I spent much of this weekend discussing my teenager's Christmas list, and –– in particular –– how little of it I'm going to be able to buy. It's not just the money, although that's certainly a factor. But it's also the fact that I'm just not "okay" with buying him things like Call of Duty Black Ops 2, which is rated M, or his own TV. (Hey, I was 13 once, too; so I think I'm spot-on in assuming that the TV wouldn't always be "off" during the overnight hours.)
So I know he was more than disappointed when I voted down several items on his wish list: he was angry.
And I couldn't really blame him –– I was standing between him and something he viewed as an integral part of being a teenager. But when I thought about it some more, I decided I can live with that. I don't like knowing that part of him will feel disappointed on Christmas morning, but doing what I believe is best for him trumps that, 100%.
And the good news is that once I changed my tune from "we'll see" to "no," he moved on and gave me a different wish list. So maybe Christmas morning won't be a disappointment after all . . .
How about you? How do you handle it when your kids ask for things you don't want them to have? Let us know what works for you by leaving a comment below.
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