Heart Focused Parenting

#77: If you have older teens, or young adults living at home then you want to listen in today as I talk about a key parenting strategy that will help your young adult child move into adulthood well, but it will also help you make the transitions you need to as a parent.  If your young adult is living at home you need to have what I call a Rites of Passage conversation.  Listen in as I explain it and give you the words to say.   Transcript:  Have This Important Conversation When Your Child Becomes An Adult This conversation will help you navigate chages in parent-child dynamics when your child becomes an adult.   Further Reading/Listening:  Supporting your Teen and Young Adult Children as a Mentor:   Parenting changes and becomes more like mentoring as our children grow older and become teens and young adults. Are you making the shift?    Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form

#76: Today we're talking about three words that changed my parenting: love, mercy, and grace. As Christian parents, we are probably very familiar with those words. But do we let them change how we parent?   For full transcript: 3 Words that Changed my Parenting    Further Listening What does it Mean to be a Christian Parent:  The truth about Christian parenting isn’t in the things we teach our kids but rather in how we respond. Do we respond as followers of Christ?   Pursue Peace in Your Heart and Home: When we pursue the things of peace, our choices reflect Christ's righteousness and our right standing with Jesus, brings joy and peace every day.   How to be Calm, Gentle and Positive Towards your Children Every Day:  5 keys mindsets for parents to be calm, gentle and positive. When you change your beliefs you change your actions. You can be a gentle and positive parent.   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form  

#75:  Feelings of inadequacy can stop Christians from sharing gospel with children.  Learn to distinguish conviction from condemnation and how to be in a place where you can confidently talk to your kids about Jesus.   For full transcript: I’m a Christian, but feel Inadequate to talk to my Children about Jesus   Further Listening:  Jesus is our Example as we Disciple our Kids:  Jesus gave us the 'Great Commission' and that includes our children. Our Children need to Meet Jesus - and We Should Make the Introduction:  As Christian parents we want our children to love Jesus and follow God’s word so we have to be wise in how we teach our children about sin and mercy and grace.   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form  

Are you tired of feeling like you have to do it all to be a "good Christian family"? We are very quick to judge ourselves as not doing the right things, or not doing enough things to be a good Christian family.  This is a false standard.  What is a good Christian family anyway!  Our goal should be to create a space where our children grow in their faith and in their confidence to be who God made them be, our goal needs to be peace and harmony in our home - not just copying what other Christian families do.  When we know what is important to us, we can find the right way to make that happen in our family.  But we have to remember, every family is different. And trying to keep up with the Christian Jones’s is never going to work!   For full transcript: Stop Doing All the Things Good Christian Families are Doing   Further Listening:  10 Ways Parents make Parenting Hard - Harder than I has to be: We can make it harder than it has to be by the habits we get caught up with but you can catch yourself and start responding differently. Pursue Peace in your Heart and Home, and have a Good Day: When we pursue the things of peace, our choices reflect Christ’s righteousness; our right standing with Jesus, brings joy and peace every day. 3 Little Changes that will make a Big Difference in your Family Life:  Sometimes it is the little things that we can change in our family or parenting that will make the biggest difference.   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form  

#73 As Christian parents, we all want our kids to know Jesus - and Easter is a time to create meaningful spiritual moments for our children, but we often get overwhelmed by chocolate and other things.  In this episode, I’m talking about the importance of planning how you will approach Easter with intentionality and faith so that your children can grow in their knowledge and faith of Jesus Christ and all He has done for them. As an intentional parent - you need to start thinking about this now.   For full transcript: Preparing Your Family for a Faith-Centered Easter Celebration   Free Download:   Easter Heart Booster (Jelly Bean Story and Easter Faith based prompts)   Further Listening/Reading:  Celebrating Easter is about Jesus - are you Ready to Talk to your Kids?  (podcast/blog) Our Children need to Meet Jesus - and We Should Make the Introduction (podcast/blog) Easter Lessons for Older kids (blog only)   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form  

