Protecting Children: Real Moms Teach Life Skills

Welcome And Why We Asked Moms SPEAKER_00 0:01 Hey, welcome back to the Mom to Mentor podcast, where real moms share real wisdom of raising confident, capable kids. This week I did something a little different. I asked a group of moms how they teach their children. Or rather, when it comes to raising their children, what are some hot topics they would like to discuss and why.

The usual life skills. But what I got was something deeper. And there's nothing wrong with that. I'm just glad teaching is happening.

Now these moms are teaching their children how to be safe, how to protect themselves, how to read people, how to trust their instincts, and how to navigate a world that doesn't always feel gentle. And these are the lessons that come from lived experience, from survival, from strength, and whether you're a single, a co-parent, or raising kids with the village these insights matter. I will share my thoughts as I read through the comments. I'm raising my kids.

And if any of the ladies are listening, thank you for sharing your information. Safety Talks Start Younger Than You Think SPEAKER_00 1:45 Let's get into what they had to say. This young lady said she's fine, but I often talk to her about always telling me if anything happened anywhere. And I always make sure to tell her how beautiful and smart she is.

Oh wow, that's wonderful. A great way to open that dialogue. And at five, that's a good age to start because now they are starting to notice things. They are starting to experience things.

And this young lady starting with her daughter at five is absolutely awesome. Another young lady said, not to accept the bare minimum just for the sake of having a man. Sounds like she may have been hurt, right? Based on this comment, but it's an experience that she's gone through.

That's the best technique to use when you are teaching your children. It's based on the experience. Kudos to this mom. The next young lady lady says, I've definitely talked to my daughter about the fact that anyone can be a predator, be it men, women, or children.

Also to be aware of the behaviors of teachers and staff and the and to identify what's appropriate and inappropriate. Again, awesome. We are in protection mode. And given where we are in 2026 in this society today, and the access to social media and just everything that's going on, this is wonderful.

I give extra kudos to this young lady for educating her daughter, her children, about not just, let me just rephrase, she educating about everybody. She's not singling one person out, she's including everybody. And that's important because at the end of the day, we are all still people. We all still have emotions and we all still go through this life as a person irregardless of our title or our gender.

Kudos to her. This one says, just know I am one of her little friends. She says I'm her best friend. She's twenty seven, and I was fifteen when I had her.

And I didn't want us to be a statistic. She said I was a tell it like it is parent. We talk about everything. She, fourteen, was in the room when I had her youngest brother.

Now she is a laborer and delivery nurse. That's my girl. All right. But you know what?

When I read this, you know what I thought immediately was like talk about birth control on steroids. She had her daughter come in the room while she was giving birth. Now, if I would ever saw anything like that, oh yeah, I yeah. Bruh, you have to look at me from across the room.

Don't even come in my circle because I ain't got time for you. I'm just saying, had I seen anything like that, but everybody's unique in how they teach. And again, I'll tell you next at the end of this what my topic will be next week, which kind of links to this young lady's point about bringing her daughter into the room when she was given birth. Wow, that's the all right.

Here's another Self-Worth And No Sugarcoating SPEAKER_00 5:59 one. My baby is 13 and we talk about self-worth and esteem. Oh, excellent. Showing up unapologetically, knowing when to leave anywhere she doesn't feel safe, money values, sex, everything, hygiene.

I'm just happy she is willing to have these daily conversations with me. I'm gonna be honest with you folks, that sounds like a very good mom because she's opened that door to allow her child to come and talk to her. And I've said it before. If you aren't teaching them, someone else will.

I'll say it again. If you are not teaching them, someone else will. And I have to say, from my own personal experience, that dialogue didn't happen in my house. Do I regret it?

Absolutely. But I'm glad, and especially since she's 13, she's entering those teen years, that she's able to have that discussion with her. That is so important. And the fact that she talks about money, sex, and everything hygiene, that's important because as she is maturing, she's gonna get she's getting set up for success or to meet life's challenges as she leaves her mom's house.

This is awesome. Let's this one says never trust a man. Ooh, we not even your daddy or your brother. And we talk about everything, and I don't sugarcoat nothing.

Okay, girl, virtual high-five, fist bump. That's right. And you want that. And why do you why would you want to sugarcoat?

I'm 200% down with what she says here, especially about not sugarcoating anything. Be real. Yeah, that's how you earn their respect. If it ain't right, it ain't right, and you just say that.

Don't sugarcoat and try to tippy toe around. Uh be real with your child or your children. They may not like you, but guess what? They're gonna respect you.

Oh. All right, let me move on. I teach my girls that marriage and motherhood are options, not mandatory. Okay.

All right, not a lot I can say about that, other than when I was growing up, marriage was pushed hard. You need to get married and forth. But in order to consider or thinking about motherhood, when I was growing up, they talked about you got to be married first. Again, I'm a Christian who grew up in the church, and that's what we were taught.

