I’ve learned that there is power in our thoughts and what we say. My mind goes 1,000 miles a minute with so many thoughts, it’s overwhelming. A few weeks ago, I’ve began the practice of speaking words of affirmation to help change my negative thoughts into positive ones, to make things a little better for myself.
We can bond over affirmations
As I started this exercise, I thought this would be fun to do with my daughter. One day we were at the library, and I came across this cute book that talks about affirmations. It was a story about a girl whose mom would say little sayings to her while doing daily tasks throughout the day. As I read this book to my daughter, I could overhear her saying some of the words that were mentioned in the book. That was immediate confirmation that she was actually using these phrases.
This is how we start our day with affirmations:
I wake up in the morning and start off the day by telling my daughter that today is going to be a great day!
As we look in the mirror while brushing our teeth or I’m combing her hair, I tell her that she is beautiful and to say it out loud in the mirror: “I’m beautiful and strong.”
I tell her she is loved and I love her every day … by me, her family, and God.
On our commute to school, we say that “I’m brave, smart, and can do anything I put my mind to.”
Lastly while walking to the door of school, we say “I’m kind.”
That’s it. It’s just that simple.
These words have taught both my daughter and I that we are beautiful, strong, and brave humans who can achieve anything we put our minds to. I ask her how she feels about these words and what she thinks they mean. She is only four, so I know I’m not going to get some deep philosophical meaning, but as long as she understands why these are important, that’s perfect for me. And as she gets older, I know she will have more understanding of them, and we can go into longer affirmations then.
I’m excited to see what comes out of our new daily routine. I hope that she keeps it with her and that she will become the confident, smart, yet sassy person I know she is destined to be.
Do you speak affirmations with your children? Which ones do you say?
