Growing up in a small farming town and seeing the way a “mom” dressed was well, let’s say, nothing I was striving to emulate, nor was I inspired by. I told myself from a young age “I will never be a frumpy mom”, and I truly meant it. The reason I felt so strongly, is because I felt that all these “Mothers” around me had just seemed to give up after having babies. Having watched my Mother raise eight children, I saw the rigors of motherhood so I didn’t hold judgement, I just wondered if it bothered their husbands, or even more deeply, I wondered if it was ok with them! While I have been married for 19 years, have birthed four children; I have surely understood wanting to stay in my PJ’s all day out of pure exhaustion, but the pull to keep my femininity, style, and independence, was bigger than the latter. It just made me feel good about myself in the chaos of my “mom” life.
While I am not 20, nor do I miss those years, I do not feel like I need to dress like I am 20. I don’t personally feel it is appropriate for me since I have teenaged daughters watching my every move. All that being said, I think it’s important to feel good as a woman and maintain a sense of style and femininity as the the years roll by. I view this as an expression of independence. This can be done on any budget and doesn’t have to infringe or take away from the family.
I have had so much fun in my life with fashion, and it absolutely does bring an element of creativity and confidence to the woman that I am, despite my enormous responsibilities as a mother and wife. There is a certain feeling of strength that comes from pulling myself together. It is much deeper than the experience of being pretty; I find power and independence in it. I find that when I invest in that part of myself the rest of my life falls in order much more fluidly. Investing in myself in this way also lends itself to my music inspiration. Its all about self expression, self nurturing and independence. These are virtues that I work to never stray from.
Here is to maintaining, investing and nurturing our femininity, our beauty and the sheer gift it is to be a woman, no matter what shape we are or which lifestyle we lead.
