Operation Beautiful

I'm bringing back the Operation Beautiful post-its! 

For Christmas Forbes and I bought our niece the Operation Beautiful book.  She is turning 16 in just a few short days and I thought what greater message to give her at this age. 

In my opinion high school sucked.  There were good moments, but the bad ones stick out in my memory far more.  Slowly over time, the wounds have healed and I don't resent my high school experience quite so much.  But I still remember the difficult times, the drama, the pressure, and the harassment. 

I truly believe that if programs like Girls on the Run and Operation Beautiful existed when I was younger, I might have grown into a more confident and strong woman.  As an adult I struggle with low self-esteem and I wonder how much of that could have been prevented. 

At any rate, I believe my experiences have made me into who I am today, but I find it more important every day to teach young girls about confidence and self-esteem, standing up for themselves, and choosing friends that will lift them up and not break them down.  So this was the message I left for my niece this morning:

"You are beautiful, smart, talented, unique and extraordinary!  Make it a great day!"

http://operationbeautiful.com/