Parent Group
Our Parent Group meets from 9:30-10:30 AM on the 3rd Sunday of each month in the back classroom of the upstairs administration building. (Walk past the men's restroom, then through the large classroom where our parent/toddler group gathers.)
Our Parent Group is open to parents and caregivers with children at every stage of life...from pre-natal to post-graduate! We come together to share honestly both the profound and mundane joys and challenges of our lives. We offer each other a nonjudgmental listening ear, prayer, encouragement, and mutual support.
Our meetings for the 2014-2015 program year are scheduled for the third Sunday of each month: Sept 21, Oct 19, Nov 16, Dec 21, Jan 18, Feb 15, March 15, April 19, May 17. Drop in anytime!
Contact Kerri, the Interim Family Minister.
Our Parent Group is open to parents and caregivers with children at every stage of life...from pre-natal to post-graduate! We come together to share honestly both the profound and mundane joys and challenges of our lives. We offer each other a nonjudgmental listening ear, prayer, encouragement, and mutual support.
Our meetings for the 2014-2015 program year are scheduled for the third Sunday of each month: Sept 21, Oct 19, Nov 16, Dec 21, Jan 18, Feb 15, March 15, April 19, May 17. Drop in anytime!
Contact Kerri, the Interim Family Minister.
Prayers & Resources for Parents
General Prayers & Resources
Download and use or adapt select prayers from the Book of Common Prayer, below:
For a Birthday
In the Evening
For those we Love
For Families
For the Care of Children
For Young Persons
For Couples
For Victims of Addiction
For Separation or Divorce (from Changes: Prayers and Services Honoring Rites of Passage)
Family Rituals
For a Birthday
In the Evening
For those we Love
For Families
For the Care of Children
For Young Persons
For Couples
For Victims of Addiction
For Separation or Divorce (from Changes: Prayers and Services Honoring Rites of Passage)
Family Rituals
- Daily Rituals: Take time at the end of each day to share "highs" and "lows" from the day that is past. You might adapt the "Rocks & Water" ritual we use to open our groups and classes at St. Gregory's. You can learn a song (with signs) to accompany the ritual in this video.
- Seasonal Rituals: To Dance with God: Family Ritual & Community Celebration by Gertrud Mueller Nelson offers creative activities and rituals to help families and churches celebrate the seasons of the church year together.
For new or expectant parents
Buy Prayers for Expectant Parents, a book of short daily prayers for each stage of pregnancy, from the Christian tradition. For more reflections and prayers on pregnancy and birth from the Jewish and Judeo-Christian traditions, see Motherprayer: The Pregnant Woman's Spiritual Companion by Tikva Frymer-Kensky.
Download and use or adapt the following short services and prayers:
The Blessing of a Pregnant Woman (from Enriching our Worship 5)
Thanksgiving for the Birth of a Child (service from The Book of Common Prayer)
Thanksgiving for the Adoption of a Child (service from The Book of Common Prayer)
Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child (prayer from The Book of Common Prayer)
Prayer for Big Brothers/Sisters (from Changes)
Blessing for a Weaning Mother & Child (original)
Download and use or adapt the following short services and prayers:
The Blessing of a Pregnant Woman (from Enriching our Worship 5)
Thanksgiving for the Birth of a Child (service from The Book of Common Prayer)
Thanksgiving for the Adoption of a Child (service from The Book of Common Prayer)
Thanksgiving for the Gift of a Child (prayer from The Book of Common Prayer)
Prayer for Big Brothers/Sisters (from Changes)
Blessing for a Weaning Mother & Child (original)
Download Liturgies and Prayers related to Childbearing, Childbirth, and Loss (Enriching our Worship 5) from the Episcopal Church.
Or download to use or adapt selected, below:
Prayers Surrounding Adoption
Prayers Surrounding Loss of a Child
Prayers Surrounding Infertility
Prayers Surrounding an Unexpected Pregnancy
Prayers Surrounding Difficult Decisions
Prayers Following a Traumatic Birth
A Ritual of Remembrance after Loss (original)
A Video Meditation for Remembrance after Loss (original)
Or download to use or adapt selected, below:
Prayers Surrounding Adoption
Prayers Surrounding Loss of a Child
Prayers Surrounding Infertility
Prayers Surrounding an Unexpected Pregnancy
Prayers Surrounding Difficult Decisions
Prayers Following a Traumatic Birth
A Ritual of Remembrance after Loss (original)
A Video Meditation for Remembrance after Loss (original)
For Parents of Young & School Aged Children
Buy Changes: Prayers and Services Honoring Rites of Passages from the Episcopal Church, including Prayers and Rites of Passage for Childhood, Young Adulthood, Midlife, Elders, and Remembering the Departed.
Or download to use or adapt selected prayers, below:
Moving from Crib to Bed
Becoming a Big Brother or Sister
Beginning the School Year
Becoming a Reader
Learning to Ride a Bike
Going away to Camp
When a Friend Moves Away
Or download to use or adapt selected prayers, below:
Moving from Crib to Bed
Becoming a Big Brother or Sister
Beginning the School Year
Becoming a Reader
Learning to Ride a Bike
Going away to Camp
When a Friend Moves Away
For Parents of Teens & Young Adults
Buy Changes: Prayers and Services Honoring Rites of Passages from the Episcopal Church, including Prayers and Rites of Passage for Childhood, Young Adulthood, Midlife, Elders, and Remembering the Departed.
Or download to use or adapt selected prayers, below:
Reaching Puberty
Earning a Driver's License or Permit
Dating
Graduation
Going to College
Joining the Workforce
For a Journey
Or download to use or adapt selected prayers, below:
Reaching Puberty
Earning a Driver's License or Permit
Dating
Graduation
Going to College
Joining the Workforce
For a Journey
More: St. Gregory's Parent Picks
Are there prayers, books, or resources that have proven especially valuable to you on your parenting journey? Send your favorites to Kerri so we can share them with others!
Activities
Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media by Susan Schwake and Rainer Schwake (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Ages 0-5
Becoming the Parent You Want to Be: A Sourcebook of Strategies for the First Five Years by Keyser and Davis (shared by Amy Baker)
The Emotional Life of the Toddler by Alicia Lieberman (shared by Amy Baker)
Mind in the Making by Ellen Galinsky (shared by Amy Baker)
What's Going on in There? How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life by Lise Elliot (shared by Amy Baker)
Your Self-Confident Baby by Magda Gerber (shared by Amy Baker)
1, 2, 3 the Toddler Years A Practical Guide for Parents and Caregivers by Irene van der Zande (shared by Amy Baker)
Behavior
Positive Discipline by Jane Nelson (shared by Sylvia Miller-Mutia)
1, 2, 3 Magic by Thomas Phelan (shared by Lynn Dolce)
Bullying
The Bully, The Bullied and the Bystander by Barbara Coloroso (shared by Amy Baker)
Communication
How to Negotiate with Your Child Even When You Think You Shouldn't by Scott Brown (shared by Amy Baker)
How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish (shared by Amy Baker)
Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships by Marshall B. Rosenberg and Arun Gandhi (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Divorce & Separation
Good Parenting through your Divorce by Mary Ellen Hannibal (shared by Amy Baker)
Kidsturn, a SF based nonprofit that helps families put "kids in the center of healing, not in the middle of conflict" (shared by Amy Baker)
Grief/Bereavement
Project Grace: Service Trips for Grieving Mothers, Fathers, and Families (shared by Cheryl Hendrickson)
Marriage & Parenting
(Find additional relationship resources on our Couples Group Resource Page)
And Baby Makes Three by John Gottman and Julie Schwartz Gottman (shared by Amy Baker)
Parenting (General)
Hold onto Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More than Peers by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Mate (shared by Amy Baker)
The Gottman Institute
Parenting from the Inside Out by Dan Siegel and Mary Hartzell (shared by Amy Baker)
Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child by John Gottman (shared by Amy Baker)
The Whole-Brain Child by Dan Siegel and Tina Bryce Payne (shared by Amy Baker)
Sexuality
Sex + Faith: Talking with Your Child from Birth to Adolescence by Kate Ott
Beyond the Big Talk: A Parent's Guide to Raising Sexually Healthy Teens - From Middle School to High School and Beyond by Debra W. Haffner and Alyssa Haffner Tartaglione
Not Under My Roof: Parents, Teens, and the Culture of Sex by Amy Schalet (shared by Lynn Dolce)
It's Not the Stork!: A Book About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families and Friends (Ages 4-8) by Robie H. Harris
It's So Amazing!: A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families (Ages 7-10) by Robie H. Harris
It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health (Ages 10+) by Robie H. Harris
Spirituality
Everyday Blessings: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting by Myla & Jon Kabat-Zinn (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Meditations of The Way of the Cross for Parents by Susan Jones
Teens
Brainstrom: The Power & Purpose of the Teenage Brain by Daniel Seigel (shared by Lynn Dolce)
Lost & Found: Adolescence, Parenting, and the Formation of Faith by Amanda Millay Hughes (shared by Sylvia Miller-Mutia)
Activities
Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media by Susan Schwake and Rainer Schwake (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Ages 0-5
Becoming the Parent You Want to Be: A Sourcebook of Strategies for the First Five Years by Keyser and Davis (shared by Amy Baker)
The Emotional Life of the Toddler by Alicia Lieberman (shared by Amy Baker)
Mind in the Making by Ellen Galinsky (shared by Amy Baker)
What's Going on in There? How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life by Lise Elliot (shared by Amy Baker)
Your Self-Confident Baby by Magda Gerber (shared by Amy Baker)
1, 2, 3 the Toddler Years A Practical Guide for Parents and Caregivers by Irene van der Zande (shared by Amy Baker)
Behavior
Positive Discipline by Jane Nelson (shared by Sylvia Miller-Mutia)
1, 2, 3 Magic by Thomas Phelan (shared by Lynn Dolce)
Bullying
The Bully, The Bullied and the Bystander by Barbara Coloroso (shared by Amy Baker)
Communication
How to Negotiate with Your Child Even When You Think You Shouldn't by Scott Brown (shared by Amy Baker)
How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish (shared by Amy Baker)
Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships by Marshall B. Rosenberg and Arun Gandhi (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Divorce & Separation
Good Parenting through your Divorce by Mary Ellen Hannibal (shared by Amy Baker)
Kidsturn, a SF based nonprofit that helps families put "kids in the center of healing, not in the middle of conflict" (shared by Amy Baker)
Grief/Bereavement
Project Grace: Service Trips for Grieving Mothers, Fathers, and Families (shared by Cheryl Hendrickson)
Marriage & Parenting
(Find additional relationship resources on our Couples Group Resource Page)
And Baby Makes Three by John Gottman and Julie Schwartz Gottman (shared by Amy Baker)
Parenting (General)
Hold onto Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More than Peers by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Mate (shared by Amy Baker)
The Gottman Institute
Parenting from the Inside Out by Dan Siegel and Mary Hartzell (shared by Amy Baker)
Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child by John Gottman (shared by Amy Baker)
The Whole-Brain Child by Dan Siegel and Tina Bryce Payne (shared by Amy Baker)
Sexuality
Sex + Faith: Talking with Your Child from Birth to Adolescence by Kate Ott
Beyond the Big Talk: A Parent's Guide to Raising Sexually Healthy Teens - From Middle School to High School and Beyond by Debra W. Haffner and Alyssa Haffner Tartaglione
Not Under My Roof: Parents, Teens, and the Culture of Sex by Amy Schalet (shared by Lynn Dolce)
It's Not the Stork!: A Book About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families and Friends (Ages 4-8) by Robie H. Harris
It's So Amazing!: A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families (Ages 7-10) by Robie H. Harris
It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health (Ages 10+) by Robie H. Harris
Spirituality
Everyday Blessings: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting by Myla & Jon Kabat-Zinn (shared by Leesy Taggart)
Meditations of The Way of the Cross for Parents by Susan Jones
Teens
Brainstrom: The Power & Purpose of the Teenage Brain by Daniel Seigel (shared by Lynn Dolce)
Lost & Found: Adolescence, Parenting, and the Formation of Faith by Amanda Millay Hughes (shared by Sylvia Miller-Mutia)