More about "The Talk"

Every one of my friends has a story about their parents talking, or rather not really talking, to them about sex.  One guy I knew was just handed a book by his parent and told to go read it.  Several friends were asked by their parents if they had any questions--to which they answered "no." and that was that.  In my case, I don't actually remember talking to my mom about it ever.  I learned about it during sex education in seventh grade during a special assembly that all the girls had to go to.  Then, I was given a book by our marriage counselor to read before my husband and I got married.  But, the world was different twenty and thirty years ago than it is now.  Sex is everywhere now.  The magazines at the grocery store flash words about sex across their covers every week.

My mom recently told me that I'm good at making sure I talk to my kids about everything.  She commented to me that she didn't know how to do that when I was growing up--she didn't know what to say.  I'm not always sure what to say either.  I often find myself trusting the Lord to put ideas into my head and to prompt me when I need to talk with them.  My goal is to help them understand and cope with the world they live in.

My last post was about Jonathon McKee's book aimed at helping parents talk to their kids about sex. In my review, I did say that it is not the book I'd recommend to parents looking for a resource to help them talk to their kids about sex, but I didn't mention the books I would recommend.  A while back, I also reviewed a book by Elyse Fitzpatrick about "Answering Your Kids Toughest Questions".  I wasn't keen on that book either.

The book series I prefer to both of these is published by Concordia Press, Learning About Sex for the Christian Family.  There is a book for each age group.  I've read the first three with my children as they've grown.  The first book is for children 4-6 yo, the second for 7-9 yo, the third for 10-12 yo, and the last for 13-15.  The last is the only one I haven't read yet with my oldest.  There is a separate book titled How to Talk Confidently With Your Child About Sex.  This book is much more general than Johnathan McKee's book.  It will give you many ideas about how to approach different topics and questions.  You may find some that will work for you and others that won't.  Any talk about sex is personal and individual.  Every parent fits it their personality and that of their child(ren).

For girls, there is also the American Girl book, The Care and Keeping of You.  For middle school girls, I really love So Long Insecurity for Teens by Beth Moore.  This book covers how girls dress and how to relate to boys in a way that I really loved.   I wish there was a great Christian book like this one for boys.  So, if you ever find one, please comment on this post and let me know!