Finally Reading Six Ways

I had posted several months ago that I had ordered Dannah Gresh's book, Six Ways to Keep the Little in Your Girl.

Well, it turned out that Amazon kept putting the book on backorder. I finally cancelled my order with the intention of purchasing it someplace else. For some reason, that just never happened.

When I got my iPad for Christmas, I searched of it in an ebook form, but it wasn't until last week that Amazon's Kindle store finally had it. So I bought the first ebook for the iPad.

So far, can I say WOW!! You can really see Dannah's heart for little girls, tween girls and teen girls. She is affirming some things that I do. And opened my eyes to a few things I need to start doing. Here are a few:

1. Cut back media time. I have been guilty of allowing the kids way too much TV, video games and computer time. On the way home from Karate last night, we talked about this as a family and decided to set a 1 hour limit a day - for everything. This will teach the kids moderation and to choose wisely. I'm sure Caleb's hour will be spent playing Epic Mickey, Tron or Super Mario Brothers! Taya will fall in the middle. She of course will still want Webkinz time. Delena will choose TV. Something else to work on....

2. I think its time to cut out some shows we have allowed them to watch. I think the newer episodes of "The Suite Life" are a bit much for tweens. They started watching a new show called "Pair of Kings" or something like that. He has Oliver from Hannah Montana as the star. Again, young kids, no parents. Time to nix it. I'm still torn about iCarly, but Delena rarely watches it.

3. Encourage the girls to play more with dolls. Honestly, neither of them are big doll fans. Even though I have tried to cultivate a love for dolls. Both girls even have American Girl dolls but rarely play with them. But reading Dannah's book, I see a real importance in that. Even if they never carry them everywhere they go, I do want to see both of them play more with them. I think I have made a mistake in thinking that Delena, who is turning 10 on Saturday, is too big for dolls. As I was pondering what to get her for her special 10th birthday, I raced to iPod touches or Kindles or Nooks - electronic gadgets because she is too old for "toys." Then I rememberd back to when I was 10 - fifth grade. Do you know what was popular for me in 5th grade? Yes, the Cabbage Patch Kids! I was CRAZY about them! I played solidly with those dolls until the 8th grade. No, Delena isn't too old for toys. And I need to do a better job encourage that and stop pushing iPods and Kindles. Those days will come fast enough! With that, Dannah endorses Groovy Girls as an alternative to Barbies. I had never heard of them before, but plan to have a couple for her at her birthday party. I also encouraged her and Taya to plan a tea party today after school for their dolls. They were excited about that!

4. Both of my girls are crazy about makeup! While I let them play with it, I have gotten a bit lacks about allowing Delena to wear it out of the house. Time to totally cut that out. Play is one thing. A very special occasion is another. For example, we are having a very special surprise party for Delena on Saturday. My old childhood friend, who happens to be the best hairstylist in the whole entire world, is coming to do the party. Total makeover with beautiful hair, makeup, nails, etc. Well, it turns out that my friend secured us tickets to WinterJam Saturday night - in a luxury suite! Kutless, DCB and Newsboys!! Since it is Delena's 10th birthday, and she will have had a fabulous makeover - we will allow her to go to the concert with her new "do." But this is not something that will occur on a daily basis. No more trips to Wal Mart with eye shadow!

Anyway, I am not finished yet with the book. And, Dannah's blog has started a reading club for the next six weeks. I am ahead of the reading group but plan to join in to see what other moms think and what their experience is. I would encourage every mom of a tween to read this book!

Ok, I really need to get on with my day! It is almost time to start school......more on the book later.

BTW, I did watch the Made To Crave webcast last night (well, as much as I could considering their website crashed). Very good, I am looking forward to more!