Hi, Rachel. I read your post and immediately called my 8 year-old daughter over to watch the video. I asked her what she thought about it and what it meant. She said she thought it meant you can choose to be whatever you want to look like or be. I thought that was an interesting response and true, even if it is the most optimistic, innocent interpretation of what advertisers intend! My daughter has never asked or talked a whole lot about her body or mine (expect the “mom , your stomach looks like it has a baby in it” comment or asking practical “what’s that?” kind of questions) I’m finding it challenging to find jeans for her to wear because she’s not stick thin like most of them are cut. I’m careful about what I say out loud because I tend to be a little “curvy” in the rear, too, and don’t want to project any insecurities on her. She doesn’t seem to notice right now, which is fine with me. As for the hair…good, god, I just wish she’d keep it out of her eyes (that sounds like MY mother). Makeup - no interest yet. So far, so good.

Sorry for rambling on…one other note: I blogged about this topic as well with another great Dove video and related links. It’s obviously on a lot of our minds!

http://susancourtad.com/2007/08/19/beauty-and-the-beast-named-photoshop/

I agree that mothers need to let their daughters know how beautiful they are inside and out before they have anyone else tell them they are not. My mother did this for me and which is why I think I have good self esteem and don’t know that anything is “UGLY” about me until I read a magazine article about it or a MEAN girl in grade school tells me ( you know how mean some girls can be). But this is when you have to teach them to be strong & confident and not care about what other think. It seems like mothers who wear alot of make up rub off on their little girls and they want to wear make up at a young age because mommy does.

Basically, mothers need to teach their daughters to love themselves before the world tells them otherwise.

My daughter is almost 15 and not like me. How she got this strong, I don’t know. She does not like make-up and does not see what the big deal is when her cousins of the same age get manicures and pedicures. I love make-up and manicures and pedicures–but she knows I do it because I like it for me, I don’t do it for anyone else. When she wanted to change her body shape, she ate healthier and exercised, and quickly had the body she felt good in. I wish I had her stick-to-it-iveness.

A couple of years ago she in a mall with my mom, whom she adores. She was not too thrilled when my mom stopped at the make-up counter. When my mom said, “someday you will like make-up” she replied, “Grandma, I ike the way I look just the way I am and I think everyone else should like the way they look just the way they are.”

My daughter is much wiser than her mother.