Thank heaven for little boys. They get to carry on the family name, live up to legacy of the men before them, and tend to be great protectors.
Raising my son, everything is competitive; from who can vacuum the fastest, bathe the fastest, run the fastest. Then we have the never-ending sporting events that keep us extremely busy. We’ve done soccer, basketball, tried our hand at baseball, football (which costs me hundreds of dollars in chiropractic care at the end of every season and eventually became too costly to enjoy), and more. At this point of parenting my 13-year-old, I have become a fan of every sport (whether I wanted to or not). And he always picks out the best movies! Netflix is not the same when he is gone on the weekends. There’s rarely a dull moment when he’s around.
Raising a son is all fun and games … until he started puberty.
He is still into sports, movies, and enjoys cooking, but he also enjoys visiting unapproved sites, you know … the ones you visit after dark.
For years I was horribly embarrassed to share this with any of my parenting friends. I remember talking to his dad about it and he didn’t seem concerned, stating “He has to learn somehow?” I also discussed this behavior with another guy friend of mine, and he didn’t seem bothered by my son’s actions either.
I thought to myself, why does he need to learn this now? And why through these types of videos? I had no idea how to solve this problem and keeping my embarrassment locked inside clearly was not the way to go. So here are some ways to get through it:
- The first thing I did was have a raw and uncut conversation with my teenager about the dangers of pre-marital sex. I showed him YouTube videos of sexually transmitted diseases, the financial, emotional, and mental struggles of being a single parent, and how addictions (of any kind) can destroy your life.
- Secondly, I put passwords on everything – the Wi-Fi, the television, the app store, all electronic devices. If I’m missing anything, please share in the comment section.
- Communicate with them as often as possible. I spend a lot of time traveling for work and leisure purposes, and my son can testify that I will start what seems like a random conversation at any random moment. Meet your son/daughter where they are. Get on their level and speak in their language. Do no be afraid to discuss anything.
- Don’t let embarrassment keep you from sharing your story with other parents. As I mentioned earlier, I allowed embarrassment to cripple me from reaching out to others for advice and support for a long time. You can’t solve problems if you don’t reach out.
