!

It is important to keep an open line of communication between you. They should feel like they can talk to you about anything but they are teenagers and they are only going to tell you what they want you to know. My kids when they were growing up always talked openly to me but now years lately they tell me things that I had no idea about at the time. Raising teenagers can be tough but you have to give them their space. You raised them well and you have to trust that they handle things well.