Tiny Penis
Conversation with 3 year old: Aellyn: Mommy I have a tiny penis! Me: You do? Aellyn: yeah, look! (shows me her clitoris) Me: I see. That’s called a clitoris. Aellyn: Yeah!! My clitoris penis! Later; Aellyn: My boobs are going to get big! Me: that’s right they will when you’re older. They’ll get big like mommy’s. Aellyn: yeah! (grabs my boob) they’re big! Me: do you know why girls get big boobies? To feed babies. Aellyn: Yeah, like the boys drink mommy’s boobie milk. Me: yep. That’s what boobies are for. Sigh. Parenting is fun.
Read More15 Tips for Raising Kids With a Positive Body Image
Don’t forget to check out the follow-up post Big Fat Myths About Fat. Comments are closed on this post since I will be responding via the follow-up posts. Please comment on the new posts. I wish I could say the above images were designed by me to make a point about fat-phobia and how poorly kids are treated when they don’t fit society’s ideal of size. Maybe I threw them together because I thought the SHOCK of seeing kids would help people understand how fat-shaming in adults can feel. Alas, a group in Georgia actually produced these billboards in an attempt to...
Read More“I Don’t Think of You As Fat!” Raising Size-Accepting Children
People get very uncomfortable when I refer to myself as “fat.” I’ve been doing this for years. I was much thinner when I started and I said it in a way of dissing myself before someone else could. It wasn’t a very healthy thing. Now that I’m older, I say it for a much bigger reason which is what I want to address here. Whenever I describe myself as fat my friends will normally say “I don’t think of you as fat.” I used to feel pleased when they said this (and I was probably fishing for just that) but now I’m just confused. I...
Read MoreYou’re Huge! Pregnancy and Size in a Thin-Centric World
If you frequent mothering or pregnancy forums of any ilk you are sure to stumble across the following post on a weekly basis. “Listen to what this person said to me!!!” The post will tell one pregnant woman’s story of some friend, family member, or even complete stranger saying something along the lines of; Wow, you are HUGE! You look like you could pop any minute! You’re only six months? Are you sure? Wow, you must be carrying twins! Looks like you’re have a boy. I carried my weight around my hips and butt with my boys. The thread continues with other...
Read MoreThree Practices for Loving the Skin You’re In
There is just so much excess in terms of the market for self-remodeling. I think most women are perfectly gorgeous and beautiful the way they are. ~Eve Ensler You know what is hard? Looking for an Eve Ensler quote and then picking only one. To me she is the guru of body acceptance. Speaking of hard tasks – body acceptance is something I struggle with every day. On most days I feel only capable of being aware of my self-defeating inner dialogue. Actually changing it proves much more difficult. I find most discussions of body acceptance center around changing the way we think of...
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