She does it with EVERYTHING! If she can find some way to get attention off of something, she will use it! Keep in mind, this is the girl that always having to be in SOMETHING that is performance centered, and she is often in more than one thing at any given time. She's been in cheerleading, choir, dance, theater, tried to be in orchestra (but no one wanted to pay an arm and a leg for a violin for fear she would flake and quit), tried to be in band (but band director made her go back to color guard), and color guard. She joined color guard when she moved in with us around this time last year, and found out that all the positions in the cheerleading squad and the drill team (dance) were already filled...so color guard was the only thing left. Last football season killed me! I went to the games to watch BS19 play. Every time I even tried to talk to him about the game in general (not just his performance, but maybe what was up with the offense, was coach crazy trying to play the same play over and over, etc.), SD15 would start butting in trying to talk about her 5 minutes on the field at half time! And next year, she is already thinking that we are going to travel to EVERY game (yes, away games, too) to watch her do the same color guard routine over, and over, and over...sorry, I'm not sitting in the freezing cold for that! I will join DH for home games, but I'm not hitting the road any more for football, unless it is to drive up to BS19's college to watch the occasional home game there.

But if you don't go to SD15's performances, she pouts...and that goes for everyone! Grandmas, aunts, uncles, family friends...she expects everyone to be there all the time! Only one who gets a pass is BM, because she apparently gets anxiety leaving the house these days (woman was a thin 105 lbs about 6 years ago before the birth of her son, and now is about the size of a house, because she basically stays on the couch or in bed all day eating whatever crap is around the house.

I seriously don't know what is worse...SD15 doing this crap, or everyone who actually feeds into it! My SIL, MIL, DH...all, "We are so sorry he's going through this!" Me? When SD15 asked me (don't forget to add the "oh my gosh...this is so tragic" tone of voice to this), "Did you hear what happened to ______'s uncle?" I simply said, "Yes, I did" and walked away! This isn't our tragedy! SD15 and the boyfriend aren't married, and dating a few months does not equal automatic member of the family! She hasn't even KNOWN the guy more than a few months! I mean...for example...say BS19's best friend's uncle passed...that would be a bit different! BS19 and his friend have been close friends since 4th grade, and over the years, we have developed a friendship with the kid's parents. In THAT case, it may be of more concern for us...but even then, we wouldn't treat it as OUR loss! Yes, we would have huge concern for the family because we have been close for so many YEARS, but it wouldn't be OUR tragedy even still!

I often think I have to start walking around with headphones on like SD15 does most of the time, so I can't hear what spews from her mouth. The entire time in the car, and when DH insists that SD15 hang out with us in the TV room (I should not be required to hibernate in my own room)...it was constant! Just like leading up to color guard captain tryouts...blah, blah, blah...in the car, at church, constant! Ignoring her doesn't seem to work...guess she likes to hear herself talk.

OMG! SD15 is always singing all over the place! High, nasally, flat...UGH! I want to scream, "SHUT UP ALREADY!" All over the house, in the shower, while making a sandwich...sing, sing, sing! And she is the FIRST to critique someone else's singing! Like she is the expert vocalist!

Oh, the boyfriend's parents think that SD15 is a saint!!! I can tell by the boyfriend's mom's responses to SD15's Facebook posts all the time...always telling her how beautiful and sweet SD15 is, and how she is SOOOOOO happy that her son found a girl like her. I have to laugh to myself, "Is she talking about the same girl?"

But they always act different around other people...put on the charm! It helps them in the attention department..."Oh, feel sorry for me! I'm this sweet girl who's parents are dictators!" Wonder if the boyfriend's mom would feel the same if she knew about SD15's history with alcohol, smoking pot, skipping school, spending the night at boy's houses, etc.

But no, I will always be the evil stepmother...oh, who also doesn't want her son over at my house ever (which I never said...I simply want to be consulted before he is just allowed to hang out, because maybe I don't want ANY company). No, the boyfriend's mom will never get it, as she only works part time...she will never understand how one who works some 60 hours a week feels about their days off!

I wonder if DH even saw this coming! Last night, when I thought about it, I just KNEW she was going to have some reason to not go to school today. I almost brought it up to DH, "Watch, tomorrow...." I decided to leave it alone. I mean...a 4-day weekend would be nice, right?

You could tell even this morning that it was an act. When she was told no TV and no internet by DH, she got this look on her face like, "WHAT?" When DH asked her what she was going to do...go to school or go back to bed...she seriously struggled with it! With her arms crossed and her all balled up like she was freezing, and the super, over the top look of despair on her face, she kept saying, "I don't know what I'm going to do. I need to think about it." THAT right there told me it was all an act!!! I may have been born at night, but it wasn't last night! I've been a parent for 23 years now...raised two from birth through those teen years! Both BS19 and BD23, when REALLY sick, didn't have to "think about it"...they took their relieved butts to bed, and I seriously would not see them again until like noon when I would have to go in there and wake them up to eat something. If they weren't sick, they quickly figured out I had their number, and got their happy butts ready for school, because school was better than being holed up in their room all day!

Over the course of their teen years, BS19 and BD23 were hardly ever sick! Shoot, I don't think BS19 has missed a single day of high school outside of college visits. The only partial absences he has had have been for appointments. He would always tell me, coach is so strict on people who simply don't show up, that if he ever did get sick, he would go to school, puke on the field, and let the coach send him home! Don't get me wrong...he has had his days of feeling under the weather...he does suffer from a bit of allergies. But when he gets congested, he just takes some Dayquil and goes on with life. Same thing with BD23...I can count the days of high school she missed on one hand, and she spent some time getting terrible stomach aches until we figured out she was allergic to wheat, but she would say being around her friends helped take her mind off of her stomach, whereas if she just went home, she would just lie there and hurt.