#72: We all dream of a family home overflowing with love, laughter, and fun.  And yet the reality is daily chaos and trying to balance all the things we have to do along with teaching and training our kids!  This week I’m sharing a journaling moment that changed my heart, changed my perspective which in turn changed our family - way back when my kids were little.  I don’t know about you but for me the Holy Spirit has a way of taking a Bible verse that I am very familiar with and making me really think about it, and and question whether I am living it out.  That’s is what I’m talking about this week. A Bible verse that changed how I engaged with my kids.  Listen in.   For full transcript:  Parents are you Cultivating a Family Culture of Love and Caring?   Further Listening:  Building a Relaitonship with your Child will Lead to Friendship Later: It is important not to get relationship and friendship mixed up as we parent our children. We start with a relationship and enjoy friendship later on. Being a Good Mum isn't about Getting Everything Done Today:  A busy mum tries to do all the things and finds she can’t. Follow these 5 principles and find balance so you can focus on what is important. Five Things Parents can do to Help their Child Feel Secure: When our children feel secure they are more confident to engage with their world - learning and growing as they do.   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form

#71:   Social media is here to stay so it is something that we as parents have to get our head around.  To be honest, regardless of what you think about social media, there is every likelihood that your teen will think something different.  How are you going to prepare them to walk wisely?  This whole topic is huge and can be daunting.  In this epiosode I’m talking about ways that help you navigate from a heart-focus perspective.  Regardless of how old your kids are - social media is something you are going to have to think about so I hope you find this episode helpful as you establish your family guidelines for online interactions - and in particular social media.    Full Transcript:  The Most Important Thing For Parents to get Right when their Teens want Social Media   Further Listening:  Online Technology & Social Media are not the Real Problem for our Kids How to Help Adult Children Living at Home with Screen Time Habits Supporting your Teen and Young Adult Children as a Mentor   Coaching: Get one-to-one help with coaching.  Start with a free Jumpstart session   see details   Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form

