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Don't Mom Alone Podcast - Raising Girls :: Sissy Goff [Ep 141]
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Raising Girls :: Sissy Goff [Ep 141]

Don't Mom Alone Podcast

11/06/16

55m

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Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice. . .including sassiness?

Now I’m not a girl mom. But I am a girl. That’s gotta count for something.

I know how complicated my emotions can be. With all the social media and cultural pressures, I can only imagine how overwhelming it is to raise a girl nowadays.

Good news!!! Today’s help comes from girl expert and licensed counselor, Sissy Goff. She spends most of her days chatting with girls and their families. The author of eight books including, “Raising Girls”, Sissy brings loads of wisdom and perspective.

In this episode we spend the first chunk of time talking on the topic of beauty. Then we move into whining and strong emotions (including the epidemic of childhood anxiety). Sissy shares great thoughts on girl friendships and sister stress.

Personally, I love her thoughts on how attention issues (e.g., ADHD) can impact girls socially. Lastly, she gives excellent advice on how to maintain a healthy mother-daughter relationship. And this quote:

What we chat about:
  • Speaking to the different areas of beauty God has placed in each girl, specifically calling out strength and bravery.
  • How we, as moms, talk about OURSELVES influences how our daughters see themselves.
  • Helping girls develop their own identity.
  • Keeping an ongoing dialogue and pulling your daughter back “into the huddle of your family” to discuss external messages.
  • Building up confidence helps lessen the fixation on external beauty.
  • Circling back to the places your daughter is confident and the things she likes about herself.
  • The importance of a girl’s father (or other male role model in her life) to show her she is valued for who she is.
  • Helping your daughter realize most girls share her same struggles.
  • Managing her intense emotions at home and recognizing anxiety.
  • Teaching empathy in practical ways.
  • Identifying “balcony friends,” “basement friends,” and “rollercoaster friends.”
  • Respecting her capabilities and fighting the urge to “fix everything” as she moves into the teen years.
Links Mentioned:

Previous Episode

Heather MacFadyen, mother of four boys, interviews guests discussing the topic of staying God-centered...both replacing "me" with "He" and remembering we are centered in Him.

Next Episode

I know, I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet. . .and seeing the word “Christmas” may trigger a mix of excitement and terror.

My goal in this episode is to help prepare you. To empower you in sharing with your kids the good news of God taking on flesh and dwelling among us. To help you create meaningful family traditions that your kids can pass on to the next generation.

Today’s guest is my good friend, Jacki Rucksdashel, author of the Jesse Tree Project. She is a mom to two amazing kids, a former classical education teacher and a darling, godly woman.

Jacki and I chat about the value of creating Biblically-based Christmas traditions. Fortunately, there are lots of options these days for families to celebrate Advent. We’re gonna help you sort through them so you can stay sane in the holiday cray-cray.

Jacki & I encourage you to pick one (maybe two) of the options. And to consider your family’s interests, ages, and values when choosing. We also share personal stories of our “less-than-perfect” attempts at memory making. And how to be realistic when celebrating the holidays with little ones.

Loved this from Jacki, sharing the heart behind this conversation:

Am I teaching my children that Christmas is about busyness? Or am I teaching my children that Christmas is about sitting at Jesus’s feet, and resting, and enjoying his birth and the fulfilling of the promise? It can get so easy so forget that, even in doing all the good things.

What we chat about:
  • Choosing a few, enjoyable traditions for your family, instead of ALL of them
  • Why are Christmas traditions such a big deal, anyway?
  • You can be your family’s first tradition-starter
  • The Jesse Tree Project, and how it’s made especially for families with young children
  • Using children’s anticipation for Christmas to mirror the Bible’s anticipation for a Savior
  • Our own funny stories of how “perfectly planned” traditions turned out...um...less than perfect (i.e.: being realistic)
  • Why it’s a good thing Jesus is NOT like Santa or the Elf on the Shelf
  • Other great tradition starters for young children: Shepard on a Search, Star from Afar, The Giving Manger, Light ‘Em Up
  • How to “mix and match” to find the right fit for your family
  • Setting priorities by reverse-engineering from Dec 26 and what you would consider a (realistic) successful holiday.
Links Mentioned:

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