We are all a work in progress. But, while we do our work, we need to be kinder to ourselves. Because how often do you let your mind go to that place. That judgmental, negative place? You know the one, where you are too fat, too thin, not smart enough, not rich enough, not good enough, not popular enough and not a good enough mom, wife or friend. We, especially women, barrage our minds with negative thoughts all the time. How are we supposed to be the best version of ourselves if we are our harshest critic all the time? Isn’t it time we became our own champion?

These thoughts stem from an interview we recently watched on Oprah. The New York Times best-selling author and blogger, Glennon Doyle Melton, graced Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday show. She is a beautiful woman, and as a young girl she was consistently told that she was pretty. She was told this so often, she began to believe that all she was was just a pretty face. Beauty became her sense of worth. It became an impossible standard to measure up to. Eventually it became too much, and she developed an eating disorder, and addictions. She is now sober and helping others with her new book Love Warrior and it’s predecessor, Carry On, Warrior. She tells it like it is, and she is changing lives for the better. Bravo, Glennon.

It got us thinking…how can we love ourselves more, and help our children do the same?

1. When we start the day, we need to use a love language when we look in the mirror. For example, I am powerful. I am courageous. I am amazing. At the end of the day, we need to give ourselves a break if we don’t get everything on our long to-do list done. We need to love who God made us to be – flaws and all. We are enough. YOU ARE ENOUGH.

2. We need to tell our children how brave, smart and remarkable they are every day. We need to teach them how to be kind and show compassion to others. Too often we tell our girls, “You’re so pretty.” “You look so beautiful in that dress.” “You’re hair looks perfect like that.” Just like Glennon Doyle Melton, our daughters young brains begin to associate their worth by just their beauty (similar comparisons can be said for boys). And, there’s so much more to them, including their minds, hearts and souls. Let’s tell them, “You are smart.” “You are sunshine.” “You are strong.”  We love our children, and we tell them how much we love them ALL THE TIME. But, as we go about our busy days reminding them to pick up their toys, finish their homework, fix this and do that, we rarely take the time to stop and remind them just how special and extraordinary they are. So, we put together a phrase that is a game-changer for us.

The simple and power phrase is: You are ______ (fill in the blank).

It should be said everyday, and we’ve learned it should also be in writing.

To help us with our efforts, we made a stamp. With our Silhouette Mint custom stamp maker, we designed the stamp to say, you are_________. Every day we stamp a Post-It note, and find a word that describes and compliments our children to fill in the blank. We hide the notes in our kids lunches, bathroom mirrors, inside pages of books and on their wall next to their bed. Honestly, it brings the biggest smile to their faces and a joy to their hearts. They love it so much, they ask us daily for more surprise notes. Now, their friends at school are asking for notes. We’ve seen what a boost of confidence it can be. What a blessing to wake up everyday and tell our children how wonderful they really are! Thanks to Silhouette for helping us do that.

Materials:

• Silhouette Mint custom stamp maker, stamp kit and ink
• Post-It notes
• Pen or Sharpie

Directions:

Step 1: Follow the directions included in the Silhouette Mint pamphlet for the best results, but we’ll tell you how we did it. It was really quite easy. First, design the stamp with the Silhouette Mint software. Make sure the right size stamp is selected.

Step 2: Print the stamp. This took about 10 seconds. Amazing!

Step 3: Bend the stamp at the perforated edge to remove the stamp.

Step 4: Remove the sticker on the stamp base, and add the new stamp to the base.

Step 5: Add ink to the stamp’s design. Wait for about 5-10 minutes so it can soak in, and then do a couple tests stamps.

Step 6: Stamp away, and then fill in the blank.

Step 7: Get creative. Leave notes for your kids to find, and remind them how loved and special they are.

Thanks for supporting the companies like Silhoeutte America that support our creativity. We received product for this post, but all opinions expressed are our own, and we would love Silhoeutte regardless.