3 DIY Ideas for Teen Room Makeovers | Raising Independent Teens | Parenting With Love and Logic

3 Must Try DIY Ideas for Teen Room Makeovers

Welcome back to today’s episode of My Teen Daughter is Driving Me to Drink. I’m your host Selena “Don’t You Sass Me” Cochran. And today, we’d like to welcome three very special guests to the show. Please give a warm studio welcome to “Yes I Heard You 10 Minutes Ago,” “Are We There Yet?” and “You Mean I Have to Wash My Own Dishes?”

Middle school and high school parents, I bet your special guest line ups are pretty similar to mine. I’ll have to write a post about some of the awesome one-liners teens and tweens come up with. But for today, let’s talk about simple, DIY bedroom makeovers for teens.

If we want our children to be shakers, movers and/or master change agents in the earth, we must create an atmosphere conducive to unbridled creativity, independence, discipline and freedom of expression. – Selena 

My daughter is quite creative, expressive and artistic. So when she originally told me her concept for the room, I was hesitant. It was a huge undertaking and frankly, “ain’t nobody had time for that!” Ha! Couldn’t resist. In the end, I couldn’t have been more proud of my princess! Eat your heart out Ty Pennington! Here are some of her best ideas for her room makeover:

Wall Decor 

“Mom, I want to be reminded about what’s really important to me.” Aside from the impromptu teary-eyed, mom’s-gone-all-mushy-in-public-again moment, I was a proud. She wanted words and phrases on her wall that reminded her of all that’s good in her life. We purchased silver-tinged wall décor with phrases like: friends are the flowers that bloom in life’s garden; go confidently in the direction of your dreams; and Wish It. Dream It. Do It.  A perfect compliment to her pink accent wall. You’ll find these at Kohl’s, Tarjay and the Dollar Store.

Glitter/Splatter/Paint 

“I want it to be funky but still be something unique only to me.” With those words, my genius daughter used glitter paint plus 3 other colors to create one heck of a spectacular splatter paint design for all of the trim and baseboards in her room. You definitely won’t find this type of splatter anywhere. Pink shag/satin curtains courtesy of Grandma. 

Bean Bag Chairs 

Photo Credit: BeanBagBoss.com

“Duh, mom. Every room should have a bean bag. Where else would Lovey sleep?” She may be 14 now but Lovey, the Dolphin, still needs a place to call home. And not just any old bean bag, but a black/white/pink leopard print bean bag. Why? Because dolphins are princesses too. True story.

Stop. Think. Do.

The key to raising our teens to be independent and brilliant is to provide an outlet for them to be themselves and support them as they do. The princess called all the shots and I graciously, and proudly, watched her create one stellar masterpiece of a room. I’m proud. She’s prouder. And that parents, is what it’s all about.

Top 3 Things Not to Do If Your Ex Acts Like a Toddler | Coping with Breakups | Successful Parenting

“Thanks so much for picking up the kids this week”

“Ahh, no problem. They’re my kids too.”

“Yeah, I know but work has been crazy this week and well, thank you.”

“Anytime. I love being invited to their games and what not.”

What Not To Do If the Ex Acts Like a Toddler | Successful Single Parenting

Sounds kind of dreamy, right? Sounds too good to be true doesn’t it? Actually, it’s not that farfetched. I know several divorced families where this is the standard flow of things which continues to leave me to starry-eyed and staring off into the distance fantasizing about a healthy, constructive dialogue with my ex. POP!!! Well, so much for fantasies. {snort}

Now, this is not a post about dogging out, belittling or degrading exes. Not only is that counter-productive; it’s destructive, especially to your child (ren). Here at SelenaSpeaks, we discuss positive practical ways to confront and manage difficult situations and in doing so, discover some truths about ourselves. My hope is that we’ll use those truths to make better decisions and choices in the future.

That said, let’s dive deeper. Let’s ruffle some feathers and enjoy a good chuckle, or two, in the process.

Thing #1 – Don’t Back Over ‘Em With Your Car

As you well know, I’m happily divorced. Like happily, happily divorced. Delirious in fact…which would explain a few things. If you’re like me then your ex doesn’t always **pause for dramatic flair** respond in a manner conducive to your emotional and mental well-being. I’m pretty sure you all know what I’m driving at. No matter how upsetting, annoying, frustrating or hurtful the conversation or interaction, responding at the height of your anger is NEVER a good idea nor is using violence to make your point. Silence can be your greatest weapon—use it often. Deep breaths and taking your time to respond not react, works wonders.

Thing #2 – Why Don’t Ya Shuddup Already?!! – Yeah. Don’t ask that.

