The Connected Mom

Boy...parenting can sure be "inconvenient" right? As a busy mom, you know that everything shifts when you become a parent. But let this conversation encourage you to embrace--and activate--the opportunities that come along with parenting your children. This conversation will help you think about the unique traits that God gave your kiddos. Our dear guest, Melissa Hannigan, shares the heart behind her book "Inconvenient Parenting: Activate Your Child's God-Given Traits." You're sure to glean some gems from her honesty and practical encouragement.

CONNECT WITH MELISSA

BUY MELISSA'S BOOK
Inconvenient Parenting: Activate Your Child's God-Given Traits 

Hope and help for shaping Christ-honoring future generations.

Families are like little churches. They are meant to be places of discipleship, worship, and rest—places where we can fine tune the gifts God’s given us so we can bless the world. They can be full of surprises and joy. But family life can also be heartbreaking and downright discouraging. Trained counselor and mother Melissa Hannigan knows how hard it is to cast and keep a vision of rich family life. How do we cultivate a family culture that’s vibrant and encouraging—a refuge amidst life’s storms?

Melissa is passionate about helping families build healthy, strong, God-honoring homes. In Inconvenient Parenting, she shares twelve qualities that are the key ingredients to that desired end:

Wisdom — Wonder — Vitality — Sensitivity — Flexibility ­­—Curiosity —

Creativity — Imagination — Inventiveness — Playfulness — Humor — Joy

Melissa shows us why, though inconvenient at times, it’s necessary to encourage and infuse these traits in our children and reveals how we can unknowingly discourage these qualities. Each chapter concludes with practical activities, book recommendations, and discussion questions to help parents immediately apply the principles discussed.

It's a topic that is hard to talk through...but even harder to walk through. But our guest shares her story so that others can cling to hope. On this episode, Becky and Sarah talk with Candy McVicar, the co-author of the book 'Holding On to Love After You've Lost a Baby.' Candy shares her personal story of losing her babies and how she started the Missing Grace Foundation to support families who have experienced similar losses. She discusses the importance of validation and support for grieving parents and offers advice on dealing with faith struggles. The conversation also touches on maintaining connection in marriage and ministering to other children in the family.

Get Candy's Book: Holding On To Love After You've Lost a Baby by Gary Chapman & Candy McVicar
Missing Grace Ministry Link
Candy McVicar's Website

Have you ever thought about how your personality impacts how you pray? So interesting! In this episode, Becky and Sarah discuss the topic of prayer with guest Janet McHenry. They explore the concept of praying personalities and how each person is wired differently when it comes to prayer. This is a NO judgement zone and meant to encourage you! Listen in and think about how your personality impacts how/where/when you pray.

• Connect with our guest, Janet McHenry
• Order Janet's book Praying Personalities: Finding Your Natural Prayer Style
• Take the Praying Personalities QUIZ

Such a sweet episode! Daughter-Mom team, Calyn and Blythe Daniel, join us to talk about friendships...specifically with tween girls. Tween relationships can be a little sticky--yikes--so listen in! Together they wrote a book "Let's Be Friends: A Tween Devotional on Finding and Keeping Friendships." We enjoy conversation around being brave to make new friends, standing up for ourselves in friendships, knowing one's worth, reaching out to new people, and being a light in friendships. They also discuss the qualities of good friends and the lessons learned from writing the book.

Order their devotional book here:
Let's Be Friends: A Tween Devotional on Finding and Keeping Friendships

