• About Me

Mom on Purpose

~ The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom… on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

Mom on Purpose

Tag Archives: self esteem

“Grateful to be Me”

19 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by Dr. Amy Robinson in Raising Independent Thinkers, Thinking by Design, Women Empowered

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

inner beauty, parenting little girls, self esteem, Self love

For the last two nights tucking Audra into bed, as a part of our night time ritual, I asked her what she was grateful for.  Without hesitation, she looked at me and said, “I’m grateful for being me.”  It stopped me in my tracks, heart swelling.  “That just might be one of my favourite things you’ve ever said you’re grateful for”, I replied.  “Loving yourself is so important.”  To which she replied, “But of course I love myself, mommy!”

Self love.  It all starts there.  Wow.

When I witness my kids expressing positive feelings about themselves it gives me great joy.   Perhaps it is knowing how essential it is to start with ourselves – that the degree of respect, confidence, love or assertiveness we have in our lives starts with our own self esteem.  So I guess it make sense that my heart soars when I see or hear evidence of that being well nurtured in my kids.

Truth be told, working with a lot of people, I think often of all the ways we limit ourselves, play small, or focus on our faults rather than our strengths.  And I’ve been guilty of it, too.  But seeing how self love translates into every area of our life, I consider it one of my greatest jobs as a mom to foster healthy self esteem in my kids.  Life will throw plenty of challenges their way, I am sure.  I want them to be able to stand strong, know and love themselves, and be their best – even when the going gets tough.  Especially when the going gets tough.

Being a mom to a little girl, I am very conscious of the messages I send her.  I’d have to put her in a bubble to avoid the messages that are sent to little girls by media and society – and the enormous emphasis that is placed on appearance, beauty and fitting an ideal.  It’s sadly evident in many girls’ toys, dolls, shows, and movies – it’s everywhere.  We embrace the positive female portrayals wherever we can find them (like her recent love of Zena, Warrior Princess.  When I asked her why she loves it so much, she said:  “She’s brave and strong and helps people.  Nobody beats her.  And she’s pretty.”)  While we may limit poor influences when we can, we feel that it is more important to teach her about true beauty.

We try to teach her to focus on inner beauty before outward appearance.  We want her to love herself enough to choose good friends, make good decisions, and to have the courage to try new things.  We want her to go through life with awareness, confidence and a deep inner knowing of her own strengths and abilities.  We want her to dream big, with no limits and know that she can do and be anything.

And it all starts with loving herself.   There is no stronger foundation.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

One Proud Mama

06 Wednesday Feb 2013

Posted by Dr. Amy Robinson in Fully expressed, Life Lessons

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Gratitude, Proud parents, public speaking, pushing past fear, self esteem

Today I am a proud mama. And my boy has guts.

I’m sure most people have heard that public speaking is one of the greatest fears people have. It takes confidence, poise…and guts to stand up in front of a group for any reason. Today I had the opportunity to watch Ethan speak in front of his school assembly of several hundred students. And he ROCKED it.

A few weeks ago, Ethan came to me heavily conflicted about a speech he had to give to his grade four class. Now, I speak regularly to groups both large and small. And one thing I have learned is that one of the secrets to a great talk is to talk about something you are passionate about. And let me tell you, Ethan LOVES greek mythology. In fact, on the night he thought up the topic, he followed me around the house for an hour spouting story after story, so excited that I wondered if he’d ever wind down to sleep.

Our first hurdle came the next day when he dejectedly reported that his classmates had offered their opinions that it wouldn’t be a good topic. (And in true Ethan-style, EVERYONE shot down the idea… which I sincerely doubt was entirely true)

As I donned my “coach” hat, our conversation revolved around the importance of following his heart, and not being swayed by his friends. (And, as I pointed out, none of them had heard how he tells those stories.) After a few days of hemming and hawing, he finally decided to go with his gut on this one, regardless of what anyone else said. (Yes! I thought. One for the confidence quotient.)

As we worked on his outline, adding his favourite characters, stories and monsters, his excitement grew. By the weekend, as he rehearsed for his last time with cue cards, he was almost beside himself, fervently hoping that he would be the one picked out of his class to share his speech with the whole school.

And I have to admit, I was hoping just as much, possibly even more than he was. See, one of my great passions is public speaking. And I think a part of my love of this started when I was Ethan’s age and had the role of Dorothy in our school play. I have no recollection of being scared to perform and sing in front of hundreds of people, and to this day, the memory is one of great accomplishment.

