How to Love a Twelve Year Old Boy

When he looks at me with the same dark colored eyes I saw peer over the edge of his blanket cocoon at just one week old, how can I not think of him as my little baby boy?  Yet time continues on, and he changes before my eyes from baby to toddler to boy to youth. 

And I find myself in a quandary, for how do I love in tangible ways my boy becoming a man?
This is what I have learned...



Let him explore his surroundings, developing his leadership skills, talents, and gifts, expanding his interests, and discovering how to serve others.

Offer help and support, but don't be offended if he doesn't want it.  Instead, be creative in your support.

Value his ideas and opinions.  Sure he is only 12, but God gave him a thinking mind, let him use it.

Encourage him to grow into the man God intended.  Don't get caught up in comparisons, and become critical.  Instead, be his biggest cheerleader.



...but most of all, I must remember, 12 is a stepping stone along the way to manhood...there is purpose in these adolescent days, and I don't want to wish them away, no matter how difficult the day may be...

~ Dorie




Possible Resources for the Journey

for parents ~
Bringing Up Boys, by Dr. James Dobson
The Way of the Wild Heart, by John Eldredge
Raising a Modern-Day Knight, by Robert Lewis

for parents and boys ~
An Honorable Boy, by Michelle Zoppa
Boyhood and Beyond, by Bob Schultz
Created for Work, by Bob Schultz
Practical Happiness, by Bob Schultz
Every Young Man's Battle, by Stephen Arterburn