You know what? You get married, and then you have intimacy, and then you think about being a mom in that order, right? Again, this day and age is a lot different. Kudos to her for at least talking to her girls about it.

And I'm this is quite interesting that some young ladies include their daughters' ages and some don't. Not sure where they are in life, but either way, as long as they are teaching, right? As long as they are teaching, that's what counts. Okay, predators and their behaviors, being independent, being safe when police enter the situation, and protection from negative people.

Again, sounds like she's sharing life experience again, something she went through that she's passing along to her daughter. Here's a good one. Money Independence As Protection SPEAKER_00 10:13 Financial independence. Here we go.

And having her own money regardless of marital status. Women stay tethered to men longer than they should because of finances. I've been investing for my daughter. She has also had a college fund since she was a baby.

My assets will also be in trust, and she will benefit and receive a monthly stipend. I don't ever want money to be the reason she can't leave a situation. Again, this sounds like it's coming from an experience that she encountered. And I applaud her and the fact that she's gone all the way to create a stock portfolio, that is something I would have never thought about.

Kudos to her. Here's another one. My daughter is grown now with no children. I have preached, don't ever let a man disrespect, be mean, or not hold you in the highest regard.

At the first sign of foolishness, get out of there. And she lists. Kudos. Again.

Well it sounds like we're teaching from experience. And again, there's nothing wrong with that. Here's another one. Body Talk And Real-World Readiness SPEAKER_00 11:44 I try to talk about everything.

We use actual names for our private parts. Okay then. My daughters and my son knows about monthly cycles. Wow.

What to expect and how to be gentle on yourself and each other. Body older, sex, STDs, pregnancy, how to use a sword to change attire. Okay. How to change oil, beginners programming, emotional and manipulation, and staying away from dusty men.

Okay, guys, if you listen, I'm really not trying to bash y'all. I'm just saying what they're saying. Don't get upset, okay? Again, part of this comes from experience.

Anytime we're going back and we're talking about key issues related, sounds like to anything that's negative towards a man, sounds like it comes from a bad experience. That that's just what this sounds like to me at the end. But what's fascinating is naming the body parts I that I wow, okay. Yeah, see, I'm speechless there.

But the fact that she taught her daughter about her monthly cycle. But the son I had to think about that for a minute. But here's what I'm thinking and why that is beneficial. As a woman that used to have a cycle, men or boys, males need to know.

Because we do go through some emotional changes that time of the month. And they'll never understand it if you don't explain it to them. Yeah. That we're irritated, we're bloated, we got a whole bunch of things going on, and we don't necessarily want to be bothered with nonsense.

When it comes and she is projecting a different attitude, at least the young man or the male knows what's going on. We ain't even got to go into detail, right? Of everything that happens, right? And for the sake of this episode, I'm not gonna do that.

But I think that's a valid point that our young men should know about what a woman goes through. Because if he decides to start dating and getting married, and then all of a sudden she's like, don't even talk to me and roll her eyes, and I don't have time for this. And he's like, wait a minute, what just happened? It's because he doesn't understand what our bodies go through.

Kudos to this mom. And the fact how to change a tire and how to change, oh girl, you better go here with your bad self. Wow, that is awesome. All right, let's keep it moving.

What's acceptable treatment? What's potential? How to treat a man. Okay, fellas, here you go.

How to receive love from a man. I need to talk to her. No, I'm kidding. How to make appointments, how to look for specific doctors, how to research her health, and how to voice concerns.

How to be a woman of her word. How to save and invest, how to build and keep credit, and of course, cooking and cleaning, how to have several ways to bring in income, how to have herself together before building a family. How to grocery shop. Wow.

Again, I appreciate all these comments, but when some of them really stand out, I'm sorry, I'm giving the virtual high five. I really am. Because again, when I look back with raising my children and my daughter, everything that she just went through, I didn't. Yeah.

For her to have gone to this level, she is ensuring her children are set up for success. She is clearly parenting with purpose. And then here's one she talks about sex, racism, importance of education, jealousy, etc. Those are all good.

And we should. And she is. And this one I haven't seen for jealousy. Yeah, that's real.

And I even did an episode about envy and what it means to be envious versus jealous and forth. And she and you're gonna encounter it for one reason or another, especially when you get in the workforce. If they're interacting at school, but people will get jealous of you for whatever reason because you may keep your hair done. I did my daughter's hair, but I see these moms now taking their kids to the salon, and it's wow.

But it's the fact that you have something they don't have, and that sparks that jealousy within. It's good that she's teaching her child about that, and hopefully also reinforcing, don't let it bother you. We allow people to get under our skin unnecessarily. Yeah, unnecessarily.

It doesn't have to bother us. If you don't like me, it's okay. If you think you dress better than me and all this other stuff, it's okay. And we move on.

That's your issue, not mine. All right, let me keep moving. This young lady says, We talk about everything. I don't want my daughter scared to talk to me about what's going on in her life as she's going into her teen years now.

