Confident

Olivia will tell you she’s beautiful. She’ll prance around a room after being given what she calls a makeover, going up to every single person in that room and asking if they recognize her. She’s just sure, so very sure, that the small smudges of eye shadow, the whisper of blush and the swipe of lipstick have transformed her into a whole new person.

When I ask her if she knows how much I love her, Olivia will laugh and nod, always very sure of her place in my heart.

Olivia’s confidence in herself is amazing. She will tell you that she’s a very fast runner, that she climbs really well and that she looks beautiful in pink. She’ll remind everyone who will listen how well she can count and tell time (with a digital clock, we’re working on the other.)

She’s the very best at doing forward rolls. Don’t believe me? Just ask her.

I hope she always has this confidence, this sense of self that doesn’t take the opinions of others into account when she decides how she feels about herself.

I wish I had half the self-confidence she has. I did, once but social pressures took a lot of it away and I’ve been trying to get it back ever since.

I would like to protect both of my girls from the pain of peer pressure and the loss of self-confidence. I would like them to always know they’re beautiful, unique, special, strong, smart and loved.

Most of all, I want them to always love themselves as much as I love them. To know how amazing they are and relish that knowledge even as they go about the world making it a better place.