Not that I’ve ever said those words…or anything similar. {nervous side eye glance} Much to your chagrin and possibly mine, shut-up really is a mean word. The trickiest thing about most “ex” situations is communication. Without it, you’re almost guaranteed a fail-FAIL every time. Unless the ex is using vulgar language, demeaning you or otherwise trying to manipulate or control you, hear him or her out completely. No, it’s not easy but respect is a two-way street.

Thing #3 – Don’t Play By My Rules? No Kids for You! – Don’t. Even. Go. There.

Remember the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld? If you didn’t speak, act or behave in a manner he wanted he’d retaliate by refusing to sell you soup and quickly dismiss you from the store. Hilarious as heck on TV, not even remotely funny in reality. Friends, children are not bargaining chips. They’re blessings—treasures—to be honored and valued, not things used to punish a parent for not doing what we feel or think is right. If your ex isn’t putting the children’s lives in danger, you don’t get to dictate if or when they get to see their children. But I’m not getting child support. But he refuses to help pay for their clothes and tuition. But all she does is leave the kids with her boyfriend. It’s ridiculous and it sucks; and I’m so sorry. But you can’t, ever. If you’re concerned for their welfare, then get the proper agencies involved. If the children don’t want to go, get the proper agencies involved. When my daughter was left in a park, alone for the better part of two hours, I got the proper people involved. Years later, when the ex petitioned the court and falsely accused me of violating his visitation rights, the proper agencies responded, the facts were reviewed and the petition was dismissed. Was it difficult listening to the lies in court?  Heck yea, I almost succumbed to thing #1. But the wonderful thing about lies is that the truth ALWAYS comes to light.

Stop. Think. Do.

Ladies and gents, in the words of Prince “act your age, not your shoe size.” Your ex may not always abide by those words but you can. An eye for an eye leaves the world blind. Using fire to fight fire will result in burns for everyone involved, especially your children. So, remember: think before you act, show a little respect and keep the children out of the drama.

Thanks for visiting!

Great Parenting Made Easy | Parenting with Love and Logic | Best Kept Secrets on Parenting

Great Parenting Made Easy

We’re parents now.

Whether that was a SURPRISE on all fronts or a planned decent into the world of liquid poop, vomit and zombie-esque trances brought on by too little sleep and not enough coffee on the planet to make a difference. Yup, we’re in charge now. Ready or not, we call the shots, make the decisions and get it done. We’re not just parents, we’re THE role models of the century.

From the time we bring them home, our treasures will observe, scrutinize, stalk and otherwise abuse us with their ability to generate eye-watering, gag-like smells not fit for any human being. True story.

You’ll be spit on and love it. Your cheeks, nose and eyes will make great friends with your baby’s  tongue. And much to your shock, you’ll find yourself giving more, loving more, than you ever thought possible. You’ll laugh, cry and want to rip your hair out…and that’s just the first day. Ha! Okay, perhaps that’s just the Terrible Two’s.

As parents–solo and joint–we want the absolute best for our children. We want to do what’s right and keep our heads on straight as we do. There’s so much we don’t know, so much we want to know and so much we’re not sure about. We want to be great parents and we want a solid, easy to follow plan to get there.

4 Tips to Parenting with Love and Logic

Laugh. Seems simple enough right? Just baaahahahahahaha and all will be well. Is that it Selena? Well, yes. Laughter does the soul good like medicine. It is highly contagious and is a great way to relieve stress. It’s easy to let fear, doubt and anxiety take over. Don’t. Laughing babies are happy babies and that’s a good sign you’re doing something right.

Lie. Yes, I said it. I know what you’re thinking: that’s cruel and wrong. You could be right but I’m telling you, it works. Case in point, the dreaded bed time. In my house, there would be crying, tantrums and nail biting “but why” sessions that made your eyes cross. Until I told them to sleep with their eyes open.  Impossible? I know. They didn’t. So, they laid there with their eyes open until they weren’t. No fuss. No issue. Problem solved. Today, we laugh about it…a lot. No harm. No foul.

Live. Parenting can be exhausting and tends to suck the life out of you, but you don’t have to let it. If you liked to dance or sing before, do it with your children. If you love the outdoors, crafting or other hobbies try getting your children involved. Kids love to be included in our lives. It makes them feel important and valued. And you’ll enjoy yourself a lot more than you think!

Learn. Parenting is a life long journey in which you never stop learning or growing, much like your bundle of joy. Kids are relentless with their questions. You should be too. Talk to your grandparents, other parents, pediatricians, friends and relatives. No one person has all the answers, including me. But we each carry a piece to a very intricate puzzle and if we put them all together, we can create one heck of an amazing view!

Great Parents Discuss

I want to hear from YOU!

Do you have parenting tips that help or have helped you be a better parent? Do you have burning parenting questions you’d like to ask? What’s your biggest fear about being a parent? You’re biggest triumph?

Share in the comments.

I can’t wait to hear from you!

And thanks for visiting!