On Being Beautiful

I was listening to the radio on my way to work. The hosts were talking to these two teenage girls at a local high school who were working on a project which slowly became a great initiative for young women's self-esteem.

The girls were talking about the stigma around the media and how it puts stress on girls/women to look and act a certain way. They got permission from their school principal to post positive messages on the bathroom mirrors, "You're beautiful just the way you are." 

It is all in the hope that when the girls go to check their make-up, they have a reminder that they don't need it to be or feel beautiful.

Although, having make-up is a bit of a security blanket. But that's a post for another day.

It's a bit sad though how we are so pressured to buy make-up and try so hard to look beautiful. And it's true. It is absolutely 100% posilutely true. Being a young, twenty something woman, I can totally relate.

It's funny how this realization came on my way home from a dinner I had with Mister last night.

We were talking about photoshopping heads on the bodies of Hooters girls (because who doesn't wanna be a Hooters goddess?) and  I made a comment about how he should photoshop our heads on to bodies so that we would actually have a photo of us. He came back with how he did not like his photo taken, which honestly disappointed me because I would love to have a photo of us together. Honestly. But then, I had an epiphany of sorts...if I can even call it that.

I don't like my photo being taken either....unless I have make-up on. Which I know is silly and probably preposterous, but it's true. I just feel prettier being made up. Then again, don't we all?

If Mister was here, I know he would be saying otherwise. He always says that I look pretty/beautiful without make-up and in fact, he prefers it. I often think that it is something all Misters say to make us feel good about ourselves. Like it is in the Relationships: For Men handbook or something.

I wish I had someone telling me all this through my several years of being bullied and outcast because I wasn't my peers' idea of pretty or beautiful. If anyone can relate, they would know that this does a number on one's self-esteem.

However, I grew to learn that being beautiful isn't just what is on the outside, that is only a tiny fraction, it is being a beautiful person on the inside which matters most.

To be able to feel good about yourself.

"You should feel beautiful all the time."
                                         - Mister

I think those girls are on to something.

365 days of positivity

If there is one thing I have learned from New Years past is that resolutions only last for about thirty days before you fall back into the same old habits you tried to break. You can't just quit binge watching Netflix when you have just started a new show, that's uncanny. What else could possibly be more interesting than lying on the couch all Saturday staring into the boob tube? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Of course, there is that thing I think they call outside and fresh air. Although, it seems pretty foreign to most of us. I do hear it is good for you. But what do I know?

I do know that even though I would rather sit around and binge watch Friends and Breaking Bad simultaneously, I still have that thing that goes from Monday to Friday called a job. Diapers don't change themselves, you know. After all, carrying the babies around all day is my only work out of the week. Gotta make it count, right?

It's all about being positive. Several of my new years goals have revolved around some term or another relating to positivity or trying new things. I hear that being more positive actually makes you happier. How could it not? Being positive makes you feel good. And feeling good, feels damn good!

Pinterest has been my go to place when I have nothing to do on the interwebs for a couple years now. It's great, you learn so much and it is the best way to be lazy in my books. All ten of them. I come across a lot of really cool things I have been wanting to try, or rather thinking about trying but will probably never make it to the store to get the supplies. Let's get real, it's me we are talking about here.

There is this one Pinterest page I keep coming back to or keeps coming back to me I should say; (Maybe it is a sign, maybe it's telling me something, maybe I am crazy. But that's neither here nor there.) and it seems that 2K16 will be a great year for it. I am talking about the 365 days of positive things. Instead of writing down New Years resolutions and having them fail miserably (giving myself thirty days even would be quite generous), every day of 2K16 I am going to write something positive that happened and put it in a jar. And then on New Years next year, I will read about all the great things that happened this year.

It is one thing that I know I can achieve this year. There is so much to be positive about.

No complaining here.

What are your goals for 2K16?