Hi there,

Did you know we are officially halfway through our study of Beautiful Girlhood and The Companion Guide to Beautiful Girlhood? Whoopee!

Now down to business. I think I hinted at it in a previous post but really, I feel kind of awkward talking to you about how to train your daughter to be “accomplished” at home! Not because I didn’t train my daughter in the art of homemaking …because I did.  But rather because I was not well trained in the area of Domestic Arts. My mother worked as a professional outside the home so my family had a lady that came in every day during the week to clean our home and cook for us. My Daddy owned a grocery store and my idea of grocery shopping was to go through the aisles of my Dad’s store and just throw in whatever looked good to me into my grocery cart! I didn’t think a bit about price or value. So, now you know why, at age 20, I was woefully unprepared to become a wife to a *gasp* farmer.

My man’s idea of a good family bonding time was butchering chickens with his cousins! After we were married, my sweet farmer boy, Bob, patiently taught me how to grocery shop, cook, pay bills and manage the checkbook. The first year of our marriage, Bob actually went through each cookbook I received as a wedding gift and marked the recipes he thought I could cook. Each Tuesday, when the grocery store ads came out, he diligently showed me how to choose the specials we would buy and how to create a menu for the week to come. He also made certain I knew how to manage the checkbook…over and over and over again.

My hubby is responsible for making me the Domestic Diva I am today! Alright, that might be an overstatement. Although I am so grateful to him for his patience, it would have been so much easier if I had been trained at home as a girl. Because of my early ineptitude, I know firsthand the importance of training daughters to manage their homes!  This 16th chapter in The Companion Guide to Beautiful Girlhood and Beautiful Girlhood will help you to identify where your daughter needs to grow and encourage you to plan projects with your daughter that will turn her into an accomplished girl.

This is going to be a fun one for both of you!

Activities

Because I don’t want you to be unprepared… let this be a heads up for the activity you and your daughter will be doing this chapter!

• Read Proverbs 31:10-31 and markdown on a sheet of paper all the useful skills this woman possesses.
• Make a list of all the useful skills you have mastered.
• Make a list of all the useful skills you have not mastered.
• Take a look at the list of skills you have not mastered and chose the one you would like to focus on and hone your skills until you become accomplished in this area. (Like getting up early for quiet time and planning your day, implementation of the monthly budget, starting a home business, or even entertaining!)

Memory Verse

 Proverbs 31: 30-31

Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.  Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

Post and Ponder:

• Even the most skilled homemaker has areas she would like to become more proficient in. Can you share with us what are some areas that you would like to work on this coming year to become an Accomplished Woman? Or maybe you would prefer the title Domestic Diva?
• The Earl of Chesterfield said, “Knowledge may give you weight, but accomplishments give luster, and many people see more than weigh.” How does this statement apply to homemaking?

Resources:

Beyond Beautiful Girlhood Plus Companion Guide Is your daughter prepared for life? Mothers, you know that your daughter’s transition from beautiful girlhood to beyond beautiful girlhood can be the most frightening and exciting of times. Discover how to prepare your daughter in three key areas of her life. Shelley will give you encouraging examples and practical applications to equip you to prepare your daughter for the day when she will manage her home, her life, and her spirit! On Amazon!