“Teach Me 2 Love Me”

One day my oldest beauty came to me with excitement and said, ” Mommy, guess what I found out today?- I discovered that I am very pretty!”

That shocked me to my core! Here is my ten year old daughter coming into her own self-discovery (something I thought she had). I almost didn’t know how to respond, but I said to her- “Well, Mommy tells you that all the time! I thought you already knew that.” She affirmed that although she had heard this many times over, it wasn’t until I showed her what confidence looks-that she truly understood what it was!

Again, astounded by her wisdom, I took it in and reflected deeply on both her actions and her words. As parents we sometimes assume that our kids will naturally develop into who their are meant to be. But often times it is the nurture factor that makes all the difference.

Yes, I could say to her all day, “You’re so pretty!” But in reality what she needed to hear was, ” Baby, you’re beautiful! I love your outfit! I like the way you styled your hair today! I loved that essay you wrote! I like how you helped your sisters yesterday-” These words are the affirmations of self-awareness that nurtured her into her identity of self- esteem! That’s right self-esteem is as much YOU as it is the WORLD around you!

Much like teaching our kids right from wrong, up from down, friend from foe, and truth from non- If we can teach our children self-appreciation from a young age, when they get older it will never depart!

How can we teach them to love themselves? We teach by doing! Model self-love, self-awareness, and self-appreciation! Wear your confidence and your inspiration much like you wear your favorite tie, shirt, blouse or pair of shoes! Self-Esteem is an accessory in which we must #choose2believe! And when we learn to love us, they will do the same!

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