My wife dragged me to her church for an all-day seminar called “Turbulence Ahead–Parenting Teens Through the Bumpy Years.”  I went along, in support of her and in support of her recent “turbulence” with our oldest son, who is 16½ and a handful.  But, my initial reaction was that this was a long time to spend on a subject that I know pretty well, which is that raising teens is no picnic.

At the seminar, it was quickly evident that my knowledge on the subject could certainly use a refresher, if not a full-on course.  Within minutes, I grabbed the pen that we were given and I began taking notes.  I ran out of space and in no time, I filled up the supplied notes sections of the program brochure.