Chapters

00:00
Introduction

01:14
The Impact of Loneliness on Kids

02:38
Introducing the Guest and the Book

03:25
Challenges for Tween Girls in Friendships

07:08
Standing Up for Who You Are in Friendships

09:05
Importance of Knowing Your Worth in Friendships

11:23
Challenges in Friendships and Identity

13:44
Reaching Out to New People

16:28
Involvement in Activities and Making Friends

18:46
Sharing Faith and Being a Light in Friendships

20:27
Qualities of Good Friends

22:10
Loyalty in Friendships

24:46
Advice for Shy and Introverted Girls

27:31
Supporting Daughters in Friendships

29:00
Lessons Learned from Writing the Book

31:42
Closing Prayer

Need some fresh ideas on how to best pray for your child? Listen in! Becky and Sarah talk with Sharon Jaynes about "Praying for Your Child from Head to Toe"--a book Sharon wrote that is a 30-day guide to "powerful and effective Scripture-based prayers." Sharon shares insights on praying for different areas of a child's life, starting with the mind and going down to the feet. She also encourages moms to pray for other children and reminds them that God is always at work, even when it seems like evil is winning. The episode concludes with a prayer for encouragement and a reminder to trust in God's love and provision.

Get Sharon's book.

Learn more about Sharon.

Chapters

00:00
Introduction and Welcome

00:26
The Importance of Prayer for Moms

01:18
Introduction of Guest and Book

03:20
The Power of Praying for Your Child

07:31
The Pattern of Prayer

10:49
Praying for the Mind and Neck

13:42
The Importance of Letting Go of Control

15:28
The Landmarks of the Lord's Prayer

19:28
Releasing Control to God

22:16
The Power of Prayer in Interception and Provision

25:28
Encouragement for Moms in Prayer

28:16
The Role of Struggle in Prayer

31:24
Praying for Other Children

32:02
Closing Prayer

33:12
Conclusion and Invitation

In this episode, we discuss some heavy topics that affected mom, Keri Spring, and her teenage son. We discuss the impact of bullying, loss of a child, and the importance of forgiveness and faith in her healing journey. Keri also shares how her family has testablished a scholarship fund in her son's memory. The conversation highlights the need for open discussions about mental health and the importance of supportive, connected friendships. Becky's new book "Tethered Trust" is dedicated to Keri. 

Give to Keri's scholarship fund:
Gregory D Spring Perseverance Scholarship Fund

Find out more about Keri Spring

If you’re thinking about suicide, are worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, the 988 Lifeline network is available 24/7 across the United States. Text 988.

Chapters

00:00
Introduction

01:20
The Importance of Discussing Teenage Depression, Anxiety, and Suicide

03:10
Introducing Guest Carrie Spring

04:09
Involvement with Buffalo Bills and Sabres

05:37
Tragic Loss of Carrie's Son, Greg

07:41
Dealing with Tourette's and Bullying

10:22
Finding Faith and Forgiveness

12:47
Establishing the Gregory Deep Spring Perseverance Scholarship Fund

20:41
Addressing Bullying and Advocating for Change

28:36
The Importance of Supportive Friendships

31:49
How to Support Those Who Have Experienced Suicide

Gregory D Spring Perseverance Scholarship Fund

https://cattfoundation.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=3442

Mom burnout. Weariness in parenting. Can you relate?

In this episode, we interview Julie Lavender, author of the book ''Strength for All Seasons." We discuss the challenges of motherhood and the importance of relying on God's strength. Julie shares her personal experiences of burnout and how she learned to lean on God in different seasons of motherhood. She also emphasizes the need for a support system and the power of prayer. The conversation highlights the importance of recognizing warning signs and asking for help when needed. Be encouraged to rely on God's strength in every season of life.

ABOUT OUR GUEST:
Julie Lavender is the award-winning author of several books, including 365 Days of Celebration and Praise and Creative Sleepovers for Kids!, and coauthor of Come and Behold Him. Her work has appeared in several anthologies and curricula, as well as many magazines, such as The Upper Room, Guideposts, Homeschooling Today, ParentLife, Clubhouse, Today's Christian Woman, and Focus on the Family. Julie has a master's degree in early childhood education, taught public school in three states, and delighted in homeschooling her four children in six states during her husband's Navy career. She writes faith-based articles for her local newspaper and is a regular contributor to several websites and blogs on parenting topics. Julie lives with her husband, David, in South Georgia, not far from the charming city of Savannah. Find her online here.

