Well, it is officially summer & with that comes a lot of awesome events around town that are free if you are willing to brave packing up all the kiddos in 112 degree weather to get there. Recently, we got to enjoy a princess/knight themed story time at the library. The girls are always down for any activity where they get to dress up in their finest Disney Store finds & bedazzled jewelry. Well, once everyone had settled on an outfit (initially our young Rosie was set on dressing up in her Nemo costume that she wore when she was like 1 years old——she is now 4——But after having her spend 10 minutes trying to contort her body into some type of shape to try to convince me it really did still fit she conceded & decided that a Minnie Mouse Princess was more suited to the event) then we were finally off! We got there a few minutes early & so everyone was kind of standing around waiting for Snow White to arrive. A girl, maybe 5 years old, casually walked up to Aidy & said “Your dress is just really pretty”. Aidy smiled & thanked the girl & then it was time for everyone to grab a seat. They sang songs, read, books, & had a pretty good time. When it was time to round everyone up & go home, Aidy called me down to her level & said, “That made me feel really good when that girl said she liked my dress”. I smiled at her & told her how nice it is to compliment others when we like something they did or something about them inside or out-it makes people feel good & it’s a nice thing to do.
I think while we are lil’ & so uninhibited, we are more likely to say what we feel/exactly what is on our minds ( good or even bad lol). It is as we get older, I think we become more self conscious, too prideful, or just too busy that we begin giving out compliments less & less. Personally, I will own up to the “too busy” excuse. There would be so many times that I would pass someone & think “I love her hair today” or “what an awesome outfit” & instead of taking the time to let that person know, I would have already moved on to the next thought. Now, I could sit there & accept that because I seriously am constantly SO BUSY, but then 1 day when I honestly had not been feeling so beautiful (maybe from the kazillion pounds I had gained from being 9 months pregnant or the Sahara Desert like dry skin my unborn baby had gifted me with) a woman out of nowhere stopped me & said “You are so pretty, positively glowing”. This compliment really just stopped me in my tracks, someone that I didn’t even know thought something & even though I am sure she was pretty busy herself with arms full of groceries, she still took the time pay me a compliment. It did make my day. It was flattering.
Now, its not the first time I have been stopped by someone for a sweet compliment, but this time in particular really really meant something extra. I think I kind of had a mini epiphany, somewhere along the way I had stopped giving out compliments as regularly as I use to. I had really let “busy” take over on a level. I mean I did still give some compliments, but not as often as I was thinking them. I would see a mom with her 3 kids in a store. One of the kids started acting up because she would not get them what they wanted & instead of her just conceding she stuck to her guns & handled her business. I would think “Great job, Mama”, but why not tell her? I am sure she could have used the encouragement right then. That is the kind of person I strive to be & want my kids to be-Encouragers. Not just to the people we know, but if we see someone doing something great or we notice something about them that we like, then say it. I am not talking about blowing smoke up peoples’ behinds, but just being genuine & real. We also need to make sure that we are not so caught up in our own lives & to-do’s that we do not notice if someone is down or struggling. You may think your lil’ compliment or just letting someone know you are there for them & care won’t really make that big of a difference, but sometimes it really does make all the difference.
These are some of the lil’ things I would like to model for my kids & nurture in them.
-M&M Momma
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| Water fun...time for a larger pool I think, lol |
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| Brain freeze from her popsicle |
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(yawn).
The newborn struggle to stay awake is real. |
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| Making police hats |
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| Even Z enjoys the songs & dancing of library story time |
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| Buddies |
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"Unsure" is the best way to describe his reaction
to the motorcycle |
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| Princess & Knight storytime |
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| Scarf dance |
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