Woman Evolve with Sarah Jakes RobertsYou know, today's math is not for the faint! Plus, the real question you should be asking your child's teacher is if he or she is on grade level. National research reveals a significant disparity between what parents think about their child’s educational progress and how their child is really doing. Lucky for our listeners, Tracie Potts pulled up to the podcast donning her cape as Advisory Board Chair for Learning Heroes, an educational advocacy organization that empowers parental engagement. She and SJR discussed ways to strengthen the parent-teacher partnership, support student learning at home, and equip families with educational resources. This episode will remind you that teachers are skilled professionals who are willing to point people in the direction of developmental success. But it’s up to us, as parents and guardians, to meet them halfway. Become a Learning Hero when you visit www.gobeyondgrades.org for more resources, including summer learning opportunities!
Twitter/X: @BeALearningHero
Facebook: @Learning Heroes
Instagram: @Learning.Heroes
LinkedIn: @Learning Heroes (US)
TikTok: @Learning.Heroes
It's hard when a relationship ends, especially a relationship that has promised and potential. If nothing changed at all, Can I stay here? Will this be healthy?
Sometimes our experiences set them more for our cures, and we also have to realize they are different. Sometimes we have to dig deep and think about who we are in order to give them what they need.
What's up? What's up?
It is your girl, Sarah Jakes Roberts. We are back for another episode of the Woman Evolved podcast?
How are you doing?
Let me tell you, I am hoping that you get this on time, but I'm gonna be honest. I am late getting this to the team. But it is not because my heart is not in the right place. But your girl has been burning it on both ends. But I am so overwhelmed by the incredible response you have had to my new book, Power Move. So many of you have already received a copy, and I am starting to get feedback, which is is really blessing me. There comes a point when you know that idea is just between you and God, and now it's living and breathing outside of you, and it's open for feedback and criticism, and you know, call my therapist. But I'm always prepared for the worst, and when I receive good news, it really blows me away. So I am grateful this time. Next week I will be in full launch mode for the book. I've got some exciting opportunities coming up. But I am asking that you pray for me. We are going to be in Houston, Chicago, New York, Brooklyn, Atlanta, the DMV two times What's Up DMV Girlies, and Los Angeles, So I am soliciting your prayers as I go on the road. I'm asking that you would just say a special prayer over my family and my children. It's always challenging when I am away from them, and also just say a prayer or my strength that God would constantly restore and refuel me. In addition to us being in those cities, I've got some press and so I've got early mornings, late nights, and a good God that's going to give me strength throughout it all. How are you doing? What is going on in your world? I am praying that this podcast is finding you in a place of partnering with God's strength and not just out here doing things all on your own, recognizing that oftentimes when you partner with God's strength. It requires that you admit that you have some weakness. Sometimes partnering with God's strength allows us to feel like we are on top of the world. And then there are other moments when partnering with God's strength requires us to say, God, I need your help, I need your peace, I need your presence, I need your power. And I just want to encourage you to not be afraid to invite His pieces presence, his power into your life outside of Basically, I'm eating and breathing power moves right now, but outside that I'm doing okay. I am I'm eating better than I was eating. I was starting to crash out burnout, which means that I was in that drive through crashing out, burning out. But I'm doing better. I can't say that I am completely on the straight and narrow, but I'm doing better. I got some good rest this weekend. Let me tell you all something. Go and make sure you don't have sleep apnea. If you are waking up with headaches, or you go to bed and you're congested at night and you're not doing anything about it, you need to go talk to your doctor. Because one thing the girl had was sleep apnea. And I have this chronic congestion. At night time, there's something out. When you're laying down, the congestion gets worse. And I did not do my nighttime routine one night this weekend, and I woke up with a terrible headache. But the next night I was able to do all of my things and I got some good quality sleep. And so check with your doctor, check on your health, take care of you, Womni Bob, do all those things. You've been minded my business, It's time for me to mind yours. I want you to send me your advice questions to podcasts at a woman evolved dot com. Don't take yourself too seriously. You could even mind my business. If you want to know something about me, what's going on my world, how I handle something, I would be glad to share it with you. But if you want me to mind your business, let me tell you. Gotta be honest, one of my favorite.