Today, we’re talking about her book, Strength for All Seasons: A Mom's Devotional of Powerful Verses and Prayers

Chapters

00:00
Introduction

01:23
Introducing Julie Lavender and her new book

04:01
Understanding Mom Burnout

08:06
Relying on God's Strength

12:05
Recognizing Warning Signs

15:08
Relying on God's Strength in Different Seasons of Motherhood

21:23
Relying on God's Strength in the Empty Nest Season

30:53
Conclusion

Sometimes life is so heavy that it seems hard to hold onto our faith. Have you been there? You're not alone. Our guest Michele Cushatt has been through THREE cancer episodes and the many complications that come with that--both physically and spiritually. She reminds us that having questions about what you believe is not a lack of faith.

About Our Guest: Michele Cushatt
With a unique blend of storytelling, Bible teaching, and humor, Michele Cushatt speaks inter- nationally to a wide variety of audiences on faith in the hard places. A three-time head-and-neck cancer survivor and foster-adopt parent, Michele is a (reluctant) expert on trauma, faith, and our deep human need for authentic connection. She and her husband, Troy, have six children and they live on 8 acres outside of Denver, Colorado. Find out more about Michele at www.MicheleCushatt.com.

About Michelle's Book . . .
A Faith That Will Not Fail: 10 Practices to Build Up Your Faith When Your World Is Falling Apart 

In this book, beloved author and Bible teacher Michele Cushatt presents a better way. By exploring powerful personal, historical, and biblical stories of people of extraordinary faith, she curates and shares ten practices to help you deepen your confidence and certainty in the God who can be trusted with your worry, questions, confusion, and grief. As a woman who has been through immeasurable suffering, she writes with both deep compassion and practical insight as she guides you to:

• Practice lament and process grief without guilt or shame
• Understand what keeps you from trusting God and how to navigate doubt with truth
• Learn simple ways to foster shalom and gratitude on a daily basis
• Develop a fresh, eternal perspective that delivers both peace for today and hope for tomorrow
• Savor daily "faith-builder" practices to strengthen your confidence in God's love and purposes for you, no matter what happens

Trusting in God can't happen without knowing that He is trustworthy. On today's episode, Becky unpacks several powerful names of God: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Let the truth about who God is refresh your perspective and confidence to trust God...even when life is wonky!

ABOUT OUR GUEST:

Authentic, passionate, funny and Biblical all describe, Becky Harling. A best-selling author, Becky is a popular speaker at conferences, retreats and other events. She is a best-selling author and has written eleven books including, How To Listen So Your Kids Will Talk and the author of Psalms for the Anxious Heart. Becky is a certified coach with the John Maxwell Team and offers parent coaching.

Becky and her husband, Steve have traveled and ministered in over 60 countries around the world. She is the parent of four grown married kids and Mimi to 14 grandchildren!

You can connect with Becky at www.beckyharling.com and www.harlingleadership.com

Facebook www.facebook.com/beckyharlingministries, Twitter @beckyharling, or Instagram @BeckyHarling

GET HER BOOKS

Balance sounds good...but is it really possible to achieve as a busy mom? We talk with Lisa Grimes, a CEO with experience juggling all the balls of life as a working mom, wife, executive, and friend. She takes time to show us different kinds of "balls" that are in our lives and how we can keep balance...which means knowing the value of each ball and what can drop.

ABOUT OUR GUEST
Lisa T. Grimes is a business leader, coach and speaker. She has spent most of the last 30 years in healthcare and lifestyle start-ups where she has served as CEO of PurThread Technologies, InSite Clinical Trials and AcSentient. She loves to connect people and often does so through her work with non-profit organizations. She lives in Cary, NC with her husband and has two adult sons. Connect with Lisa. Order her book here.

Chapters

00:00
Introduction and Personal Experiences

03:15
Finding Balance as a Working Mom

06:05
The Impact of Adoption on Work-Life Balance

10:36
Juggling Different Roles and Priorities

16:24
Letting Go of Perfectionism

23:53
Overcoming Guilt and Shame

27:50
The Importance of Girlfriends

29:59
Perfectionism as a Roadblock in Parenting

32:22
Prayer and Encouragement for Moms