Pink Giraffe Musing

I am an art teacher.  I know lots of teachers.  My children will have 16 teachers combined this school year.  And yet, I don't think I fully realized the impact of teachers until recently. In some ways,  teachers have a lot of power.  They have the power to inspire, encourage, and build up; or to the power to tear down and destroy.  I like to believe most teachers aspire to be a catalyst for positive change, growth, and lifelong success. While I am a teacher.  I am also a mom.   My daughter is growing up before my eyes.  These days the growth is less physical and more emotional and intrapersonal.  She is becoming a person.  A real grown up person separate from me.  She has thoughts about her life and future that have nothing to do with my thoughts ( I don't know about you but this came as a shock to me !).  She has dreams and plans beyond the seeds I have planted in her head.  Sure, I see my hand in it. ...

My daughter is calling herself STUPID with increasing frequency these days. It is worrisome, frustrating, and making me down right crazy. How does happen to a well liked, well loved, beautiful 9 year old child? Why is she SO hard on herself? Is it genetics?? Personality?? Am I a bad mother?? And most importantly, HOW do I make her stop? Every time she would say it, I started by saying...."you are not stupid". To which she would reply...."YES I AM" and then proceed with a laundry list of faults and failures; such as, not knowing where the measuring cup was supposed to go, or leaving a wet towel on the floor, or coming down with a case of strep. Then there are the homework battles. She has ADD, and so, even with her meds (or if her mom forgets to give her the meds), she zones out, forgets and then feels, well, stupid. I want her to understand it is okay to make mistakes, and to admit to them. So, the other day we were in Target, and we each picked out a bottle of flav...