Things to do.
Let's get into this week's mind your business question. I got this question in the inbox. It came to podcasts at womanevolve dot com. You can send me an email or you can write me, and it says I am a twenty eight year old married woman with an almost I can't say album be honest because there's a little typo. It's just that I'm a twenty eight year old married with an almost one year old baby. So I think she's married or I don't know if she's saying unmarried. I don't know, but I'm a rock with it. Since seeing you at the Whole Revival Tour, I turned a new leaf and decided to fully dedicate myself to remaining hopeful and seeking God more. I asked God before I learned I was pregnant, to give me a sign that would show me why I with, why I should end this relationship. Oddly enough, he gave me a baby, and long story short, my pregnancy and current postpartum experience has made it clear to me that this man is not for me. It's not giving husband. I think it was unmarried. I am at a point where my heart and my mind are both out the door. My feet are still in the doorway because of my current financial circumstances not making it easy for me to leave, and of course my daughter and being able to provide for her. I can say that my heart still has the urge to stay, but I feel like God is showing me little things that remind me of why I need to leave, but I am not sure. My question for you is, when you begin your journey, how did you know when God was trying to tell you to make a move. This is such an incredible question. Thank you for trusting me with this season of your life making a decision that is going to ultimately shape the story of your daughter's life and your life for the next few years. It's something that I do not take lightly. It's something I didn't take lightly when I was in your situation. I think as much as I wanted to give my child this idea of my children, this idea of a two parent household where they just had two people in the house, that I had to realize that there was more texture than just having two figures in the household. And part of that texture that I really wanted them to experience was having two parents who loved one another, respected one another, demonstrated healthy communication, work ethic, not to mention, having a foundational relationship with God. When I realized that I didn't just need a body to fill that role, I needed a really intentional person to fill that role. I recognized that I was in a bit of an uphill battle. Still, though I wasn't convinced that it was time for me to necessarily leave. What ultimately put me in a decision where I knew I needed to make a.
Move was I realized that.
I was going to deteriorate within that relationship, That my staying didn't just mean that, well, one of us could be healthy and we could try the best that we could, and the other one may have some challenges. I recognize that together we were going to create a dangerous, not just toxic, but a dangerous environment for my children to be raised in. And so I made the difficult decision to protect their safety mentally, emotionally, and perhaps even physically. By making that transition, I came to a place where I felt that one single parent who could control the environment, who could create stability and health and joy and that foundation of faith, was better than two people who were ultimately tearing one another apart. That doesn't mean that I didn't have to grieve what I thought the relationship could be. That doesn't mean that I didn't have to grieve what I wanted it to be. That didn't mean that it didn't feel like I was giving up on potential in history.
It's hard when.
A relationship ends, especially a relationship that has promise and potential, but being grounded in the reality of what it is allows us to kind of move with this question that we must ask ourselves, which is, if nothing changed at all, can I stay here?
Will this be healthy?
Can I stand by this choice if it stayed exactly how it is? Can I love this person exactly how they are? Can this be healthy exactly as they are with no changes? And can I stand by this being the environment that I raised my child in? For me, the answer was no. I don't know what the answer is for you, but that was part of what I came to. I will add that I didn't go from this isn't going to work to I'm completely fine and okay. There were levels to it. There was separation. I moved back home with my family. Was not in a position where I could financially support my children on my own, and so I had to humble myself. Me with my grown self and two kids, lived at home with my family.
I had to.
Work extra hard as we went through the transition to try and save so that we could ultimately get a place of our own, and so it was hard work. It wasn't as smooth of a transition as I think most people would like, where you can just walk away, go get your own place, have your own money. However, even with the difficult part of the transition, I'm still really grateful that I took a chance on wholeness, that I took a leap of faith.
And I will tell you.
