Things I Never Thought I’d Have to Tell My Preteen Daughter

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Growing up, I’ve always thought that girls were cleaner than boys and not as messy. Much to my surprise, after having raised 1 daughter and currently raising 3 more little girls, I came to realize that girls do not always smell like flowers and their room quickly turns into a pigsty. When your girls are little it is understandable that they are in the learning process of how to properly bathe themselves and still need help on organizing and straightening their toys. Today, as I raise my preteen, I am always baffled at certain Things I Never Thought I’d Have to Tell My Preteen Daughter.

Oftentimes, I look back on when I was a preteen and cannot remember having my mom have to tell me some of the things that I have had to tell my preteen daughter. I sit in bed at night and seriously wonder if my child is lazy or if she really doesn’t know some of the things that I find myself having to tell her. Here are just a few things that I have found myself constantly  having to tell my preteen daughter:

• Change your socks everyday! I’ve purchased my daughter the cutest socks only to find them months later still in the bag that they came in. In addition, as a result of not wearing clean socks, I’ve had to sprinkle baking soda into her boots to get rid of the disgusting smell. (Baking soda actually worked!)
• Put on deodorant after you bathe, not after you realize that you don’t smell fresh.
• Collecting empty Gatorade bottles won’t make you rich. I don’t understand why my child cannot throw away her empty bottles. There are trash cans all over the house.
• Don’t wear the same pair of jeans everyday. Every school year, I make sure to buy my child at least 3 pairs of jeans, but for some reason, she chooses to wear only one pair even though the other pairs are all the same brand, style, and size.
• It’s not cool to smell like onions. I must admit that this is not only my daughter. So many of her friends will come over and when I enter my daughter’s room, the smell of onions knock me off my feet. I know that one day I won’t have to remind her to wear deodorant; hopefully sooner than later.
• Goldfish is not considered a healthy dinner.
• Don’t roll your dirty socks up and put them in your sock drawer.
• I’m offering you money, all you have to do is help clean around the house!

I love my preteen daughter to the moon and back and I know that she will out grow these ‘what the heck are you thinking moments’, but as for now she is still learning and testing what she can and can’t get away with. When my daughter marrys the man of her dreams and has a preteen daughter of her own, I will sit back and have a good giggle. What are you surprised to have to tell your preteen daughter?

If you liked this post, or even if you didn’t, make sure to take a look at Valuable Lessons Every Girl Needs to Know Before Middle School, What Not to Do When Raising a Teenage Daughter, and 5 Reasons Dads Should Take their Daughters on a Date.