Because She Turns Into A Pumpkin At Midnight

The Girl and I had a bit of a disagreement last night.

Being as she's sixteen and all, she's gotten it into her head that she gets to be the boss of her life now. After all, she has a car. And a job. And besides, it's summer, so she should be able to stay out as late as she wants, right?

Yeah. Think again.

We've been much more lenient with her than we were with the first three because, let's face it, we're old. We don't want to sit up nights waiting until she gets in to make sure she makes curfew. We don't want to monitor where she goes, what she does, and who she does it with. We don't want to lose sleep, worry, or tell her when she has to be home.

But guess what? We do.

Last night she came rolling in at 11:45 p.m. to tell me she thought a lady at the tennis courts who was in her cups had called the police on her because one of the boys she was driving around with called her a name. We talked about it for a minute or so, I got her calmed down, told her to take the boys home and get home by her curfew of midnight.

At 12:15 a.m. I called her cell phone.

She was at the International House of Pancakes with the boys. She thought I had gone on to bed and she'd pull a fast one on me. What she didn't realize is that I've been there and done that, and the t-shirt dates back thirty some odd years.

I ordered her to take the boys home immediately and to get her behind home. And I waited up for her, on a night when I had to be at work the next day, until 12:45 a.m.

Her excuse for not at least calling to say that she'd be late, when our rule is that you always, ALWAYS, ALWAYS call if you're going to be late?

"I didn't want to wake Dad..."

Sheyeah, right. You didn't want to be CAUGHT, more like. Like I said, I have this t-shirt...

Suffice it to say I was not a happy camper when all was said and done. Suffice it also to say that neither was she, but she now understands the rules PERFECTLY. With the help of a "reminder." And another lecture from her father when he found out what she'd done this morning.

I thnk the Princess has turned into the Pea for a while.