Teenage Sons

As you can see from this photo, I spent my day a little differently than I would have normally! My 13-year-old son and two of his friends wanted to go to this skateboarding demonstration that was being sponsored by a skateboarding store at a local mall. Apparently these skaters are touring around the country doing this. My husband already had a fishing trip planned and the other two moms had work and family commitments, so that meant I got to be the "cool" mom! So the three teenage boys, my 10-year-old son and I piled into our jeep and drove the half hour to the mall. (I tried not to dwell on the gas being used!)

I wasn't exactly sure what I was getting myself into, but it actually turned out to be a fun afternoon. The event was held in a portion of the mall parking lot. It wasn't horribly crowded, there were lots of security guys roaming around and the weather was just lovely. The boys got a lot of little freebies, were able to watch the skaters, and then got their autographs. We had lunch in the mall food court and then stopped at Burger King on the way home and got some milkshakes. All the boys were very appreciative that I took them and thanked me on the way home.

The crowd that this event drew, looked a bit less than desirable, but I tried to keep an open mind. For the past year, my son has been trying to fight the bad rap that skateboarders seem to get because of the way they look and because a lot of people think it's a waste of time. He wrote a paper on this topic for his 7th grade English class and even responded on-line to articles and comments that have been written in our newspaper about our local skate park. He wants people to know that there are skaters who do get good grades and don't get into trouble. They're also athletic and play organized sports. (He plays baseball and football.) I'm rather proud of him for speaking up about something he loves, yet I will be keeping a watchful eye on him and the company he keeps and continue sending my prayers up to God. Unfortunately, even his mother has a hard time not "judging a book by its cover".

I know I'm at the beginning of this teenage stage of life, but I'm trying to cautiously encourage my kids to pursue their passions. (Of course, Sam wanted me to drop them off there and then get lost. I told him that if I was driving them, I wasn't just letting them go off on their own. I kept a respectable distance from them but always had them within my view!) If any of you more experienced moms have advice, please send it my way!The boys are somewhere in this crowd waiting to get autographs. I was sitting under the shade of a tree trying to let them be a little independent!