Teenagers | Grit and Grace Life

Rest Easy Moms, Here Are the Things That Matter – 102

By This Grit & Grace Life Podcast / Podcast

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | Android | Email | TuneIn | RSS | MoreMoms, are you stressed? Do you find yourself worrying about almost everything? The right food, the growth chart percentile, the best school, grades, their behavior, screen time, and that discipline subject—terrifying. What is even more stressful is worrying about what other moms think about our decisions. It’s exhausting. It’s time to go back to the basics and remember what matters! Cross-generational friends and moms, Darlene Brock (mom of two grown daughters and Nonie to two grandkids) and Julie Graham (single, widowed boymom), discuss the things that do matter, what we should spend our energy on, and what we can let go of—now. Rest easy, moms. […]

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This Is What I Would Say to My Younger Mom-Self

By Marlys Johnson Lawry / Audio Articles, Faith

(Listen to the audio version of this article here.) Our daughter was away at college when our son graduated from high school. With a job lined up in Northern California, I drove him south across the Oregon border to help get him settled. On our last evening together, we went grocery shopping. Do you see how much it costs to eat in the manner to which you’ve become accustomed? But I don’t say this out loud. The next morning, I hugged him good-bye and then turned my car north. Melancholy rode with me in the passenger seat—past Shasta Lake and into the green mountains of Oregon. From birth until they sprouted wings and cleared the runway, I enjoyed every chapter of our

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Are You Worried Your Prodigal Will Never Return?

By Darlene Brock / Faith

Motherhood is complicated, and there are parts of the journey that we are often reticent to share. One of the most agonizing may not be the experience of all moms, but in today’s culture it is of the large majority. This world is busy making truth into lies and lies into the truth which, time and again, leaves a mother watching as her child becomes someone she wishes they weren’t. She is helplessly regimented to the sidelines as they adopt a lifestyle she wishes they wouldn’t. Childhood rebellion comes as early as the toddler tantrum and peaks at the middle school personality shift, often leading to teen rebellion. But the most pronounced may not show itself until choices are made by your college

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This Is Why You Need to Let Go of Your Boy, Mom

By Kitti Murray / Motherhood

I had breakfast with one of my sons this week. Somewhere between our first cups of coffee and our last, he looked at me across the table and said, “We should do this more often.” If you are a mom of a boy, especially a boy who is old enough to drink coffee, and even more especially a boy who is a man with a wife and children of his own, you understand how this comment made me feel. I don’t have to describe the little flip-flop that happened in my heart. But it wasn’t all that long ago when the flip-flop could have ruined the moment. This is the danger zone between moms and their boys. I will not say we

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Ask Dr. Zoe – My Tween Boy is Distant, What Do I Do?

By Dr. Zoe Shaw / Ask Dr. Zoe

‘Mom of Three Boys’ Asked: As a mom with three boys (12-year-old twins, 9-year-old), how do I deal with the tween separation that boys do without taking it personally? And allow them their space after being super close with them. They used to be so chatty and fun and now they are withdrawn, ‘hanging out with friends’ – which I know is normal but I take it personally… Also looking for some advice on how to get them to do their chores without asking 100 times! Thanks for any help! Xoxo Dr. Zoe Answered: From one boy mom to another, I get you! It is so hard when your son starts distancing from you—especially a child that was previously very close. Our

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Ask Dr. Zoe – My Child’s Screen Addiction, How Do I Limit It?

By Dr. Zoe Shaw / Ask Dr. Zoe

‘Sammi’ Asked: How do I help my child wean themselves away from screens? It’s only a few hours a day but she feels entitled to it and gets hostile once I ask for it back or tell her to turn it off. Dr. Zoe Answered: The problem isn’t the screen time (although the device struggle is real), it’s really that she’s responding to you in a hostile way. It’s okay for her to be disappointed, frustrated, even irritable. Those are feelings and all feelings are okay. But hostile? That sounds like a behavior issue. Her hostility tells me that she doesn’t respect you or believe you. We teach our children how to treat us through our action or lack of it. Without

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How to Get Your Kids to Depend on You (Less)

By Kitti Murray / Faith

The other day my husband, Bill, said to me, “Don’t take this as an insult, but you have a very low tolerance level for dependent people.” This is funny, coming from the only human being on earth upon whom I depend regularly and desperately. But he’s right. Nothing gets on my nerves more than unwarranted neediness. We raised four strong, independent adult sons. I am beginning to see that my intolerance for dependence contributed somewhat to this outcome. Even so, God’s grace is still my final answer to anyone who asks how we did it. We didn’t. God did. Bill reminded me of a phone conversation I had years ago with our friend, Delores. Delores was the less likable, female counterpart of

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Here Are 5 Ways to Protect Your Child Online

By Jessica Harris / Motherhood

As a mom, you know it’s your job to keep your little ones safe. From the moment you first held them, whether you birthed them or adopted them, you probably felt a fierce desire to make sure nothing bad ever happened to your children. Then, life happens and, of course, they fall, scrape, bleed, and cry. Shy of wrapping your kids in bubble wrap and grounding them for life, it may not feel like there is much you can do to protect them. In this technological age, it’s no longer just the stranger on the playground you have to be watching out for. There are seedy characters and questionable content all over the internet, tucked away in apps, messaging through social media,

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How to Raise Responsible Kids: Tips for Every Age – 087

