Teens and Summer: Surviving the Dog Days

I have four more days of high school.

In reality, I should be saying that my son Adam has four more days of high school. With him -- my "baby" -- getting ready for his last week of schooling as a resident of our house, I'm alternating between sobs and cheers. Gone will be the days of, "Have you done your homework?" and "It's time for bed."

In their place will be the days of "Have you done laundry lately?" and "Do you need more money in your account?"

But in between this last week of hands-on high school parenting and the empty nest syndrome is a long stretch of summer. Since Adam graduates relatively early from high school and doesn't start his new University classes until late September, we've got several weeks to negotiate.

If you have teens in your home, you likely know what I'm talking about. Those days of no real bedtime and sleeping until noon. The days of "Can I go to ___ with ___?" and "What's for lunch?" three times per day.

We love them, but they can also drive a mom of teens a bit bonkers. So today, I thought I'd throw open the doors and let you -- our mom experts -- share your summer survival tips for parenting teens.

A few questions for you to contemplate:

Do your teens have a "bedtime"?
Do your teens cook for themselves?
Do your teens have summer jobs?
If no summer jobs are available, do your teens do volunteer work?
Do your teens have "summer homework", either assigned by school or by their parents?
For moms and dads of teens who have graduated, do your teens who are readying for college have different rules in the summer before they fly your coop?
Do your teens participate in a retreat or other spiritual activity during the summer?

Please share your thoughts, tips, and yes, even your complaints in the comments section below. I'm hoping that this conversation we start today can be the prompt for numerous summer articles.

Can't wait to hear from you!

*disclaimer: that's not my son in the photo!