Teenage Girls: What's Wrong With Them?

Remember the old saying, "Sugar and spice and everything nice, that's what little girls are made of"? I can't help but think that whoever came up with that, never had teenage girls. It's like a crazy transformation takes place between the ages of 10-13where the balance of "sugar and spice" is completely out of whack. The spice takes over and can sometimes leave a pretty bitter taste in your mouth. I know I caused my parents a lot of grief as a pre-pubescent young girl (as well as a full blown teenager) but was I really that bad? I remember crying, yelling, calling names, swearing, slamming doors, playing my music really loud etc., but I also remember feeling bad about those things a lot of the time.
As a mom I try to be understanding and even empathetic to what my daughter is going through but often find myself wanting to pull my hair out (cuz if I pulled hers out it could be considered abuse). Its hard to be patient and to see past the cloud of whirling anger and frustration that surrounds her most of the time, especially when it catches you so off guard. The sun can be shining with not a cloud in the sky but in the blink of an eye a tropical storm with overpowering winds and torrential rain is upon you. Like in any storm of that magnitude the first line of defense is to run for cover, board up your windows and hide in the cellar. Not often is the first response to be a storm chaser driving head on into the path of destruction; seeing each new storm as an exciting event and a learning opportunity. They don't run in fear they jump with enthusiasm at the experience that lies ahead of them. Crazy fools.
The storms will pass (eventually) and the balance of "sugar and spice" will once again be more evenly represented but in the mean time.........