Homeschool Review: No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope (Great Waters Press) #hsreviews #raisingrealmen #halandmelanie #boymom #tweens #homeschooling
 |
|
No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope from Great Waters Press is a great read for parents of girls or boys between the ages of 8 and 14. You know . . . that place where they are no longer little, but not quite big and you wonder what happened to that sweet little one who used to walk right up, hold his hands in the air, and ask "hold you, momma"? Having survived FOUR rounds of this (3 daughters and 1 son) and working with children and middle schoolers weekly at church, I will be the first to admit that these "tween" years can be tough. I'm no expert, but I daresay Hal and Melanie Young are as close to expert status as you can achieve. They have walked through the hormonal battlefield with 7 of their 8 children (so far) -- and lived to tell about it -- so I respect their authority when it comes to sharing practical ideas and techniques that will help us understand what is happening in the crazy, rollercoaster life of a tween. Beginning with the biggest deal of all -- Relationship is everything.
For review purposes, I received an Advance Reader Copy of their newest book (and it is even signed! How cool is that?). No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope is a 204-page, softcover book divided into 12 Chapters. It begins with a reminder of the physical and emotional changes going on as our children begin the puberty transition and walks with us through the high school years wrapping parents in continuous encouragement through the days to come. Parenting takes grace -- a WHOLE lot of GRACE -- but even through the craziest of circumstances, Hal and Melanie offer us HOPE. I think that's my very favorite part.
Y'all, this parenting gig is tough. Who even knew when you first held your precious bundle that you would soon be slaying fire-breathing dragons of exasperated anger and de-fanging the serpent of disrespect -- all wrapped up in the heart of your child? Who knew their brains would turn to complete mush and they would forget how to read, or spell, or do simple math problems? Hal and Melanie walk with us through all of these crazy times in the pages of No Longer Little and they remind us that we WILL make it, and better yet, our children will, too.
No Longer Little offers practical (and GODly) advice about HOW to survive parenting in the tween years while guarding our relationship with our children. The Youngs make sure to point out what normal "tween" behavior looks like and they encourage us all to skip the "freak out." They bravely discuss the sexual awakenning in children (it is happening earlier and earlier nowadays) and remind us how to keep our kids safe in a [virtual and real-life] world gone mad. {Check out their audiobook, Love, Honor, and Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality for even more help in this area.}
Because it has been a major issue with one of my daughters, I could especially relate to Chapter 6: Social Struggles. I see this every day -- at church and at home. Kids can be mean and learning to discern who your true friends are can really take a toll on a tween. There's a social awkwardness that comes with the territory and how you wade through those waters will set the tone for years to come of happiness or heartache. I like that Hal and Melanie share tried and true ideas to help see us through the physical, mental, and emotional growth spurts and give practical suggestions that I can implement immediately.
There are so many great reminders throughout the book of things that we can do to help protect our children and treasure our relationships with them. Things you already know, but forget to follow-through with in the midst of teen angst: watch and listen, make note of who comes and goes in the lives of your kids, follow Matthew 18 in times of conflict, celebrate growing up and make it a big deal (they even offer suggestions for great gifts), let your preteen work and make money as they begin to figure out what they want to be "when they grow up". Above all else, the Youngs remind us to protect our relationships with our tweens and keep teaching them (and showing them) love. Most importantly of all, we must offer GRACE and know that there is HOPE.
For more information about No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope and other offerings from Great Waters Press, please visit the following Social Media sites:
I was given the opportunity to review No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope from Great Waters Press as a member of the Homeschool Review Crew. You can check out the Crew Review and see what other members of the Homeschool Review Crew thought of this book (or just click on the banner below.)
Pin It Now!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your heart with me!