#70:  10 practical steps for intentional, relational, heart-focused christian parenting that you can start implementing today. I know that it is hard to stay intentional in the middle of all the chaos that happens in family life - but ironically intentionality is the key to overcoming the chaos.  Not aiming for perfect, but aiming to live life with purpose and in ways that honour and obey God.  When we tackle one thing at a time, with intention, change can happen. This episode is kind of like a summary of 10 things that I feel we did well and that influenced the outcomes of our family life - its a bit longer than usual, but I hope you find it helpful and find something in all this that you can start doing in your family.    Links to Resources:  Full Transcript / Blog:  10 Things we Did as Intentional Parents, that Made our Family   Signup to Heart Boosters (free):  weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family.  PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support materials.   Other helpful episodes Top Tip for Parenting the Heart – In Any Situation Create a Family Vision Unique to Your Family  10 Ways Parents Make Parenting Hard – Harder than it has to be! Know how to Help your Child Grow with an Intentional Plan   FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting   EMAIL BELINDA: Contact Form COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#69:  It is about this time of the year that I start going through a mental wrap up.  The end of the year is close, Christmas is pretty much sorted, and now my mind goes to planning next year. And we’ll start to see a whole pile of whoo-ha about setting goals on our socials. How do you feel about that? Does this make you groan, knowing everyone is going to be talking about setting goals, but they just don’t work for you - you know it - and yet it seems like they should work for you but truth be told, you’ve been setting the same goals for years and not really getting anywhere.   Something has to change! Listen in as I talk about the importance of goals (the right goals), and how to make them work for you - even when you are a busy, tired and overwhelmed Mum. >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  How to set goals as a Busy, Tired, Overwhelmed Mum Goals-setting for busy mums can be soul-destroying. Instead follow my heart-focused approach for life-changing goals & self-improvement. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form   >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#68 Thinking back over Christmases Past have you ever felt like you're juggling Christmas chaos, traditions and decorations and invitations - and your children’s behaviour!  In the middle of all that chaos going on you just wish your kids had a different attitude and be making different choices.  Today I’m sharing 3 character traits that could totally spoil your christmas vibes if you aren’t careful.  The reason why I’m talking about these 3 character traits is so you can identify the biggest one for your family and start addressing it now - a few weeks before Christmas.  Listen in…. 3  Character Issues you don’t want to spoil your Christmas >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  3 Character Issues you Don’t Want to Spoil Your Christmas Addressing these 3 character issues before Christmas will help your children do well at Christmas time.  Be a heart-focused parent even in a busy time of year. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#67…I want to end the year well - don’t you?  And yet it is so busy, here in Australia we have the end of school, and with that comes concerts, and graduations, and parties.  We have Christmas - and all that comes with that. A lot of people head off on holidays to catch up with family or just visit somewhere new.  It is a crazy busy time of year. Oh yeah, and while all this happens, we still have to parent.  We still need to be intentional, relational, and heart-focused parents.  So how do we stay connected with our kids, doing the important things, doing these fun things, and these things that build memories and not be distracted?  That is what I’m talking about today - how to be fully present at this time of the year.   >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  How to be Fully Present in December as You Plan Christmas Prepare for Christmas and be a fully present parent with these practical tips.  Useful for end-of-year madness too.   Email Belinda at any time, but especially if you'd like to talk about how to make self-care happen in your day.  Email using this form: Contact Form   >>>6 Days to a Heart Focused Christmas:  There's still time for this short free email course to help you get to the heart of why you celebrate Christmas.  Sign up here   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#66 ..Having time for a Christmas Bible study – that the whole family can do together is one way to keep Christmas about Jesus and to make it heart-focused. And yet ironically, or unfortunately, it is something that we often push to the side, and regret later that we didn’t do something more specific about Jesus this year!  Today I’m sharing some tips on finding a bible study that will help you focus on Jesus, but also some ideas, that if you have left it to the last minute there are some things that you can do - pretty much by the seat of your pants, on the run, and yet, still focus on Jesus.  Listen in!   >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  Christmas Bible Study Ideas for the Whole Family Doing a Family Bible Study at Christmas time is one way to keep Jesus in Christmas even if it is last minute.   BUY: Family Faith and Fun Advent Guide: These prompts help you focus on Jesus, being a blessing to others and having fun as a family. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

# 65 This week my one of my daughters shared her testimony at her mid-week Bible study which got me to thinking about the benefit of parents sharing their testimonies or God stories with their children.  Listen in as I share some of my reflections this week. >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  Do you talk about your Faith and Share your Testimonies with your kids Christian parents nurture their kids faith when they share their authentic testimonies and stories of what God has done in their life.  >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details

#64 This week’s episode is titled: Preparing for Christmas - and yes, it’s that time again!  I want to encourage you to start planning for Christmas early (and if you aren’t celebrating - listen to the first little bit cause there’s something you need to start thinking about too!)  For those who are celebrating - if we want to be intentional, relational, and heart focused we need to start planning now.  Today I’m sharing three different things for you to consider before it gets too close to December. >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  Preparing for Christmas (Yes, its that time again) Start planning for Christmas now so you can create a celebration that touches your child's heart and nurtures relationships. Make Christmas meaningful and memorable for your family this year.   Extra Listening or Reading: Episode #24 Growing our Children's Faith at Christmas Time  Because Jesus is the reason for Christmas it is a good time to teach our children about Jesus and grow their faith.     >>>Free Christmas Course:  6 Days to a Heart-focused Christmas Create a Christmas celebration for your family that addresses the heart but a Christmas like that won't just happen - you have to plan for it and put in the work.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#63  My mum used to talk about the little man sitting on my shoulder making me uncomfortable if I did something wrong, or was about to. This was my conscience. I define the conscience as the work of the heart telling me when my choices are about to go against what I believe is right. We need to teach our children about their conscience. We need to teach them to listen to it. This is what I’m talking about t his week - as I ask the question - Do your Kids listen to that inner voice of their Heart?"    >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  Do your Kids Listen to that Inner Voice of their Heart? When our children know how to listen to the voice in their heart - their conscience - before they act - they will start to make wise choices.   >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form   >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#62  Are you caught in the comparison trap, constantly measuring what happens in your family against others? That is not helpful and it needs to stop. This week I’m talking about living by our priorities as a parent - we can’t do it all, let’s just be honest - and instead work out what is important and put our full efforts into that!  I really want parents to create a fulfilling family life - and for that to happen you have to let some things go and hold onto other things. Let’s talk this issue some more… >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  You can't do it all - No-one can - So Stop Comparing When parents live by their values and priorities they create a fulfilling family life instead of one driven by comparison and judgement. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details 1st Coaching call: Jumpstart - free 2nd Coaching call: Moving Forward - $30aud 3rd+ Coaching call: Accountability - $20aud  