That, even as I am thoroughly grateful for the life that I live now, I am really grateful that when my children look back at our life and our transition, they hold fondly the time in which it was us. I lived on a street called Benissa. It was us on Benissa, and they look at that and talk about it as if it was some of the most enjoyable, healthy, pivotal years of their lives. And it was just me there. And so I just want you to know that you can be an incredible single mother who creates an environment for your child to flourish and for them to experience divine wisdom, safety, protection. God will give you all of the resources and wisdom you need to raise your child if that is the route that God makes evidence for you, If God makes it clear that you're to stay I believe there's protection and provision in that as well. But it sounds like you already have an idea of what you need to do, and so I am praying that you get the courage to make that big, bold power move. I recognize that so much of what we learn about everything really starts at home. That's why having that healthy foundation can be extremely pivotal for the success of our children, the success of our families, not just in teaching them what emotional wellness looks like, what spiritual development and discipleship looks like, but also being courageous enough to really engage with them and in their world. Now, listen, honey, I don't know if you're like me. Some of you are probably out here checking all of the boxes. But if you are like me, there are so many things that I feel like I should be doing better, so many things that I wish that I could be doing to make sure that I was creating a consistent environment of attention and awareness for my children. And I gotta be honest, there are many moments where I feel like I fall short. But I am grateful for resources and organizations that go out of their way to make sure that we have the tips, tools and resources that we need. I want to put you on game right quick. If you know anybody who has children, you are a parent yourself, you are an educator. This is a podcast that you are going to want to share. While it is not necessarily about financialacy literacy, there is an undeniable correlation between financial privileges, financial knowledge and wisdom, and the environments in which we grow up in. When families are engaged in their children's lives, in their educations, in their overall well being, their opportunities for success educational success, which can ultimately to financial success, is exponentially higher. That's why when I learned about Learning Heroes, I knew that it was an organization that I wanted you to hear about. They are an organization that is dedicated to really living in the gap between what parents think about their child's grade level progress versus how their child is actually doing. They are focused on helping you get the accurate picture you need and deserve so you can best support learning at home. I had an incredible conversation with Tracy Potts. She is on the board of directors for Learning Heroes and she is a mother now a grandmother, an incredible communicator, motivational thought leader, in the community advocate that is going to give you all of the tools you need for us to experience equity and education, family engagement, and to eliminate health and educational disparities within our communities. Okay, Tracy, So I am I'm a blended family. We have six children total. I am in the trauma stages, as I like to call them, of raising a fourteen year old and an eight year old to eight year old.
You know, she's doing well. School is still pretty straightforward.
But with my fourteen year old, she's moving into the ninth grade, grades are even more important. We're talking about the PSATs and stuff. I am trying to serve her in being responsible and organize and staying on top of her grades, even though I can't really help her with her homework or anything else. I feel like this is one of the most stressful parts of parenting, and honestly, because it's traumatic for me, I'm ready to just like log off and tell her I earned my stripes. You got to earn yours too. But you are encouraging parents to be more engaged. Can we talk about that a little bit? Yeah?
Absolutely, So I love that you called it the trauma stage of life because been there, done that, and I think every parent at some point Sarah feels like, am I going back to school? Here? We're parents, we love our kids. We want to do the best for them and make sure they have the best opportunities. But it's tough. Like I remember when my kids were in fifth grade, I was like new math, Like what is this new? I do not get it. I cannot. But we also know that for our kids to be successful in life, we need to make that happen for them. And so one of the things that I really connected with when I started working with learning Heroes was first of all, just that name, Like I wanted to be my child's learning hero. I wanted to put on a cape and make it happen. And really, what parents need to know is we are a very important part of that process. We're not the teachers, we're not in the classroom, but it's part of our role, in part of our job, to connect with the teachers. So we're in silos sometimes all at home trying to figure out, you know, how do I helpe up this homework, what's going on with these grades? I don't necessarily understand the curriculum, and I think the key here is for us to make that connection with the teacher and ask those very transparent questions, starting with how is my child? A lot of times will say how is my child doing? Very generically, but I think the better question to ask is is my child on grade level? Being a little bit more specific than prompts the teacher to say where your child may be doing well, right, they work really hard, or I see they're turning in their homework, but they may still not be on grade level. And we see that with a lot of children, So that then opens a better conversation about where should my child be and how can I help?
