Why Sometimes You Don’t Have To Fear The Day Your Kid Reads Your Blog

I know I’m running on a little sleep and a lot of exhaustion. I know my emotions are heightened and my nerves are frayed from the excitement of show week. I know that every night I go from choking back tears to dancing in the aisles watching some amazing high school kids perform during a phenomenal production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”. I know all of these things might make me a little crazy.

But when I saw this tweet from my kid this morning I thought: THIS. This is what the internet can add to parenting. This is what allowing your teens the freedom to use the tools with guidance from you…this is how it can enrich BOTH of your lives. The perfect example of what can happen if we embrace the tools our teens use. They’re smart enough – when we give them credit – to use them wisely. And sometimes, that wisdom can make our hearts swell in just 140 characters.

I’ve taught E that with the power of posting all of his thoughts online, comes the responsibility of owning those thoughts and knowing that anyone can read them. I’m proud of how he has established himself a respectable and fun online presence. He jokes about his favorite show being Toddlers in Tiaras and he vents about complications in Math. And sometimes he does crap like that tweet above and makes me sob in my car.

Everyone worries about what their kid will think of their blog when they get old enough to understand it or read it. E was 9 when I started my blog. He’s 17 now. He knows about it and has never flinched, no matter how much I talked about boob sweat back in the Pregnant With No A/C In My Car days. I know not all kids would be as forgiving, but because he is, our online lives can mix and we can add another facet to our relationship.

So, I thank him. I thank him for not being so embarrassed by me that he shuns my online presence. I thank him even more for using these avenues we share to pass along messages that I’ll carry in my heart forever. I am the crazy audience member screaming at every show, and the fact that he used Twitter to thank me for being that crazy person? Shows all blogging Moms out there that – while there is plenty to worry about as your kid gets old enough to understand your blog – there’s also tons of potential for awesome.