Affirmations

Daughter Z

If you have kids and you think they’re cute than I’d say you’re fairly normal. Unless of course you are my husband who tells it like it is about how messed up our babies looked as newborns. I would probably agree but I know this post could be found by them in the future so I’m not saying I agree but, well, everyone over the age of four just read between the lines. Wink, wink.

Most of us love sharing our stories and pictures of kids, sometimes even with total strangers. So it is no wonder that recently when the Bonds Baby Competition was on, lots and lots of babies were entered. Thanks to some bored people out there, a few not nice comments were posted beneath some other people’s babies. Shame on them.  Of course the media jumped in to discuss the need for parents to have external validation that yes, their child is cute. Not just to them but to others too.

The need to be as good as or better than others, to feel accepted and normal is part of some people’s nature. I’m not like that of course. I’m better than that (oh that’s the same isn’t it?). I am not very creative and can’t draw to save myself but every now and then I have a crafty idea that I try to see through with the kids. I am brave with my children’s craft activities as they can’t really see how bad mummy is at drawing (plus I’m still better than them! No, we don’t need to discuss their ages just now).

Recently we made this schedule calendar thingy for my older daughter A.

Daughter A with our creation

We made it so she could start to learn the days of the week and as a visual prompt for what was happening the next day and as she has two different teachers at kinder, she could see which teacher she had on which day. It took about two weeks to complete with the developing of photos, waiting for paint to dry (we literally waited around for it to dry), and buying all the bits and pieces I thought of as it went -a very organised approach! Once it was all finished and done, I felt the need to show people. But who would be as excited as I was? My husband? Nope. My daughter’s grandparents? Yes, but only because they were proud of what my daughter had painted and done. Hmm.

We took it into kinder and showed one of the teachers who appear on the calendar. She was very impressed. So impressed that she took a photo of it to use as an idea in the future. A smart person using my idea. Affirmation; check. I found myself asking for a gold star for my nose but when she responded with “We’ll see you at pick up”, I realised it was just the voice of the little kid inside my head and I hadn’t actually said anything at all. Just as well.

I’ve been thinking about signing my kids up with an agency for magazine shoots, tv etc for a while but have wondered if I would be seen as one of those parents at the shopping centre who lines up to have their child judged. I used to judge the parents instead, but now I sorta understand. I think.

It’s okay to be proud of your kiddies and think they are good enough to be suitable to be the face of Bonds, cutest baby at Suburban Shoppingtown or appear in an add through being registered at an agency. And I can see now that this is not about external affirmation after all, but just of that which comes from a parent who loves their bubb so much that they want to share them with the world. Truly, madly, deeply.