T Time: Moms, Daughters & Friendship

7th grade was my favorite year of school - all because I had the best group of friends that year. My family moved several times while I was growing up - so most of my friendships were short-term, but some of my best memories are of my friends from 7th grade.

The right friends can help a young girl excel and mature into the woman God wants her to be and the wrong friends can bring her down, ruin her family relationships and lead to a lifetime of hurt and bad choices.

As a mother of 3 girls - I want to encourage my daughters to not only choose good friends, but also know how to be a good friend.

The upcoming book, A Girl's Guide to Best Friends and Mean Girls by Dannah Gresh and Suzy Weibel and the companion guide Talking with your Daughter about Best Friends and Mean Girls are wonderful resources for moms and daughters to have open communication about friendship.

A Girl's Guide to Best Friends and Mean Girls is the next book in the Secret Keeper Girl Series and is an easy, fun read designed for girls ages 8-12. It's followed by a Bible study that is interactive, fun and perfect for personal or small group use. I especially liked how the book used examples from the life of Jesus when explaining how to deal with different friendship encounters, pointing to Jesus as the ultimate example for every area of life.
However, I do wish the gospel was more clearly explained. Pointing girls to the facts that we are all sinners and are saved by the grace of God through Jesus Christ has to be the foundational relationship for understanding how to approach any other relationships.

Talking with Daughter about Best Friends and Mean Girls is a book designed for moms who want to be intentional in talking with their daughters about friendships.This mom companion guide, with 8 fun dates, is full of specifics for moms who are unsure of how/need a creative way to start the conversation. Although I can have candid conversations about anything with my girls without creating a whole event around it, I know lots of moms who would appreciate these suggestions on creating opportunities to get the point across.
Whether you use the date suggestions or not, make sure to take advantage of any opportunity to build trust and have open communication with your daughters about being a friend like Jesus.