Knowing this, and being a mom witnessing how quickly my children are growing up, one of my strongest wishes is for them to have high self esteem, and the ability to face a challenge and experience the exhilaration that comes from overcoming it.

In my own head, I think I made a big deal out of this speech as well – although I did not voice that to Ethan. I simply saw the potential growth an experience like this could give to him. But rather than add to his pressure, nor interfere by emailing his teacher (which I considered, but then vetoed) – I zipped my lip. My advice to Ethan was what I always tell him: Give it your best. We will be proud of you no matter what.

However, when I got the email from Ethan’s teacher yesterday that he had been chosen to speak to the school assembly- I literally danced for joy.

And so last night and this morning, I again donned my “coach hat” many times as he waivered between excitement and anxiety. “I’m so scared!” he’d lament. “There will be 600 kids there!” he’d cry (another Ethan-exaggeration, I might add)

So I brought him back to past experiences when he’d overcome obstacles. Like overcoming his fear of deep water, jumping off high ledges to the water below (rope swings, bridges, and rock ledges) – and most importantly – the feeling of exhilaration he had once on the other side of those experiences. He listened intently, seeming to take it all in.

When it was his turn to give his speech, I literally watched him talk himself into confidence. And with a deep breath, he calmly looked out over the gathered students, and rocked his speech.

It was not about whether it was perfect (though to me, it was) It was not about whether or not he “won” by the judges (in fact, we don’t yet know, and I don’t care at all) It was all about watching our son, our pride and joy, take yet another confident step in the world. Being proud of who he is, his ability to hold his own, and to face his fears and keep going despite them all.

As a mom, every little moment like this is like a breath of fresh air. I can breathe a little easier, with yet another experience where I have witnessed the courage and strength that lies in our not-so-little-boy.

I know that life will offer up lots of its bumps along the way. But today, I was witness to one of those memories that for him, may just be one to call upon when he needs a reminder of how very powerful he is.

Oh yeah, I am one proud mama.

Image

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Print
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...
The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom.... on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

CATEGORIES

A Working Mom Creating Health Crossfit Eating by Design Extended family Fully expressed in8 Mama: Deviating from the Mainstream Life Lessons Moving by Design Musings of a Manic Mama My Chiropractic Life My Life as a Wife Our Family Adventures Our Household Rules Pet lover Pregnancy and Birth Raising Independent Thinkers The Baby Years The Dad Factor The Technology Connundrum Thinking by Design Thoughts Women Empowered

Recent Posts

  • Moving on from Mom on Purpose
  • The Hardest Week of my Life – 2 Years Later
  • My Parenting Panic Attack – again
  • Absurdly happy to be 40
  • Passing Years, Growing Kids and Mourning Moms

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 98 other followers

Follow Mom on Purpose on WordPress.com

Power of Moms

Tags

Babysitting Balance Bedtime Rituals Being a Role Model Being heard Being Present in the Moment Be the change buying peace Changing the World Choose your battles; thriving vs surviving competition Cooking costumes crankiness creativity crossfit Dads Date nights Dave Matthews Band Difficult Decisions Doing your best Eat by Design Eating by Design Empowered women exercise experiences facing challenges Family Family time Freedom Gratitude Halifax hallowe'en health Holidays Home Birth immune system inner beauty Kids Growing Up letting go Life by Design Love Making a Difference Marriage Morning Power Hour Moving by Design natural approaches Nature new experiences Newfoundland Paleo Parenting Parenting choices parenting little girls powerful women relationships Remembrance Day Responsibility Role Models Routine Santa Claus self esteem Self love sibling moments Simplicity sports Standing for Something Strength stubborn little diva taking care of ourselves tantrums Tough Mudder Travel Values Working Mom

Blogs I Follow

Blog at WordPress.com.

The Inspired Life Journey

Real life. Fully expressed. And not always Inspired.

Mom on Purpose

The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom... on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

Esther Yvette

MY JOURNEY. MY PURPOSE. MY PASSION.

dr laura foster

thoughts and inspirations

What Kids Want Us to Know

Lessons in parenting from children themselves

dr andrea ryan

Chiropractor. Mom. Wife. Author. Health & Wellness Leader. Increasing My Level of Awesomeness

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
%d bloggers like this: