On Insecurities...

I've always had fairly high self-esteem. There are--of course--those moments, days, weeks (I'll stop there) when I slip up and start comparing myself to every other person on the planet.  

(Those times may or may not be traced back to the day my friends all decided to play African animals and named me to be the hippo--who even thinks of a hippo when they think of Africa!?!
There's also the time in fifth grade when they were discussing how disgusting it would be to weigh 100 pounds, only to have me let them know that 'guess what? I weigh 115' and go home.)

I pretend I'm not bitter...

 I'm pretty sure that everyone is aware of the media's influence in our world today. Covers of magazines are clad with photo shopped women, making us believe that this is how they really look--and how far we have to go. 

On the left is the cover they printed, on the right is the real picture. WHY DID THEY PHOTOSHOP IT?! She's pretty anyway, but even that wasn't good enough...

I've read countless articles about when to have conversations with your daughters about self-esteem and how we need to instill self-confidence early in their lives. However, it is scientifically proven that telling someone they're beautiful or skinny or tan or cute or, or, or, DOES NOT make them believe it.

What if the more you sat your daughter down for a talk about how "what other people say doesn't matter" and "you're beautiful no matter what others tell you" the more she wondered, "Do I need this? Why is she so concerned that I'll believe what they're saying? Are they right?"

Have you ever told your daughter to be proud of herself and to love herself the way she is? Have you ever complained about or pointed out a flaw in yourself in her presence? Then you are sending double messages.

My mom never once--in my memory--sat me down and talked to me about "loving myself for who I am." She loved herself for who she was and she loved me the way I was and that taught me that I was worth loving.

In the movie, Penelope, there's a curse on the blue blood Wilhern family that the first daughter born would have a pig nose that could only be reversed if someone of "her own kind" could love her.  Penelope is the first girl in the family and has a pig nose. Her mother makes it her one and only focus to find the rich man that will be able to break her curse.

While this seems like a loving mother--trying to break her daughter's curse--she teaches Penelope that someone else has to love her before she can love herself. Finally, Penelope says the magic words:

"I like myself the way I am."

The curse is broken and she has a normal nose. Her mother realizes that if SHE had loved her daughter the way she should have, Penelope would've grown up with a normal nose.

Ironically, not thirty seconds after apologizing, she looks at Penelope and says, "What do you think about a little tuck in your nose, just a little lift right there." When Penelope walks away horrified by her mother's comment she yells:

"What? I'm being your mother! That's what mothers do with daughters; they talk about how to look prettier!"

It's one of the saddest parts of the movie because after that whole experience, she didn't learn a thing...lucky for her that her daughter did.

I'm really not sure why this was on my mind recently, I just think that the best thing a mother can teach her daughter self-esteem is by showing her that she's worth loving just how she is.

*I'm not claiming to be an expert on the subject or on parenting, but I DO have my opinions about what really works when it comes to raising a daughter with self esteem. I'm also not suggesting that mothers completely ignore that topic, I'm just saying that children are most likely to do what their parents do, not what they say.

Radio...

I always wonder whether or not the "radio people" know that I'm listening to their station. If they can track when I immediately switch the station when they play a song I don't like. If they care when people switch the station. If they did, they could get a better idea of what people are listening to and what they don't like. I'm pretty sure they don't actually have a way to do that, but who knows? Maybe it's a less invasive, more secretive Big Brother scheme...

Also, why is it that every single station goes into commercial at the same time? Do they all get together and decide that after exactly 5 minutes and 32 seconds after 6:00 they'll cut to commercial? I swear, its some sort of conspiracy. I haven't figure out against what or who, but I'm convinced they're out to get something.

Just a random thought I had the other day.

Retro Dress

*Just so ya'll know, this is NOT a craft/sewing/creation blog, but I will be sharing my projects every once in a while.*

Introducing.....my retro dress!

Simplicity had a retro section in their book and I REALLY REALLY wanted to make this dress. (Despite my mother trying to convince me it was "weird.") haha!

It was really easy. I think that the bias tape all around the edges makes it look really fabulous. :)

I'm also finding that I have and obsession with gray and yellow at this moment. I had the gray and yellow leaf fabric and then I was trying to find something to match. I had a different yellow and then I happened to look over in the clearance and this adorable yellow and white fabric was there for only 2.99 per yard! Hurray for deals! It was also supposed to have snaps where these two front pieces meet but I didn't really feel comfortable with that. (What if I wanted to eat a brownie?) So eventually I went with buttons and ribbons. 

It was so fun to make and the full skirt makes me so happy! :)

(This is my "concentrated on spinning" face.)

A Metaphor of Repentance

Sledding is interesting. You hop on a piece of plastic and slide down a snow-covered hill for about ten seconds of thrill, and then you make the trek back up. The ride down is exhilarating and exciting, but eventually it comes to an end and you have to make a choice.

Do you sit at the bottom of the hill forever and ever? Or do you get up, sling the sled over your shoulder and make the trek up the hill? They say that what goes up, must come down, but what about things that go down? Must they come back up?

What about in life, i n sin or when mistakes are made. You know you probably shouldn't but it just seems so fun--exhilarating, exciting--but eventually, you hit the bottom. What I've noticed about those who are able to rise above their past and those who can't, is whether they choose to sit at the bottom, or make the climb back up.

It's not easy. It's always easier to slip and let go and not care, but what does it bring you? A memory of a ride downhill and a reminder that you're still at the bottom.

If you choose the hard way, taking it one step at a time, you will find yourself at the top of the hill looking out over the lower ground, seeing your sledding track down the hillside, others at the bottom who also took the ride, and every footstep you took to make it back.

Standing there at the top, you see a snowflake gently fall from the sky. Then another, and another. The sky is full of snowflakes drifting down and you turn your face to meet them. A moment of serenity and peace among the falling flakes and complete quiet. You look down and the hillside is covered in a blanket of fresh, white snow. But wait, where are the sledding tracks? No trace. They've been covered, wiped out, no longer noticeable.

There are, however, still footsteps, but how can that be? Because others are continuously making the journey up the hill and you are there to lend a hand and pull them up the last few feet. There, you stand together looking out over the valley, a perspective from higher ground, a commonness in your struggle,  a companionship in the faith that the journey up the hill was--and always will be--worth it, and a knowledge that snow, pure white snow, will always come to those who make the trek up the hill.

Hello

This is one of many various attempts to start a blog. I used to be an excellent journaller...as in, I wrote consistently. When I go back and read my journal, however, I realize I was not an excellent writer. It was a basic outline of my day, and that was all. My goal with this blog is not to write consistently: it is to write meaningfully. Hopefully my new attempt with a fresh mindset will reflect in my posts as I write about whatever I happen to have going on in my mind.