Daughter dialogue

So my eldest daughter, who turns 18 at the end of the month, decided to cut school on Monday and then lied to us about it when the school called to say she wasn't there. So, naturally, she is being grounded and losing computer privileges. Of course, its not fair to her, she only did one thing wrong (lying about it apparently isn't wrong) and we're bad parents.

So now she's trying to pull all this independence crap, like since she's turning 18 at the end of the month, she might drop out of school, or that she is her own person and she can do whatever she wants and we can't stop her. We've tried to explain to her that she is a minor, she lives in OUR house and she must follow OUR rules. She doesn't want to hear it, says that at the end of the month it won't matter. I've told her that as long as she lives in out house she must follow our rules. Of course then, it followed that she threatened to move out.

She has it SO set in her mind that no one can tell her what to do, even if its for her benefit. We tell her that she should finish school, she tells us that she's considering dropping out. All the money we spent on her education at Catholic will have been wasted. $7000 a year, for 3 years, paid by us, Monica's parents, and Monica's uncle, all wasted. Doesn't even phase her. I know that some of it is an act; a front. She doesn't want us to see, to know, what matters to her. I know some of it she does just to get a reaction from us, because if we blow up about it, we're bad parents. Its like she feels entitled to whatever she wants. That she shouldn't have to work for it, that there should not be any consequences for her behavior.

Monica is at her wits end. This weekend is going to suck, with Elizabeth pissing and moaning about having to stay home. See, she's used to us letting her go out every weekend to stay with friends in Knoxville, so now we're looking at the temper tantrum from hell. Our fault I guess, really, for giving in all the time. I admit that sometimes it was just easier to let her have what she wanted instead of listening to her bitch about it constantly. Now we have to deal with the consequences. I suppose it will be a learning experience for all of us this weekend. Don't be surprised though, if the next time I blog it involves me talking about the time we had to call the police because my daughter ran away...