Hi and welcome to girltalk! We’re a mom and three daughters talking about biblical womanhood (oh yeah, and other fun stuff). 

Stop by on a Friday afternoon and you’ll most likely find the four of us sitting at Mom’s kitchen table. Our kids are stashed in various rooms in Mom-Mom’s house for naps, and we’re enjoying carryout from our favorite Greek restaurant down the street. 

It’s girl time, for just a little while. 

Janelle has one eye on her french fries, which are crisping in the oven preparing to be dunked in the best tzatziki sauce ever. Perfectly cooked fries—crispy on the outside but still soft in the middle—are her idea of gourmet cuisine. Kristin’s already gulped down about two gallons of Mom’s sweet tea. You’d think she hadn’t had a drop of liquid in two days, that girl. Nicole’s doing most of the talking while she picks at her meal (she’ll save the rest for later and then eventually throw it away). And Mom is placidly enjoying her favorite Greek salad with grilled chicken. 

In the middle of the table, where the centerpiece used to be, is a Costco container of feta cheese, which we all dump on our salads until they vaguely resemble snow-topped mountains. To be honest, we like a little Greek food with our feta cheese.

Each girl comes ready to talk. Janelle has funny stories to tell and we laugh until we choke on our grilled chicken (or iced tea, in Kristin’s case). Kristin has an endless supply of heartbreaking tales, and we have to cut her off before we get too depressed. Nicole brings a list of serious issues to discuss, which sound very much like the ones she brought up last week (although she insists they are entirely different). Mom, well, she’s a real good listener. 

Mom's also our chief advisor. As pastors’ wives and mothers, we daughters have tons of questions we’ve been storing up all week. “What should I do about the kids arguing?” or “How should I counsel a woman who struggles with condemnation?” or “What is one way I can encourage my husband as he juggles his workload?” 

When one of us asks a question, the other two jump in with our opinions—both at the same time. But in the end, we quiet down and listen to what Mom has to say. 

Think of this site as your seat at Mom’s kitchen table.

It’s where God’s Word is read, life issues are discussed, questions are asked, advice is shared, hearts are opened up, sin is confessed, and grace is received. Here encouragement is always on tap and laughter overflows. It’s where the gospel is prized most of all. It's every day Titus 2.

So pull up a chair and join our little chat, won’t you? Here’s the carryout menu. Pick what you like; it’s on Mom. We’d love to have you be a part of the conversation—it’s bound to be a lively one. 

Oh, and please pass the feta. 

Our Bios

We all talk. We all write for girltalk. But we also have our special jobs. 

Carolyn Mahaney (Mom)—is editor-in-chief of girltalk. She’s married to Dad (CJ) and still has one teenage son at home—Chad (or “Chuckie” as we like to call him). Mom has written three books—Feminine Appeal, Girl Talk (with Nicole) and Shopping for Time (with all three of us). When Dad was the Senior Pastor of Covenant Life Church, Mom led the women’s ministry, and now it’s her joy to serve the pastors’ wives of Sovereign Grace Ministries. Her favorite ministry is her family, and she’s happiest when making game-time snacks for Dad and Chad, talking to one of us on her cell phone, and handing out cherry balls to visiting grandkids—all at the same time. 

Nicole Whitacre—is the senior writer for girltalk (which really just means that she fixes Janelle’s grammar). She brings a little culture to the fam with her love for sushi and Jane Austen. (That’s as cultured as we get, folks!) Nicole’s writing career began poorly at the age of six, when she received her first rejection letter—from Dad’s magazine, no less; but it’s been looking up since then and she’s enjoyed helping Mom write her books. The career she really loves is that of wife to her tall, dark, handsome husband Steve (Youth Pastor at Sovereign Grace Church) and mother to her curly-headed cuties Jack (6) and Tori (2).

Kristin Chesemore—is girltalk’s business manager and she’s perfect for the job. Kristin might look sweet, but watch out! Challenge that girl to a game of Yahtzee or a little arm-wrestling and her competitive side takes over. She will win and you will lose, period. Her hobbies are cleaning her house and cleaning it some more—which is why it’s hilarious that she has three boys: Andrew (9), Liam (6) and Owen (5). The love of her life is Brian (“Pastor B” to us) who serves as one of the Married Life pastors at Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, MD. 

Janelle Bradshaw—is the official girltalk photographer and food taster. She’s the baby girl of the family and has the impish grin and mischievous personality to go with the position. When she’s not scheming about what fun activity is next or thinking about what she’s going to eat for lunch, she’s taking pictures of her favorite subjects: her sweet girlies: Caly (3) and MJ (8 months). Six years ago she and Mike were married in a surprise wedding and he now serves as Pastor of Children’s Ministry at Covenant Life Church where all the kids know them as Mr. and Mrs. B.