I Am ::FINALLY:: Done Complaining About Myself in Front of My Kids

Friend: Also, your baby is looking like a ‘big baby’ and not a ‘baby baby’ and I’m sad about it.

Me: She’s a chunky monkey! Which makes me think she’ll have my tubby body type after all.

Friend: Shut it. You’re fabulous and beautiful and strong. I know you’re only joking but I vividly remember being around 11 years old and my mom saying she was fat. I was saddened to my core because she was perfect in my eyes and I wished she could see herself the way I saw her.

And just like that, my wonderful friend put my whole world as a Mom in perspective.

No. More. Complaining.

I have nearly always struggled with weight and food issues. BUT I’m funny, so I make quick little jabs here and there to lighten how I feel inside. The morning I had this conversation with my dear friend, I was just doing my usual bit. Until she reminded me that I am someone’s hero.

My kids deserve better from me. They deserve for me to live up to the simple expectations they have set for me. They deserve to see a strong, healthy Momma who can face the day with confidence. They deserve to have me lead them by example. They deserve to see a Momma who cares about herself as much as she asks her kids to do the same. My kids deserve to see a Momma who is not afraid to ask for forgiveness and take steps towards righting wrongs.

So instead of complaining about myself in front of my kids, I am going to try these instead:

• …let my kids watch me do my hair in the morning. If I don’t like the way it looks, then they can watch me throw it in a ponytail and move it right along.
• …let my kids help me cook dinner and join in on snacking along the way.
• …let my kids in on my good days and bad days and then talk through those together.
• …ask my kids for forgiveness when I need it and talk through how I am going to try harder next time.
• …show my kids how hard I work and that I don’t stop working when I get home.
• …take my kids on my runs if they ask to go. They deserve to see a Momma who cares about her body and achieving goals she has set for herself.
• …indulge in treats with my kids and say yes to celebrating special occasions.
• …tell my kids when I feel great about myself or let them know that I love the way I felt that day.
• …remind my kids that my love for them is strong and that they give me strength to love myself too!