Need parenting advice re: pre-teen boy

Sounds normal and OK to me, kids really seem to be babies for an instant now that I've grown older.

It isn't too early. My son is the same age and starting to go through the same thing. But it did go so quick!

Sounds normal to me.

Don't think the aftershave would hurt his skin. And puberty can start around that age. My son is 13 and he started getting pubic hair after he was 12. Still no arm pit hair though. He still my little boy and it took me by surprise then when I found out he had pubic hair, and I'm not quite sure when he got it. I just made a commit one day about something and said "Oh you won't get that until you get hair down there" and he responded "I already do". That just about floored me there. He still doesn't have facial hair either, maybe just a little peach fuzz.
But it is so scary we had a just turned 14 y/o have a baby and the daddy was about that age also. They are just toooooo young to have babies at that age.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw...happening+to+m

Check out these books on Amazon (probably available @ the libraary).

While it depends on the aftershave, I'm reasonably certain it won't "affect" his skin any worse than raging teen hormones and acne will. The primary function of aftershave is to "cleanse" razor nicks. While this won't be a factor for him, you might want to consider the 'drying effects' of the alcohol prevalent in most (if not all) after shaves.

I was about 13 when I "really" started to "notice" pubic and armpit hair. I didn't begin to grow 'fuzz' on my face till I was about 16...

... but I did begin to notice "hairier" arms/legs by the time I was 14-15. Mr. Hairy Chest began to appear around the time Mr. Beard presented itself.

As with any and all "fuzz" - the more you 'shave' the 'faster it seems to grow'. I say 'seems to' because by and large, it's an illusion. Hair grows at a constant rate but the more frequently you shave it, the more it appears to grow.

The only consequence of starting to shave early on in life is a leathery face sooner rather than later.
There is no set rule - my brother had certain characteristics appear earlier than I, but some of mine appeared earlier than his (he is 7 years older than I am).

My brother needs to shave once every 2-3 days to look presentable. I need to shave every other day. Our Father needs to shave every 12 hours or so!


Hope this was helpful.

cheers,
Roy (still shave with warm water, a brush, lather shaving cream and a straight blade razor. Oh and Old Spice Musk is my one and only....)

Sounds like he is perfectly normal/ reminds me of a sad but funny story.
I work with kids with psych and behavioral disorders. many have had very sad childhoods. some have developmental delays.
we had a young boy (12) who complained of a change in the color of his skin in his private area. said he also had "a black rash" he is blond..so none of us nurses could figure what could be wrong with him; and he was very hesitant to let anyone examine him . we were thinking black heads or acne or some really bad fungal infection we finally got him to agree to let a nurse and our assistant (male) check him. sure enough; the "black rash" was pubic hair!! we promptly did some education notified the proper people to help him!

i remember when my dtr started screaming for me...she was around 11.

she had remembered our "talks" and merely wanted to point out what was happening. "look, mom, look" with a huge grin.
(i smiled and hugged her but wanted to cry)

her nosy brothers wanted to know what was going on (who were 10 and 7).
i told them tiff was getting hair.
7 yr old: "i have hair" as he patted his head.
i told them when they turn 10, 11, 12, they may start getting hair around their penis and under their armpits, and maybe enough hair on their face to grow a beard.

they loved the beard idea.
so when the time came, they didn't call me, but did seem to hold their chins just a notch higher or two.

leslie

Sounds like the "early side of normal". I think kids are starting puberty early these days, especially girls. I started around the same age as your son and was early compared to my friends.

The worst aftershave can do is cause dry skin. Not to worry. It will help clear up some of those adolescent boy smells that you'll start to notice soon. LOL.