Have you ever wanted to have a “club” for your daughter?
One morning while I was having my quiet time, the Lord impressed upon me to start up a club for my younger daughter and her friends. While I could have very easily said I was too busy, I decided to answer the call and I am so grateful that I did! My older daughter had her group, “God’s Girls” that met at a friend’s house, but my younger daughter, Emmi, didn’t.
I grew up in an age where our parents sent us to church to learn the things of the Bible and to have our faith imprinted on our hearts. There is nothing wrong with what they did at that time. I think things are different now. In our generation, I find that I meet so many intentional moms and dads, who teach at home and rely less and less on the church for Biblical wisdom. Whether we homeschool or pour into our kids after school, there is a new uprising of parents who want to be the spiritual voices in their kids lives.
Taking the challenge, I decided to use our Princess Parables series as the springboard for the group. I used the princess “Quips” (you can download these for free on our store) and design each meeting around one of the stories. I've written out some examples of our character lesson and craft for each Princess. I also purchased silver bracelets at a bead store and am adding charms after each lesson. The girls will receive their bracelets on the final meeting. I did charge each girl $20 to belong to the group so that I had money for snacks, crafts and charm bracelets.
The first month we read Princess Charity ‘s Courageous heart. We focused on the character qualities love and compassion. It happened to fall on Valentine’s week so made Valentine’s cards for the moms, but you could also write notes to parents, soldiers or missionaries letting them know they are loved and appreciated. For our bracelet charms we got silver hearts.
The next month we celebrated Princess Joy’s Birthday Blessing. It also just happened to be one of the girl’s birthdays and my older daughter made a cake. We learned about having joy in all circumstances. We talked about remembering to be content and thankful for what happens in our lives. The craft we made was a small mirror that we painted and glittered. The mirror was so that the girls could check their attitudes when things aren’t going their way. The charm they added to their bracelet was a small silver person (to represent helping others).
In April, we are going to read the new book, “The Royal Easter Story” coming out in March 2016. Our group is blessed to be able to read the “pre-published” version (I guess that is a perk of the author leading the group). We are going talk about how God rescued us from our sins and we are going to paint a cross. The girls will add a silver cross to their bracelets.
In May, we will read “Princess Faith and the Mysterious Garden” and learn about patience and persistence. We will plant a “garden” for each of the girls to take home and they will add a flower charm to their bracelets.
In June, Princess Hope will take center stage as we focus on the character quality of hope and leadership. The girls will do a scavenger hunt and decorate treasure chests to remind them that heaven is the greatest treasure of all. Their charms will be a gem for their bracelet.
Last but not least, Princess Grace and the Little Lost Kitten will teach responsibility and facing fears. The girls will decorate a frame and put a picture of the Princess Parables Club girls in it to remind them that they are not alone. They have friends who walk alongside them. Their bracelet will get a star charm to remind them that they are God’s chosen children who are designed to do good works for Him.
On the last meeting, we are going to have a tea party. All the girls will dress up and I will have the older girls serve them. We will teach a class on manners because God is a God of order and He loves when we defer to others. Their final charm for their bracelet is a teapot.
The group meets once a month and the afternoon looks like this:
3:30 – 3:45 Gather and have a snack
3:45 – 4:15 Read story and teach lesson
4:15 – 4:45 Craft related to character lesson
4:45 – 5:00 Clean up and play
I hope that this will inspire you to have a Princess Parables Club of your own and invite your daughter’s friends. I know that I have been blessed by the girls and their moms so far. Just grateful to serve this next generation of Godly ladies - teaching them character traits for a lifetime!