Do you think that part of the reason why we don't do this? And I have to tell you that I believe that part of some of the stress that we experience as parents is just feeling inadequate and being able to properly take care of our children, whether it's educationally, financially, emotionally, and to have to take care of ourselves as well. Do you think that part of the reason why we see parents myself included listen, I'm not the pop calling the kettle black often disengaging, is that we're so overwhelmed and nervous that if our teachers tell us, hey, they're not on grade level or this is what it's going to take, that we may not be able to serve them, like what tools are available to us if we find out, hey, they are struggling. But oftentimes we feel like there's nothing I can really do about it.
Yeah, I think you're right, Sarah. We are working. We're trying to put food on the table literally right, get the kids in bed, We're trying to manage bills, we're trying to manage our own careers. Sometimes. You know, I was the mom who was very involved in the community, so maybe we're trying to do There's a lot happening. So a lot of times we feel like it's just me, right, it's on me, and I don't want to fail my child. I think that's what's at the at the foundation of that. There is help out there though. Remember teachers are professionals, they are trained to help our children, but they know a lot of children really well. We know one child very well, and so it really takes both. I think opening that line of communication starts to relieve some of that stress. One thing I used to hear from teachers. I was the parent advocate in my school for many years, and one of the things that I often heard from teachers is when we know a parent cares, we will work with that parent. So they want to know. They really just want us to open the door. Oftentimes, you know, teachers, especially in the last few years, have had such a challenging situation. Sometimes they have parents who are, as you said, stress, sometimes they get phones hung up on them. They really just want to know that we are opening the door.
I love it.
So you are described as an advocate for equity and family engagement, training parents how to speak up for their child and support learning, which I know is so important, especially for parents who are marginalized either by race or socio economic status. And this level of advocacy is required in order for our children to get the attention they need. Oftentimes our children are deemed problem children, or maybe they're seen as divisive what they in the classroom, but actually what they're asking for is help and support and meeting them in the way that they learn, and there are tools and plans. I'll never forget that one of our children was showing signs. We were at a public school and they were showing signs of just not being able.
To keep up.
And I think my biggest fear was, like, they're going to be held back, and if they're held back here, then that's going to follow them. And I was surprised to learn that there were so many interventions available for my child, but I had to be willing to have conversations with people who knew what they were talking about. You're part of an organization called Learning Heroes. Can you tell me a little bit about Learning Heroes and how it can help these parents to become more engaged about the resources that are available to them. Yeah.
Absolutely, So we work directly with parents. We also work directly with school districts a lot of times. A really important buzzword right now is family engagement. Every educator, every school district is talk about it. But what we do is help them do it effectively. So we're helping the educators reach out to parents. We're also giving parents tools. Look, the first time I connected with Learning Heroes was because of my child. I wanted to have a conversation with the teacher and I didn't really know what that conversation should look like. And we have ready to go tools, ready made tools, so, for example, the parent teacher conference, it usually only happens once a year, it's about two months into the school year, and then after that it's kind of if something's wrong, they'll reach out. That's not really how we want that relationship to go. So we have tools that walk you through how to prepare for that conversation, what types of questions to ask. It's important that we ask the right question as part of that conversation. What about the gaps during breaks in summer break. One of the things that we're really particularly concerned about now is summer learning, especially after the pandem As you said, it really shone a light on inequities that were already there in many of our marginalized communities for many of our children. What can we as parents do to make sure that our kids don't lose steam, so to speak, between May and August or September. There are a lot of resources out there. Many of them are free, many of them are offered through schools or community organizations. And oftentimes it's the teacher who can sit me down as a parent and say this is specifically where I'm seeing your child need some help and some support, and they know what those resources are in the community, so it's not always writing a big fact check to a tutor. Nothing against tutors, I've used them. They're great, but everybody does not have the capacity or the time right I was working overnights when my kids went to a tutor, so I was home in the afternoon. I could drive them to the tutor. Fact everybody doesn't have that opportunity. So teachers can really you in the right direction number one of what your child needs and where to find that, sometimes at no cost. At all. Businesses, community groups, they now get it they need to invest in education because we are educating their future workers. So there are a lot of businesses out there that are investing in these tools to help kids, and teachers, to me, I have found are really the start to find out where that information is.
