Gretchen Fawn Photo - part of the Snoqualmie Moms Support Collective

I just have to rant a little this morning. I get so sad and tired at the way our culture makes girls and women feel sometimes. Don't you notice that when you go to the store and look at those scantily clad, super thin models, you start to look at yourself in a negative light? I can remember feeling that way when I was only 12 years old. That is one reason we love to take pictures of girls. Inside a lot of times they are telling themselves they are ugly and worthless. Every girl goes through this. When they see the images of themselves a lot of times they are truly surprised at the beauty they see. Every girl has beauty about her. It starts with knowing how loved she is. I read a quote this morning from a book I am reading called Bringing Up Girls that I want to share with you all. "We have all heard it said that a woman is most beautiful when she is in love. It's true. You've seen it yourself. When a woman knows that she is loved and loved deeply, she glows from the i...

Our oldest turned 15 this week. We have some birthday traditions we have started and kept up over the years. One of them is the birthday wreath or crown of flowers. I usually get the flowers from Trader Joe's. I put the bouquet in the garage the night before so it stays cold and fresh. Then a short time before the party, I will get a wire hanger that I shape into a circle about the size of the head. Then I trim all the flowers so the stems are about three inches long. I lay them all out in front of me and I get out my florists tape. You start at the back and then wrap and wind the flowers one at a time until you get all the way around. I try to arrange them as I go to be appealing. Viola! A beautiful crown. One year I asked the kids if they wanted me to do the crowns, they said they didn't really care. So I skipped it and later, we all regretted it. It really only takes about 15 minutes to make it and even though they usually only wear it for 15 minutes, it shows them I love ...