Small Talk: Learning Lessons Through the Innocence of Our Children

I received a copy of Small Talk from Family Christian in exchange for this review, however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

We were in the car. We had just dropped Baby R off at my mom’s house so I could take E to the doctor for a checkup. I looked in the rearview mirror at E in his carseat. His lower lip was trembling and I could tell he was trying not to cry. 

“Is Baby R going to be OK at Nana’s? I’m worried about him,” E said.

I had been feeling stressed that morning with getting the boys up, fed, dressed, and out the door. I was doubting my abilities as a mom, wondering if I was really cut out for this two kids, two years apart thing and then E drops this on me. 

“Yes, Nana will be very careful with Baby R,” I tell him. 

“I love him,” says E. “He’s my little brother.”

Suddenly, my frustration at getting them dressed and out the door melted away. I knew that non of that mattered. All that really matters is that I have two healthy boys that I love, and who love each other. 

It is moments like these that Amy Julia Becker discusses in her new book Small Talk. This isn’t another parenting guide. It doesn’t tell you how to communicate with your kids. It is, however, stories based on questions and statements made by the author’s children regarding life and God. 

Moving from humorous exchanges, profound questions, and heart-wrenching moments, Amy Julia encourages parents to ask themselves — and to talk with their children — about what matters most.

I loved that this book was written not as another resource telling me what I should be doing as a mother, but instead tells real stories of motherhood in their unpolished form. I think as mothers we spend so much time focusing on how we measure up that we forget to savor the little moments we have with our kids — like E tearing up when he was worried about his brother. These are the moments that are really important.

If you are a mother, or know someone who will be a mother soon, this is the perfect book to give as a gift. And to help you purchase this book, and any other Family Christian products you might want, I am giving away a $25 Family Christian Appreciation Certificate which can be used both in store and online for any purchase over $25. Just enter using the form below!

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