Look.
I know that as a woman of faith, Sarah and I am as well, I often think about being my child's first teacher, right teaching them by the way, teaching them in the morning, teaching them. We are called to be our children's first teacher, and so as a family advocate and a parent advocate, the way I really often look at this is we have a place in education, and I think that is really the thing that I've enjoyed, empowering parents to understand that it's not about just you know, we don't just send our kids to church and expect them to come back holy right. That has to be done at home to reinforce that, to reinforce what they learned in Sunday school or what they heard. It's the same thing with school. We can't just send them to school and expect them to come back smart. So there's work on our side as parents to support that. And while it may feel overwhelming with all the other things that we're doing, it's part of our calling and their resources there to help us do it.
So my boys were seniors during the pandemic and my youngest was just beginning kindergarten, and we had a homeschool teacher who was supporting us throughout the pandemic. But when I look at the stats, when I look at what's happening globally with education and even with artificial intelligence, I think that it would be such a mistake for us to not look at the implications of what those two years of not having hands on teaching could have done to the opportunities for our children. And then how AI is going to significantly change the workforce, you know, education, making sure that they have as short a foundation as it relates to education may be, you know, some of the only weapons that we have easily available to us as we seek to really establish financial wholeness and wellness and emotional wholeness and wellness for our family, as we recognize that opportunities are lack thereof create such a divide and our ability to experience you know, peace, wholeness, hope, enjoy as opposed to the depression and anxiety and frustrations that can come from having lack of opportunities. Do you think that my parents were big advocates for education. Do you think that we are still seeing that level of passion as it relates to being advocates for us education within our communities? And if not, how do we get to a place where we can restore that.
Yeah, that's a really good question, because like you, I mean, I feel and I have always felt with my kids, education is a gift. This is a gift. This is a lifelong gift that we give our children. It opens doors for them. It allows them to experience things now and later in life in terms of their career in terms of how they can provide for their families. This is something that I want my children to have. I have three children and two grandchildren, and they have all had different journeys with education. Our oldest started college. It wasn't you know, she struggled through high school. She started college, it wasn't for her. She's now in her thirties and she's going back and she has that self motivation to go back and earn a degree. Our middle daughter just finished a two year degree in four years. We had some learning challenges and she had to just keep and our job, you know, again, the parents job as motivators. We had to just keep telling her, just keep putting one foot in front of the other. You will get there. We have a son now who's in college and I really want him to put one foot in front of the other. That's the last one. Like we were like, we can get through this one. We're good. And now I'm thinking about my grandchildren. You know, there's eleven. They're just starting this journey. And so speaking to what you were talking about, it's a journey. It's a lifelong journey. To me, education is a lifelong journey. I had mine. I supported my kids. I'm now trying to support my grand I just joined the PTA at my grandson's school because I want to be there for him.
Right.
But in the last couple of years, we have seen that motivation way. Look, I was the same mom as you. My son was a senior. My daughter had just started college when the pandemic hit, and I saw I saw the light fall from their eyes because it was so much harder to attain what we were telling them. You need to do well in school, you need to focus, but you know the mental health challenges. I mean, they were just alone. These are young people, right. You and I are more mature, like we can navigate that differently. But they were in these little silos all over the place. And I think there's a long term impact of that. I see it with my kids and many others as well.
I totally agree.
I got so much inspiration when you talked about your mettle daughter who just completed her two year program, Because my son is twenty one now. He was a senior during the pandemic. When he got finished through the pandemic, he was like, I'll never pick up a textbook again.
And now he's.
Finally just coming back around to the idea of you know what, I think that I'm ready to come out of that state of trauma. He's seeking to go back to school, and so even encouraging him to share some of his past experiences and past anxieties as it relates to school so that he can move into the career field that he has found interest in. Has been a beautiful journey. But I've been telling him just like I'm sure you know you've been telling your children, like it's going to take like one class, one lesson at a time, Like we don't have to do what everyone else has done in order for you to achieve some of those goals. All that matters is that you're trying. And I feel like the goal of Learning Heroes, for those of us who are in this parenting stage, is for us to come to a place where we no longer feel victimized by our educational experience, so that we can actively engage in supporting God our children in a way that they get to benefit from the lessons that we learned and that we are currently learning.
