I Am Loved Retreat Resources

I know that I have mentioned before that I was working on writing up a retreat for mothers and their pre-teen daughters.  It is finally finished.  This is a follow-up to my original mother/daughter retreat. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be sharing sample talks and pictures of the event, which was held this past Saturday.  For right now,  I would like to share the resources I used to put the event together.  It may seem like this should be the last part of the puzzle, but this is how I built the retreat, so I'm sharing my process.  After finding a theme, I began searching for what resources I could use to really speak to the girls, and not just by me talking the whole time.  Here is what we used and some suggestions for others that I found but didn't have time to share.  Thanks.

Music

We all have an internal soundtrack.  When things get quiet or boring or overwhelming, our soundtrack starts playing to give our mind a distraction.  When we fill our lives with good music that has a Godly message, our soundtrack will lead us closer to God. That is why I have always thought it important to include special music that the girls will want to enjoy. Here are the songs incorporated into Saturday's retreat.

1. He Knows My Name by Francesca Battisteli
2.  Beloved by Jordan Feliz
3. You Make Everything Beautiful by Rebecca St. James 
4. Ave Maria sung by Andrea Bocelli 
5. Find Your Wings by Mark Harris
6.  Grace by Laura Story

If you are looking for pop singers who are also great role models for your daughter, I highly recommend Francesca Batisteli, Rebecca St James, and Laura Story. Rebecca St James has a beautiful song, Wait for Me, about living a chaste life as a young girl. She even wrote a book by the same title that has an accompanying study guide perfect for early teens.

Here are some other worthy songs that I wanted to share but did not have enough time. One of these days I am going to find a way to do an entire day retreat!

1. Every Good Thing by the Afters 
2. More Beautiful You by Johnny Diaz 
3. You Are More by Tenth Avenue North 
4. Everything Glorious by David Crowder Band 
5. The Words I Would Say by Sidewalk Prophets 
6. Hello, My Name Is by Matthew West 

Videos

  In addition to music, I included a few videos. Like it or not, our children are growing up in a media saturated society.  Like Mother Angelica always strove to do, you need to us the norms of the culture to reach out with God's message.  Here are the links to the short videos included in our retreat:

1. Modesty Doesn't Mean Frumpy by Colleen Hammond 
2. 9 Months in the Womb by Pregnancychat.com 
3. Chloe-A Story of Infertility, Adoption, and God's Love by Moving Works 

 Please stop back for more information and resources for princesses and their queens!

Any suggestions of what you would include?