January 28, 2022
top trending topics
💻 You need screen time limits, too (Not Just Your Kids!)
🤗 Raise your child to be generous with these practices.
📱Thinking about giving your child a phone? Read this first.
đź’› Keep the peace & co-parent with ease.
đź’ŁÂ If it feels like everything in your life is falling apart, you’re not alone.
tips & tricks for growth
DADS! Do you do these 10 things?
We live in a society that often downplays and minimizes the role that fathers play in the lives of their children. Mothers are often viewed as a child’s “primary caregiver” and dads are relegated to the sidelines. Sadly, many mothers reinforce this idea in a number of ways, and sadder still, many fathers go right along with it. Not good.
This idea flies in the face of what all the current science and research says about the importance of fathers from a child’s birth onward. Dads matter. In fact, they often provide things that mom can’t provide.
There are 10 specific things that every dad can do to guide his child to be a successful adult. Check out what they are in our FREE E-book 👇
NEW MOMS! here’s how you can feel confident
It is completely normal to have a lack of confidence in something you’ve never done before. Even if you’ve babysat or worked with kids, motherhood is a whole new ballgame. It’s the difference between sitting in the stands, maybe catching a fly ball every once in a while, and being up to bat in a sport you barely know the rules to. So you may not be surprised when I say this but… You won’t feel confident as a new mom. Hear me out: You CAN absolutely fake it ’til you make it. It’s gonna take time… but you WILL make it. You’ll find your confidence when your decisions yield positive outcomes.
If you focus your thoughts on giving yourself grace, believing you are a good mom, and knowing it will get easier in time, your brain strengthens those neural connections. You’ll become more resilient, optimistic and have higher self-esteem in the long run.
Try this right now:
💛 Think about something you did well as a mom today. But don’t just notice it; really feel it too.
💛 Take that thought and dwell on all the goodness in it for at least 20 seconds. (No fleeting thoughts here! And absolutely NO BUTS, unless, of course, your happy thought is that you cleaned a poopy butt really well…) This gives your brain time to fire those neurons and hardwire that belief into your brain.
💛 Let the confidence boost commence.
what we’re lovin’
This week’s picks come from Reggie Madison, a husband, Dad of 7 (Yes, you read that right, he and his wife are wayyy outnumbered!), and the VP of Community Relations here at First Things First! Take a peek at his recommendations for this week because they are just THAT GOOD. Check ’em out đź‘€:
🎲 Six Card Golf (Card Game)– This is the newest family game to sweep through our home. Lowest score wins. The video says play 9 rounds, but we play until someone gets to 100.
đź“— The Loneliness Epidemic by Susan Mettes–Â This book featuring research from Barna, explores the reasons so many are feeling lonely. It aims to help us understand what leads to feeling lonely and how we can respond. Some of it is aimed at how the church can help those who are experiencing loneliness.
📲 @Fitdadceo Instagram– I like his attempts at witty and clever dad jokes. Surely, you’ll pick up a joke or two that gets a laugh even after the kiddos roll their eyes at you for the attempt.
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Know a friend who would love reading all the relationship goodness we’ve packed in here? Go ahead and share it with them!
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