Momma U R fat...I love U
Monday, July 27, 2009 at 04:43AM 
I get sweet little love notes from my daughters. Yesterday a note came across my desk. The note read, "Mom U R fat". I looked over to see a wide grin from my daughters face. She was smiling. She wasn't smiling in a "I got you" sort of a way. She was smiling in a "Mom U R fat and I love you" sort of way. Children are sweet and honest; dang them! I wasn't sad or offended by my daughters note but it did make me wonder how she came up with, " mom U R fat". I am pleasantly plump. I do brag about how I've lost 50 pounds by simply eating healthy. I do say that I want to be fit. But I never say, "I'm fat" I'm very careful with the words I use regarding weight and body image. I don't want my daughter to notice that some kids are thin while others are well..fat. Fat is a mean word. It is a lazy word.
So....how did " fat" became a part of my little girls choice of descriptive words? READERS. That's right. Kindergarten- 1st grade readers. I can't stand readers. From the day she was conceived...well kind of; we have read wonderful, descriptive literature to her. We read about an hour a day and she loves when I read her chapter books. Kindergarten is an exciting year. Our children learn that sounds become words and words become sentences and they continue their personal reading adventure. The day comes when they can pick up a book and read simple sentences. Authors have decided that since they can only read a few words, we will make empty, meaningless readers for them to well, read.
The cat sat.
The cat is fat.
The fat cat sat.
My daughter-"The fat cat sat. That's not a story. Why is this called a story?
Mom- "Well, honey you're right. Not only is it lacking creativity. It's lacking a real story. And it's telling you that something is fat...the cat is fat.
Mom-"Honey, I am so excited that you can read. I love your notes....can you pick different words next time?"
My daughter- "Mom I love U."
My daughter does not think I'm fat. She loves the way I look. I love the way I look. Do I want to loose 40 more pounds by eating healthy? YES. Am I in a hurry to loose it? NO. Will I get fit by exercising and eating whole, real food ( not processed, manufactured food?) YES....
Will my daughter be reading her READERS...NO. She loves to pick out the words she knows from her "good" books. She is actually more encouraged to sound out the more difficult sentences in her "good" books because she wants to find out more about the exciting story!
Moral of the story....Women need to have a healthy body image. Are you pleasantly plump or petite or somewhere in the middle? and...read good literature to your children but if you do, don't expect them to like their dumb readers.....
Just know that you are beautiful!
More on body image and how our daughters are seeing themselves. The Dove Self Esteem Campaign for real Beauty
And if you are not a reader....one of our favorite women who is also one or our favorite authors and mentor to Blessed Nest writes this fun book. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Reading with Your Children (Alpha Books, 2007)—offers hands-on strategies for creating a literacy-rich home.By Helen Coronoto.
This is not a sponsored post. It was just the love note from my daughter, " Mom U R Fat" that got me thinking...about everything!LOL
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Love, to the moon and back