#61 Do you ever get frustrated when your kids just step over stuff and seemingly don't notice the mess? It doesn’t matter how long something is on the floor or left undone, they’ll just leave it there. It's as if they have a unique ability to ignore clutter. Well, you're not alone! In today's episode, I want to share what I did, back in the day, when I decided something needed to be done about this.  I reckon these strategies will work for you too…     >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  Are your Kids Domestically Blind? Do they just not see the mess? Though it is frustrating when our kids don’t see the mess in front of them -I call it domestic blindness. We can teach them to see it and do their chores better. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#60:  As a Christian parent one of my strongest desires was for my children to know, love and obey God.  I knew that as their parent, I was called to disciple them.  So like we all do these days - we look for information, for the right information, for good information; resources that I could use to teach my children about God.  And yet time after time, God showed me that the best way to make my kids think about Him was to talk straight from the heart.  Let’s talk about that… >>>FULL TRANSCRIPT/BLOG:  When you Teach Bible from your Heart, you Impact your Child's Heart Teaching Bible to Children has the deepest impact when you teach from your heart and your personal faith journey, not just from a Bible curriculum. >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#59 Though we all have many different reasons why we homeschool and how we homeschool I think there would be a common thread that we all want our kids to learn.  We may differ on the what to learn and the how to learn - but we want our kids to learn.  So when they start being really disinterested regardless of what we put in front of them it is a concern.  I homeschooled 4 kids, from prep to year 12 - where each of my children are different in their abilities, their interests and the way they approach learning. And we certainly faced seasons where they just weren’t interested.  Today I’m sharing some teaching methods and strategies that helped me keep our homeschooling going even when the kids were not that interested.   >>>FULL SHOW NOTES/BLOG:  Helping a Homeschool Student move from Un-engaged to a Love of Learning   Discover how to rekindle your child’s love of learning when they become unengaged and disinterested in homeschool lessons. >>>Deschooling Workshop: Create the Homeschool you want for your family by deschooling before you homeschool.  (Helpful for new homeschoolers and overwhelmed homeschoolers) Sign up here   >>>Join HEART-BOOSTERS (free) here. Weekly email digging deeper into the heart-focus topic so you can make real change in your family. PLUS Resource Library Pass for bonus printables and support material.   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details  

#58:  Listening to our teenagers having different opinions is challenging but it helps them clarify their beliefs and it strengthens your relationship, in fact it is an important heart-focused parenting practice.  We must give our teenagers a voice (doesn't mean they are right, or don't have to learn more - but they do need to be able to speak it out.)   >>>FULL SHOW NOTES/BLOG:  Do you Allow your Teenager to Express an Opinion when it Differs from Yours?   Download free Heart Booster:  Parenting Scripts for Heart Conversations with your Teenager   >>>FOLLOW BELINDA  On Instagram: @belindaletchford On Facebook: facebook.com/heartfocusparenting Email Belinda: Contact Form >>>COACHING:  Book a free Jumpstart Call - see details