She wants her to know mommy is a safe place. Always we can talk about everything without judgment. That is awesome. That is awesome.

And again, clearly, these ladies know a lot more than I did when I was raising my kids, because unfortunately, I did not have this kind of discussion with my kids because again, I didn't fully understand what it meant to be a parent and what it means to be a parent is you are teaching. You're not just providing, you have transformed into a mentor for your child or your children. All right, my daughters and I are very open with each other. Such a blessing.

We talk about taking care of ourselves first and how society is going to tell us the opposite. Wow, that's strong. And society will, right? And that's where we get into the whole social media aspect of it.

That's where we see what people are doing on social media, and it looks real, and now you're wanting that lifestyle or you're wanting what they have, right? When in reality it's focusing on you. Everybody is different. We have fingerprints for a reason.

It separates us from everybody else. Why do we try to follow the leader instead of being the leader? Think about that. Okay, this young lady says we have talked about consent since they were old enough to talk.

Good touch, bad touch, when they could understand. That's important. Extremely important. Because people will start, as you're getting older, touching you, and especially as they start maturing and going through that adolescent puberty experience when things the shape starts forming.

How about that? And there are gonna be gentlemen that want to touch, right? And uh yeah, good job, mom, for educating about that. Again, real life stories here of parenting and how they are not just providing, but sharing what it means to be a parent and teaching them.

The Core Life Skills To Add SPEAKER_00 21:43 I heard some things, I I heard a lot of protection, right? I heard some very broad discussions through those responses. But as you're listening to this, here's some other areas. To consider when you're educating your child or your children.

And again, kudos to all that are teaching. But don't forget about money management, household responsibilities, decision making, communication, conflict resolution, time management, and self-care. Heard a lot about self-care. A few of those.

Heard one or two about money management, but continue to educate your children about core skills they need to navigate this life. Yeah, you're off to a great start based on these comments, but make sure you're broadening your perspective. Don't just leave it there and think it's done. No, this is an ongoing thing.

You have to be in teach mode 24/7. Yes, teach mode 24-7. All right. Every mom teaches differently.

But every mom teaches with love. And today the voices reminded us that there's no single right way. You heard it yourself. Just the way it works for their family and their dynamics.

Because remember, Viv already always said it's not a one size fits all. Make sure that it aligns with your own personal values, your environment that you're in as you are teaching your child or your children. Now, protection is a life skill. Awareness is a life skill.

And moms teach from the world they've lived in. And I told you along the way of some of those examples, I said this is from experience of what she's teaching her daughter or her children. Today's comments reminded us that raising children isn't just about preparing them to succeed, it's about preparing them to stay safe while they grow. We heard a lot of that, teaching them about safety.

Now, Share Your Lessons And Keep Learning SPEAKER_00 24:41 if today's episode spoke to you, I want to hear from you too and share your comments. You can visit my website, singamomsunited podcast.com, and there's a link at the top of the page called Listener Lessons. And I would love you to share the life skills you are teaching at your home if you're comfortable with that. And again, I will not share your name, just the content, whether it's safety, confidence, communication, or anything in between.

Your comment might be featured in next week's episode or highlighted on the website. Because you never know how you can help another mom or a parent related to certain topics. Now, if you're listening right now, take a moment to follow, rate, and share this podcast with another mom who needs a reminder that she's doing an amazing job. Keep in mind, there is no perfect parent.

There is no perfect mom or dad. There is only good and bad parents. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. You can disagree with me, and guess what?

That's okay. Disagreement, that's good. But good parents teach. Was I always a good parent?

Absolutely not. Because I didn't know any better, because I was young and I didn't understand what it meant to be a parent. And guess what? There are many more of you out there just like me.

But here's the good news. I have some good news for you. We are thanking God for podcasts, right? You can simply plug in to the Mom to Mentor podcast and hear techniques around parenting, what you should be teaching your children, resources and tools that are available, and not just the Mom to Mentor podcast, but there's many other parenting podcasts out there.

I strongly encourage you to find a good podcast. As happens, you found one right here that is going to give you information to help you with your parenting. Now, while you're becoming that mentor, I want to be your mentor. That's right.

I want to support you, moms, and every young lady that responded to my question yesterday. I responded to them and told them they were doing a fantastic job with parenting with purpose. Yeah. And if they need anything, if they have questions about anything, let me know.

Because again, I wish I knew then what I know now. And I am in position to actually help you with any questions you have about parenting. All right. Let's parent with purpose.

We are more than nurturers. We are mentors. And join me next week as I discuss the differences between visual and verbal learning. Yeah, they're two different things.

And guess what? One has greater impact than the other. Yeah. You won't want to miss this episode if you are serious about parenting.

All right, thank you for joining the Mom to Mentor podcast. I hope you have a great day, week, and a spectacular month. Be encouraged.