Your 12-year-old is mature and self-sufficient in some ways, but in other ways, she’s completely hopeless, as is to be expected during the tween years, when your kid isn’t really a “child” anymore — but isn’t an adolescent, either. It’s a strange age, especially when it comes to childcare. On the one hand, you trust that your tween knows how to dial 911 in an emergency, knows not to stick metal objects in an outlet, and is perfectly capable of getting herself a snack. You’re pretty confident that she can come home from school and take care of herself for a couple of hours until you get home. But on the other hand, you know that the first time your son doesn’t answer your phone call, you’re going to be frantic, imaging every possible scenario, and that’s going to considerably cut down on your efficiency at work and give you more gray hairs than you’d like. You also know that you’re probably going to come home to find the milk sitting out on the counter next to the open cereal box, cookie crumbs everywhere, shoes and back pack haphazardly tossed on the floor, and your beloved holed up in front of the TV, eyes glazed over. It’s 5:30 pm, and there’s still homework and chores to be done. No wonder you can never get him to bed on time!
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