Tween Hormone Attack

The tween hormones at my house are annoying and sometimes infuriating.  I don't understand this very strange phenomenon, but for about a year, the signs of angsty frustration have been slowly emerging through sighs and rolled eyes.  I can't stand it.  And the worst part is that I can't get him to stop being so full of it.  I've tried yelling, guilting, ignoring, punishing, etc.  Nothing works.  He just sighs louder, shrugs his shoulders deeper, mopes longer, and hangs his head lower with an irritated frown on his face.  You might ask, what I am doing that causes such a pronounced reaction? Well, just about anything that isn't related to Mine Craft or getting his way.  In fact, here are a list of things that have led to a foot-stomping episode of angst:

• Asking him to brush his teeth
• Asking him to fill my wine glass (okay, sure, I can see how this might be annoying, but I make him dinner and breakfast every darn day!)
• Telling him to practice piano
• Asking him if he has homework
• Asking him to do his homework
• Telling him to bathe (especially if he has bathed earlier in the week - God forbid!)
• Telling him to change his clothes

This is just to name a few, and even after I tell him to do something, it doesn't mean he actually does it.  For example, I found this on the bathroom floor after I forced him to shower.  

Red plaid, blue plaid, gray Hanes.

Look closely.  You should be able to clearly see three pairs of underwear layered neatly over probably a three-day period, thus proving that he didn't shower for at least three days and he failed to change his underwear each morning for at least three days.  WTF?  

So, yesterday, he was pouting after I told him he had to practice piano this week.  He's been slacking for a while and actually announced he is ready to quit.  Chuck won't allow it.  I'm sick of dealing with it and sweet-talking, coercing, and bribing him to practice.  So, instead of arguing, I ignored him and forced him to go to Charming Charlie's with me and then to a little boutique store close by.  The misery on his face actually made me giddy.  I'm pretty sure this is wrong somehow, but I can't seem to muster any remorse.  Instead, I'm still chuckling over his pain.  If you think I'm a bad person, go ahead and keep those thoughts to yourself.  I'm going to relish this for a while - and especially every time he starts in with his hormonal attitudes.

So, today, I'm feeling lucky and blessed to have one little person in my life who still likes to snuggle and who has not been taken captive by raging hormones.  I'm soaking up every minute!