Yeah, and that's what we call the campaign goal Beyond Grid. We focus so much sometimes on grades, but one of the key points of our campaign is that grades don't tell us the whole story. And our research over almost a decade now has shown us that grades you know your child brings home an AARB. We found that ninety percent of parents think that, Okay, the kid brings home an AARB, a's and b's, they're doing great. But those a's and b's reflect things other than educational achievement. If your child is trying really hard, even if they're not meeting the mark, that's reflected, and that's a good thing, right. If they're diligent, if they're responsible, they're turning in their homework, they're raising their hand, they're participating in class, doesn't always mean they're getting it. And so that's why we really have to go beyond grades and have those conversations. But I love what you said about your son. It does remind me a lot of my daughter. She at one point realized that she, because of her learning challenges, could not handle four classes at a time. That's pretty com so we just told her slow down, like take two, take three, do what you need to do to keep moving forward. I was a high achiever in school, and sometimes our experiences set the bar for our kids and we also have to realize they are different people. My kids are very different than me. I love them dearly, but they're different learners than I am. And so this was really a faith journey for me. I had to pray to figure out how to learn who my kids are and how they learn, and then how I can support them and meet them where they are without imposing my experiences on them. You know, for some some people, I love that first word you use, Like, some people were traumatized by school. Literally they don't want to walk, they don't want to be the parent advocate, they don't want to walk back into school ever for real. Yeah, you're just like that did not work for me. I don't want to be there. But they realize that their kids need them as part of that journey, And so sometimes it's a journey for us too.
You Know, we talk a lot about breaking generational curses, and I think we consider some of the issues that have plagued our families. But I don't think that there is a generational curse more honorable than not just choosing what we want to break, but what we want to introduce. And as it relates to family engagement, I want us to consider what do we want to introduce to our children as it relates to being there, supporting them, understanding who they are, advocating for them and maybe the ways we weren't advocated for. And this is just a unique opportunity to say, you know what, I'm going to grab my cape, even though I needed rescuing at one point, and I'm going to get into my child's world and figure out what's the best way to help them navigate it. Some of the greatest gifts that we can give our children are not sitting on the shelves at stores. It's not something that we get as a result of our bank account. It's how we choose to show up for them and help them to see that you were not facing this on your own. I see you, and I'm going to make sure the world sees you and make space for you. I just can't imagine what would be more liberating than that.
Yeah, And I love how you put it, like grabbing that cape and being there and just showing up. And it doesn't mean we have to have all of the answers. It doesn't mean that I have to completely understand how to help. There were lots of times I didn't understand how to help my child. My poor daughter and I cried through homework so many times until I realized that she was a different kind of learner than I was. And it actually ended up being my husband, who was very similar to her, who could help her a lot more. But just being there, like, I don't know about you, but I remember many times that school concerts, my son was in band, when he was in high school, awards, ceremonies, all kinds of events. Just seeing my child turn around, just doing are they there right? Mom? Say Okay, everything's going to be okay. Just showing up matters. It matters so much. We don't have to have all the answers, you know, our kids Sometimes my kids even now they're in their twenties and they'll come to me, Oh Mom, you know everything? Can you tell me this? I'm like, oh, please stop right there.
I do not know everything, but they just want to know that we are going to be there for them, and educational support is part of that.
Right.
We have to be there for them in so many different ways. You have kids, You have six kids, Sarah.
We're family, but there are six of them.
We're a blended family as well, So I get that. But there are, you know, six souls of different ages that at some point need that wisdom that's there in our head or that faith that's there in our heart, and sometimes we have to dig deep and think about who we are in order to give them what they need. So that's why, to me, it's like we're on a journey along with them sometimes. But that's all good. That's all good.
Absolutely well. I want to thank you for the work that you're doing. I love a good challenge, but this doesn't even feel like a challenge. It just feels like someone's grabbing your hand and laying the path out for you. I'm grateful for the work that you're doing and for the ways that we get to glean from it. So thank you for your time and having this conversation.