By This Grit & Grace Life Podcast / Podcast

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | Android | Email | TuneIn | RSS | MoreIsn’t every parent’s goal to raise happy, well-adjusted, and, yes, responsible kids who can find success in life? Even comedienne, Phyllis Diller said, “I want my children to have all the things I couldn’t afford…then I want to move in with them.” We may not want to live with them, but we do want them to be able to build a life for themselves. In this episode, single boy mom Julie Graham asks all these questions and more of Darlene Brock, who literally wrote the book on raising great girls. They discuss some of the practical applications for every age. From the chores a child

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Why You Need to Let Your Teenager Go

By Amber Koehn / Motherhood

My daughter’s middle school recently held a parent meeting for students interested in its biennial trip to Washington, D.C., and surrounding areas. This excited me and also terrified me for a couple of reasons. It doesn’t seem possible that I have a child old enough to go on the same trip I went on, but then again, it doesn’t seem likely that it’s been 25 years since I went on that trip. The adventure consists of several days on the east coast touring monuments and museums in D.C., Pennsylvania, and Virginia. It is held every other year for students who have completed eighth grade, and it is a phenomenal learning experience. The teacher who hosted the meeting has been the primary sponsor

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A Letter to My Preteen Son, I See You Finding Your Way

By Laura Hurd / Faith

I can’t say for sure when it started because I feel like it has been more of a creeping progression. This year I have felt more sidelined as your mom than ever. You are learning about your body, your personality, and your friends. I understand that it’s a lot for you to take in. You are pulling away from adolescence and gradually determining your mindset. Basically, you are growing up. Most of the time I am so proud of you for how you react to situations. You have even stood strong in your faith in circumstances that have left me doubtful. However, to assume that you wouldn’t be tempted in any way along the journey of your youth was a dumb thought.

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This Is How to Face the Homework Battle

By Amber Koehn / Motherhood

If you are a mother, chances are you’ve had to deal with your fair share of homework battles. Some instances have probably been minor, like your child forgetting to bring their homework back to school or not getting the required signatures on a form. But some cases have probably been a little more extreme (think full-blown temper tantrum–and I’m not talking about your child). I remember one such occasion with my oldest. It was four years ago when she was in the third grade. I was going about my afternoon, getting ready to start dinner, when I was interrupted by an extremely upset 9-year-old. Like, epic upset. She had been working on her math homework for all of five minutes and deemed

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A Little Encouragement When Motherhood Is Disappointing

By Dr. Zoe Shaw / Motherhood

Wait. Is this taboo? Can I talk about when this joyous thing called parenting is disappointing? Whether you have a newborn who is screaming all night or a 40-year-old adult child living downstairs, there comes a point (well, many of them maybe) when a parent thinks, wait—this sucks! Before you get offended, let me acknowledge that talking about the not-so-great parts of parenting does not in any way negate the amazing, heartwarming, life-changing miracle that parenting is. It really is. But sometimes it is truly disappointing, and way too often we parents take on way too much guilt, which of course only further impedes our good parenting moments. We are never off the hook as parents, but that doesn’t mean we are destined to a

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This Is What My Teen Learns From Chores

By Laura Hurd / Motherhood

Now that we live in the days of social media where opinions are flourishing and instantly streamed on our news feed, it’s easy to get distracted by what everyone else is doing. I have to continually remind myself that what is good for the goose doesn’t even fit into my daily schedule and family dynamic. (Read my full article on comparing your mothering skills to what you see on social media here!) However, having drawn from my childhood experiences and what I have seen work for my own teen, there are some core lessons that will benefit everyone. These are traits that can easily be instilled through the application of a simple daily chore routine. So, why is it so important for

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When You Feel Sad Because an Important Season of Motherhood Ends

By Jennifer Schoonover / Motherhood

I’m not ready. I’m just not ready! This is the recurring thought I’m having as we walk further into the wonderful fall season. With this season come so many emotions. Ok, who am I kidding? All seasons bring about different emotions, for me anyway. Fall is like a deep sigh, a cleansing breath if you will. The daylight is shorter, and darkness longer. The fog rolls in with the evening and stays until midmorning, bringing a layer of dampness to all it touches. We begin to look for our favorite, coziest sweater to keep the chill of the morning and evenings off our sun-soaked skin, and we contemplate trading out our iced coffee for a warm pumpkin spice latte. I love this season for

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Sneaky Teen Texting Trends You Need to Know About

By Darlene Brock / Life & Culture

If you are raising a teen or a soon to be teen, or if you simply have a human in your life who’s in the middle of those challenging years—a nephew, niece, or the child of a friend—there are some things you need to know. In the fast-moving culture in which we live, there are new minefields popping up that many of us are unaware of as we go about our daily life. This is one of those that, for me, I thought I knew a bit about. But the breadth of this data shook the foundation of what I thought I knew. In the wake of a recent study by Common Sense Media, it’s become the norm that teens prefer to text their

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How Can You Raise Great Girls? Darlene’s Daughters Tell All – 054

By This Grit & Grace Life Podcast / Podcast

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | Android | Email | TuneIn | RSS | MoreAre you trying to raise confident, capable daughters but feeling unsure about how you’re doing? Every mother feels that way! Darlene Brock, in her new book, Raising Great Girls, takes a look back at the years she raised her two daughters. By breaking down the roles, this mom took on doable jobs, and she shares what she learned. Since today is the official book release date, we wanted to celebrate by inviting her daughters to join us for this fun episode. You will hear firsthand from Darlene and her daughters the successes and failures that led to them becoming the adults they are today! Julie interviews

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