This weekend was an interesting one, in light of what I talked about last week - the kinds of things we should be weighed on besides our weight. When I stuck this tattoo on my arm before spending the day running (and crawling, and swimming) through the mud I felt a little silly - because "strong" that's isn't necessarily a word I'd readily ascribe to myself...but at the end of the day, strong is exactly what I felt.

And it felt good.

It felt good because I surprised myself...but it felt even better because my children were there, watching. As young as Goldie is, it's a big deal to me to know that she got to see her mom be nervous, and then do the scary thing anyway. It's a big deal to me that she's living in a world full of women who run and jump and climb for no other reason than because they can. And I know it made an impact on Indy, seeing me and hundreds of other women - women of all ages and all sizes - pulling each other up and cheering each other on.

Lately, my son asks me, over and over, "What are the reasons why you love me?"

I tell him he is kind. I tell him that he cares about people. I tell him that he makes me laugh, that he is smart, that he is a wonderful singer. I tell him that I love him - value him - for so many reasons that I couldn't possibly count them all if you gave me a million years.

My daughter's not old enough to ask me this question, but she will be soon. And when she does, I will tell her all the reasons why she is special, why she is worthy not just of love, but of everything. I want her to feel proud of the books that she reads, of the dreams that she has, of the uncountable things that make her so remarkably her, and I want her to know that not a single one of these reasons has a thing in the world to do with the size of her thighs, or the circumference of her waist. Because I know from experience - from the years that I spent with worries about my body taking up space in my head that could have (and should have) been used for dreaming and exploring and imagining what could be - how hard it is as a woman to remember what people should really be weighing you on.

 I somehow went ahead and lost all of Goldie's bathing suits over the course of our cross-country adventure, but that's okay, because this exists.

 Just picked up this book for my son, and it's kind of awesome - we do a couple of pages every afternoon, and he gets a sticker when he completes them, and I think I'm having as much fun with it as he is.

 Going somewhere nautical-ish in the next little while? This dress is adorable and under $30.

Here is me in exercise clothing. I am fairly certain that this is the only photograph I have of myself in exercise clothing, and it is from 2012. Which bodes poorly for what I am about to tell you.

OK, so this is either going to be one of the best days of my life, or a total disaster.