Thank you so much. It's been great talking to you. I get encouragement seeing other parents like you who have a platform and a voice and are using it in a way to inspire other people. So I appreciate you having the conversation with me today.
Beautiful, Thank you, thank you.
I really hope that that conversation was as helpful for you as it is for me. At this stage in my life, I am almost to the finish line with the report cards and teachers and all of the things. And I'll be honest, it can be very overwhelming trying to keep up with all of the things that I am supposed to be doing as an engaged parent. But I feel a lot of relief in knowing that there is support and tips and tools to really help me make sure that I am shaping the best path forward for my children. Like I said, if you know someone who has children, you're an educator, and you feel like this conversation has been a valuable resource, perhaps even from beginning to end in talking about those healthy dynamics, then please share this with someone you know. In this spirit of motherhood and parenting, I found a Rescue Eve. I know y'all want Rescue Eve to die because y'all won't send it to me, but Rescue Eve yet liv's resurrect and power for Rescue Eve. I saw a story that I thought was absolutely hilarious, and I think that we should rescue her. This mom is defending her right to ask guests at her daughter's birthday party to bring five dollars for backyard or renovations in lieu of gifts. I guess people thought it was really tacking that she said instead of bringing my daughter gift, and I think I can't remember her second baby's first birthday party was their first birthday party. She's like, don't buy a gift, just bring five dollars because we want to get our backyard redone. Can I tell y'all something like when it is Christmas time, it is birthday time, and all of the onsen things go by Target, they go buy Walmart, they order something from Amazon that is inevitably going to end up in the floor on pieces. It is the bane of my existence. I do not enjoy it. Like I tell my daughter all the time, like you're not getting no more toys. You're not getting no more toys. You have books and you have clothes, but you're not getting no more toys.
Like some of these toys.
Got to go.
Like I do not need you to have all of these toys because you're not going to clean them up, you're not going to organize them, and they're going to be in pieces. I am not mad at a queen saying that if you really want to help this young thuck.
No, she didn't say, young thuck.
If you really want to help this young royal priesthood of a person inside of my house really have an enjoyable life. Help me to get a swing set so that they can go outside. Help me to get a hula hoop so they can be out of my business. Tell me to get a water hose so they could just be outside spraying one another. Help me to get them out of my house. You know what I mean, and so I'm not mad at it. I feel like we should rescue her. If you're a mom, a parent, and you know exactly what it's like to have a bunch of random toys that you're stepping going throughout your house, we ought to be able to rescue her.
Is it tacky? What do you think?
Send me your opinion to podcasts at womnibob dot com. Are you out here being tacky? Are you out here in need of a rescue? Send it to me. You're safe here podcast at womnibob. I won't say your name unless you absolutely want me to. Alternatively, are you out here in your bag? Are you so deep in your back like a grandma with peppermints? I want to know about that as well. What are you doing? Let's brag on you. Are you out here doing the things that you're skin glowing? Are you eating salads? Did you go and get you a burger because you deserved it? Are you vegan? Like? Tell me how we can celebrate you, because from one queen to another, I love to see you shine. And if you don't tell your story, who will thank you for hanging out with me this week for another episode of the Woman Evolved podcast. Next week is laun tweet Power Moves. Ignite your confidence and become a force. It's going to be in stores everywhere. I am asking you to buy a book or two, start a book club. Make sure that every person you know is moving and power. Power is not just for a select few. Power is the inheritance of all of us when we live a life aligned with God's vision for who we are. Thank God for Jesus that we are not without power, Holy Spirit. I thank you for my listeners. I thank you for this opportunity to end engage with them in a way that is different, real, refreshing, and authentic.
God.
I pray that something that I have said throughout this podcast has been helpful for what you're trying to do in their life. God, whatever it is, I asked that you would allow it to stick, even if it means they feel a little less alone and a lot more known. God, that's a gift in a world that can often make us feel lonely and isolated. I thank you God for this gift of a life that you have allowed me to live. And I also pray a special blessing over everyone who will be a part of the Power Moves movement. God, bless them in ways that only you can do. In Jesus name, I pray Amen.
