A few weeks ago I was shopping with all five little ones in tow. We were doing the annual trip to get some back to school shopping done. As we were filling our cart with great buys from Arizona brand and a.n.a. I was thinking about how quickly my kids are growing up. The fact that they will be starting another school year is mind boggling to me–where has the time gone? Am I teaching them the right things? With our limited time together, what would be the one thing that I would teach them if I could? This back to school letter is in collaboration with JC Penney. I want to thank JC Penney for this opportunity to share my thoughts at the beginning of a new school year. As always, all opinions are completely my own.
a letter before you go back to school
Sweet kiddos,
You are growing up far too quickly. So quickly in fact that I feel like I can’t keep up. I can’t possible tell you everything that’s on my heart to tell you, or teach you everything that I want to teach you. So if there’s just one thing that I could help you to understand it’s this–you have the ability to choose. This might seem like a small thing in life, but our agency in life is our greatest gift. So everyday make the right choice.
Choose kindness, always. There will always be someone who is sitting on the sidelines, always someone who is hoping for an outstretched hand. Be that friend. Smile more. Give compliments. Speak softly. Be helpful. Spread joy.
| Free Printables to Spread Random Acts of Kindness |
Choose your friends, don’t let them choose you. You can be such an influence on your peers but they can also be an influence on you. Don’t ever let them change the wonderful person you are.
Choose the right in every situation, even (and especially) when no one is watching you. Your integrity is worth so much more than the world thinks. Walk tall with your head high knowing that you are doing what’s right, even if it’s the hard or unpopular thing to do.
| Random Acts of Kindness to do with your Kids this School Year |
Choose to be different, to stand out, to be a little weird. You are destined for greatness, never forget that. Be the person that people look up to, not the person that follows the crowd because you’re so desperate to be part of it.
Our lives are full of choices and we can either go with the flow and drift through life because it’s easy, or we can actually take a stand and be individuals who make a difference. That difference may seem small, but if you’ve made a difference in the life of one person, that’s all that matters. Our choices are like ripples and they create such a wider effect than we see initially. So choose. Choose a life that you’ve made spectacular simply by being and staying true to you.
Love, your mom
Have y’all done your back to school shopping yet?
Perusing the aisles of JC Penney for all our back to school styles brought back some fun memories of shopping with my own mom when I was growing up and all the lessons that my parents taught me. Part of teaching my kids to choose is letting them choose their own clothes and I think they did a great job! I love that my littles picked out some items from Arizona, I remember wearing them when I was younger! Be sure to check out JC Penney’s back to school shop and all the deals they’re offering.