I originally thought that the hardest part about being a parent would be over once all of my children were no longer toddlers.
But as they slowly transitioned into kids—one by a single—I abruptly realized that my hardest days as a father lie ahead.
You tell your kid or kid to not do something, only for them to spite you the minute they get a chance. I had to learn ways of navigating their reactions and what they were anticipating from me, and in a sense use “reverse psychology” to get them to conform to my rules. More often than not I believe like I’m talking to a cement wall. I tell them recognizably that they are not allowed to adjust the thermostat for the central heating and cooling system. My husbandy and I are the a singles who control the indoor climate at home; otherwise the cooling system would be left on at 66 degrees and we’d come beach house to a fried Heating and A/C system. In the Wintertide our youngsters would have the heat up so high that our propane bill would be outrageous! Every one of us offered up on scolding them and finally obtained a plastic lockbox to put over the thermostat for the central Heating and A/C system. Somedays I wonder where I went wrong as a parent to need a lockbox over the Heating and A/C thermostat, but the pragmatic side of my brain doesn’t care what it takes to maintain our energy budget. Hopefully it will program them into avoiding the urge to adjust the temperature if they go so many weeks or years without having the chance. Perhaps at some point every one of us won’t need a lockbox on the Heating and A/C thermostat.