Parental Supervision Required

I heard years ago that while parenting young children is so hard, mostly in a physical way and as they get older it becomes easier in that physical way but becomes increasingly difficult in the mental way.  I am absolutely experiencing this first hand right now.  And oh does my head hurt some days.   

Bee, as she likes to be called these days, is entering her freshman year of high school this fall.  She is talking about driver's permits and nose piercings.   She is beautiful both inside and out.  She is braver and more sure of herself than I ever was at her age.  Friends, both guys and girls, show up at our house randomly.  We have entered the stage of life always going, going, going (and making plans to go, go, go).  I am in constant mental turmoil over parenting a teenager.  According to her and most of her friends, we are the strictest parents ever.  Sometimes I think we are not giving enough freedom to grow and make mistakes, then we are giving her too much freedom and we need to reign it in to protect her.  I second guess every decision.  I pray constantly for wisdom and strength.  Reading parenting books for every little nugget of wisdom.  The poor girl is stuck being the oldest, the one we practice on, the one we stress over every decision about as if it were the first time because in fact, it is our first time.  

If we all survive this stage, it may just be a miracle.     

Oh, and, I need a mentor ASAP.
Instead of a MOPS program--Mothers of Preschoolers, I need MOTS--Mothers of Teenagers ;)

Dear Lord, Please give me the strength to raise this teenager. Bless me with deafness to not hear the back talk, understanding for the sneaky ways, and a sense of humor to look past it all!

-- a friend's facebook status