My little girl is growing up. She is about to turn 10 and is a preteen heading into her teens. I had heard about a great adventure for a mom or dad to do with a young preteen.
Passport to Purity is a program designed to introduce your daughter (or son) to traps that they will be facing in their teenage years. They talk about what the traps are: lying to parents, peer pressure, loosing your purity, sex and dating. Then they challenge your child to make a decision about how they are going to respond when faced with the trap. There is time to talk to your child about what they will do and to help them make good choices. I loved the cd's we listened to together and the journal for the child to fill out that helps them to understand and record what they are learning.
There were 5 projects to do with your child. They were simple projects that help your child understand the point that they were making.
I took Bekah to Menchies and we had a big fro yo sundae! Her daddy and I wrote her a note in her journal talking about the milestones that were coming and how we are there for her. It was a "sweet" moment.
On the way to the beach, we stopped to work on the journal and talk about what we had listened to.
I really loved spending time with my sweet girl and to have one on one time with her. This brought us much closer together and opened up so much dialogue between us.
Bekah loves the beach, so I booked a campsite at Doran Beach Campground. It was beautiful (but freezing cold). This is the view from our campsite.
We took time to play in the ocean and look for shells. Bekah wanted more play time but the two days we had were very packed full of listening to the CD's, doing the projects and working through the questions.
Nothing like listening to the CD's while lying in the sun in the dunes.
Our project involved some creative playtime.
It was cold out, so we listened to many of the CDs in our tent all snuggled up in our sleeping bags.
Some one likes to light fires and is getting good at it too!
Another project: Purity is lost drop by drop until it becomes a stream and it is all gone. Then you can't get it back. Girls are challenged to protect their purity and save it for their husband.
Part of the Passport to Purity program asks that you take your child and do something special and memorable with them. I choose to take Bekah to the Sonoma Canopy Tours in Occidental. We spent 2 1/2 hours zip lining. My time with Bekah flying through the air 200 feet above the earth was very special.
After the last CD was finished and the questions answered we stopped for ice cream. (This is definitely my weakness) I gave Bekah a special necklace that would be a momento of our trip.
This is one of the best things that I have done with my girl. We talked about a lot of hard stuff and uncomfortable things but it was good. She was free to ask questions and to have open discussion. I love that they encourage each child to decide what to do before they are placed in a difficult situation. They have the opportunity to talk to their guide (mom or dad) and figure out what will be the best response to a trap that is in front of them. It is a time to discuss their purity and how to protect that. We had a very sweet time together and I can not express how glad I am that I took the time to talk to my girl about all that we did. Bekah asked me tonight after we came home if we can have more time to talk. She still has questions and is asking me to set aside one on one time to answer her questions.
This made my heart glad. I always want her to be open with me and come to me for advice.
