healthy body image...

Change. It's something every human goes through. We grow and age and change. Our minds and bodies change. And as a mother of four and turning 35 right quick, it is 

obvious I don't look like I did 20 years ago. 

(did I just type 20 years ago?? sheesh! I'm getting up there!)

As a child and teenager our bodies are usually strong and fit, have energy and our skin has great amounts of elasticity and collagen. 

  As young adults and adults, we loose some of that. Naturally. 

Add on top of natural aging and growth, a woman who has had a child or multiple children sees major changes. Within a few weeks and months of pregnancy our bodies change. And they will NEVER go back tot he exact way they used to be. I mean of course they won't...they will age no matter what, duh. BUT so many different changes will take place during pregnancy. 

See that girl? Puff face. Full belly. Fanny that is extra large. Yeah. She is on baby number three in this photo ...and she KNOWS she ain't never gonna be full in the right places again. ;)

Its crazy how quickly and dramatically bodies can change. 

And they do.

So my question is this...how can a woman , one who is growing and aging and giving birth to little humans, get used to her new body? How can she accept it and love it? How can she learn to see herself differently (literally) as a new woman? 

I have an amazing mother. 

She NEVER made weight an issue in my life. I would see her go on "walks" sometimes and I would even join her as a teenager. We got to chat and build our relationship. But NEVER did I ever see her as a work out queen or listen to her count calories or cut her portions in half. 

She 4'11" tall. She had SIX children, one of them weighing 10 pounds 14 ounces at birth. 

She is tiny. I saw her put on weight child after child and never make mention about it as a concern in front of me. She gave me the GREATEST example of healthy body image. 

She taught me without saying anything, that her body was wonderful because she gave life to our family and she was happy and did the things she loved. 

As a mother of FOUR girls, I have the great responsibility to teach them these same things. 

Each of my children are COMPLETELY different from the others. 

I have a brown hair brown eyed tall  graceful beauty.

I have a Blonde hair brown eyed average height sporty babe.

I have a tiny little blonde hair blue eyed dancer.

And I have a blonde hair blue eyed love with CURLY hair. 

Since they were small, they would line up by my bathroom door to get their hair done each day. I would start their hair. We would chat. When I would finish, I would tell them how pretty they looked, but then look them in the eyes and say, "but your heart is more beautiful than your face. And because your heart is beautiful, it makes YOU the most beautiful." 

As they have gotten older, I have shared conversations with them about their appearance. 

They KNOW what the most important beauty is. BUT we are human. AND we are girls! 

So it is inevitable to have the concerns of the world.

 I can't tell you the number of times I have lifted my shirt and shown my children my belly. The extra skin I carry. The funny way it hangs when I sit down and how it magically disappears when I stand up. I have talked to them about my ever changing uppers.  Blampers. Hoo hoo's. Whatever you call them. That they are important for human life to care for our new babies. That they are beautiful no matter the size because they are part of them. Part of a body that will do GREAT things in this world. We have chatted about pimples. I have shown them mine...and even popped a few for them...

just for kicks;) 

I have shown them my splint end hairs. 

I have confessed that I have had a cavity (gasp). 

We have chatted about my laugh lines. How they got there. What they mean to me. 

What they mean to them.

I am NOT a "perfect" body. 

Or am I? 

I have a great lesson to teach. Especially in a world of fillers and make up and plastic. 

(I'm NOT knocking anyone)

I have the chance to teach self acceptance. To show them that no matter what, 

they are GORGEOUS just the way they are. They have work to do and joy to have and life to live and their body, no matter what size or flaw, is the vessel in which to help them accomplish all they want to. 

The task is great. I take it seriously. And I have try to have fun with it. 

I am not perfect...I am normal. I am a growing woman. 

I'm NOT 18 years old. And I'm not in competition with anyone. Especially and 18 year old  (ha!).

I am supposed to age. And supposed to change. And my aging handsome husband is, too. WE are doing what everyone SAYS they want to do...grow old together. 

I fell in love with a 22 year old boy. 

Full of life and happiness and motivation to make our lives great.

 I have watched him grow and learn and become the most handsome MAN I know. 

And he fell in love with a 24 year old single mama. 

A girl with a new look on life and two precious baby girls. 

He has watched me grow into the woman I am today. 

I am proud of us. And our faces, hair and bodies tell our story. 

They show our new beauty.

I am 100% secure in my body. 

Somedays I don't LOVE the flabby tush I have earned, but it's mine.

And I see myself beautiful even with it. :)

One day, if my children decide that they are most secure and happy with a medical procedure etc to change their body back to something close to what they used to be, I would NEVER shame them. 

I want my children to be secure no matter what. I'm hoping to give them a healthy body image so they won't feel the need to do those things. However if they do, I will support and love them no matter what. 

But for now, 

my girls think I am the most beautiful girl in the world. They tell me daily. 

One of the greatest part of my days is when my little ones watch me put my make up on and they say, "you're so pretty mama. But your heart is even more."

-xoxox