Have you ever wished you had a parenting and child development expert you could call on at any given moment of any given day? We get that, because we do, too! Which is why the Minno team has been working with some of today’s top Christian experts in counseling to bring you the best research-based advice and encouragement to help you through each stage of your child’s physical, emotional, and spiritual development. Wouldn’t it be great to have information like this that is easy to read and apply, right at your fingertips?

MINNO LIFE GUIDES to the Rescue!

The purpose of our Minno Life Guides (of which these are the first of more to come) is to empower parents with the information, encouragement, and guidance they need for top-of-mind topics like child development, technology, education, family life, spiritual growth, and more. We want to connect you with valuable partners who have the expertise you need to grow in parenting. We want to help you discover resources that will make your job just a little bit easier. 

Our first two guides cover Stage 1: The Preschool Years and Stage 2: The Elementary Years. The information in these foundational guides is pulled from several books by the Daystar Counseling Ministries team: Sissy Goff, David Thomas, and Melissa Trevathan. It has been curated, simplified, prayed over, and presented with the help of Melanie Rainer—a writer, children’s pastor, and mother of two. This is a team of Godly people who care about YOU and your family. We understand where you are and what you are going through—the good, the bad, and the ugly. 

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Meet the Authors of our First Minno Life Guides

^{SISSY GOFF, M.Ed., LPC-MHSP is the Director of Child and Adolescent Counseling at Daystar Counseling Ministries in Nashville, Tennessee, where she works alongside her counseling assistant/pet therapist, Lucy the Havanese. Since 1993, she has been helping girls and their parents find confidence in who they are and hope in who God is making them to be, both as individuals and families. Sissy is a sought-after speaker for parenting events and the author of eleven books, including the bestselling Raising Worry-Free Girls and Braver, Stronger, Smarter (for elementary-aged girls). Sissy is a regular contributor to various podcasts and publications including FoxNews.com, as well as her own podcast Raising Boys and Girls. You can find more information and resources at Raising Boys and Girls.}

^{DAVID THOMAS, L.M.S.W., is the Director of Family Counseling at Daystar Counseling in Nashville, TN, the co-author of eight books, including the best-selling Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys and Are My Kids on Track? The 12 Emotional, Social & Spiritual Milestones Your Child Needs to Reach. He is a frequent guest on national television and podcasts, including his own with Sissy Goff and Melissa Trevathan called Raising Boys and Girls, has been featured in publications such as USA Today, and speaks across the country. He and his wife, Connie, have a daughter, twin sons, and a feisty yellow lab named Owen. You can follow him on social media @raisingboysandgirls and find the latest parenting resources at Raising Boys and Girls.}

^{MELISSA TREVATHAN, M.R.E. first became a youth director at the age of 16. Since that time, she has been a teacher, retreat leader, head of spiritual life at a private school in Nashville, and is the founder and Executive Director of Daystar Counseling Ministries, which began in 1985. A graduate of Southwestern Baptist Seminary, Melissa has spoken to various churches and schools across the country, taught graduate courses in counseling adolescents, and been a guest on television and radio programs throughout the United States and Canada. She is a popular speaker for parents, and kids of all ages. Melissa is the author of eight books, including Raising Girls. When Melissa is not listening, speaking, or writing, she’s usually on her bike or playing with Blueberry, her Old English Sheeppuppy, somewhere between Nashville and Kentucky Lake. You can follow her on social media at @raisingboysandgirls and find the latest parenting resources at Raising Boys and Girls.}

_{Melanie Rainer, MATS, is the former Director of Content for JellyTelly (now Minno). Currently, Melanie serves in children’s ministry at Christ Presbyterian Church. She is a graduate of Covenant Theological Seminary and lives in Nashville, TN with her husband and two girls.}