Coach Amy

I saw it the first time I watched Remy put on an outfit and turn herself around in the full length mirror inspecting herself…
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Her mannerisms matched my own to a damned T.
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She’s 3. What the heck is she inspecting?
Honestly, nothing at all. She’s just watching and mirroring her Mom.
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It’s all cute and funny when they say the things we say or when we hear our inflections in their little voices, but would you want your kids talking to themselves the way you talk to yourself? Do you want them seeing themselves the way you do when you look in the mirror?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
❌Picking apart every flaw…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
❌Scrutinizing every mark, curve, and imperfection…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
❌Wishing for something different⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
❌Thinking “if only I had…”⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
❌Judging…
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Not a shot in H-E-double hockey sticks.
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We spend waaaaay too much time, effort and money making sure that they are as healthy as can be and giving them all the love before these kids are even BORN to allow them to EVER think that they are anything less than the perfectly awesome little humans that they are.
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Am I right??
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But getting of the all natural-BPA free-organic-eco-friendly products (my FAVES), investing in all the right classes, meticulously choosing their child care, monitoring their screen time, researching the best parenting techniques (hey google, should I be co-sleeping?) - none of it holds a candle to the POWER of what they see in us.
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⚡️We have to change the way to talk to ourselves⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⚡️We have to change the way we see ourselves⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⚡️We have to take care of ourselves - mind, body and soul⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⚡️We have to chase the big goals⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⚡️We have to be confident in exactly who we are
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When we do, we give them the space and the tools to do the same.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
We are the examples.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
We lead the way.
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Mama, if you’re with me, let me get a HELL YES! 👊🏼

If you could tell your younger self ☝🏼 thing, what would it be?
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I went away for a girl’s trip this past weekend with my two best friends. It was ALL OF THE THINGS - ocean sunsets, vineyards, endless wine, laughter that brings you to tears, memories that do the same...we shared our dreams, our different views on life, our fears, our passions. We asked all sorts of questions, like that one above that asked us.
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My answer?
✨You’re perfect just the way you are.✨
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It took a moment of reflecting, trying to capture how amazing I felt there with my girls. How I had FINALLY reached a place of pure confidence in MY SKIN and in WHO I AM.
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I saw myself from the outside and I saw them - these women who loved and accepted me for ME. In my best and in my worst days. Who had seen me through it all and who could look at me and see that THIS person is exactly who I’m meant to be.
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Crazy curls, mixed skin, big dreams, bigger passions, ALL THE SASS, wild views of the world…
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Then in a flash I saw that younger girl. Who was afraid to raise her hand, who straightened her hair to look like the other girls, who pushed down her opinions because they were different, who saw her sass as something to fix instead of embrace.
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I wanted to hug that girl. To show her these women that would come into her life. To show her the family she would build and the impact she would create in her business. I wanted to whisper in her ear - tell her that the feeling she has that she’s meant for greatness isn’t a fantasy. And that she would find ALL OF IT when she was just being herself (seriously - these friendships were forged in alcohol).
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⚡️That by simply being HER, she could rule her world.⚡️
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Have you ever thought about it? What the younger you needed to hear?
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I think so many of us still need to hear it. I know as soon as I said it outloud I wanted to tattoo it on my damned forehead so I could see it whenever I looked in the mirror.
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So...what’s the ☝🏼 thing you would tell your younger self?
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Tag your tribe in your answer - let them be the ones to always remind you.

Last summer I made a promise to myself: I would not spend another summer hiding. This year I would lose the cover ups, and find my confidence.
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👉🏼I wanted to pick out a bathing suit that I actually liked instead of one that hid me in all the right places.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼I wanted to run around the beach with my girls without tripping over long skirts.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼I wanted to put my feet into the water and let the waves rise around our ankles together without worrying about who was behind me, staring at my big ass and thighs.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼I wanted not to have to explain to them why I was covering up, while preaching to them to be strong and confident.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼I wanted to FEEL strong and confident.
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Maybe you feel me on some of this...
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⚡️I set off on a mission. I committed to daily workouts and to actually understanding what kind of nutrition would feed and fuel my body. It was hard as hell. I wanted to quit a million times.
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But this past week when I stood in the lake with my girls, confidently taking off my romper and wearing a bathing suit that I actually love, I got emotional.
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✨I did it.✨
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I set a goal. I worked my ass off (literally…). I F’in did it.
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👊🏼I ran and splashed and played without losing my breath or exhausting myself.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👊🏼I wasn’t tripping over long cover-ups. In fact I didn’t even pack them.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👊🏼I felt so freaking confident.
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Wherever you’re at in your journey - whether you’re just setting the goal, you’re a month into it, or it’s time to get back into things - KEEP F’ING GOING. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✌🏼Post your goal up where you can see it.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✌🏼Get some accountability and support around you.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✌🏼Build structure around the goal by breaking it into manageable pieces.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✌🏼Celebrate every victory along the way.
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And KEEP F’ING GOING.
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That moment of FREEDOM when you reach the destination - it’s pretty epic.
@ Lake George

Hands up if you, like me, suck at meditation 🤚🏼.
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Quieting my mind and forcing stillness into my life is freaking WORK. But, like all things I’m not good at, I feel the need to conquer this 💩. Because here’s what I know:
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✨Taking the time to be truly present and connected to the moment I’m in, even for just a minute or two a day, helps settle my over active mind and give me clarity.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨Gifting myself the moments of silence and some deep breaths lowers my anxiety and gives me more patience throughout the day. AKA better mom for my kids, better humans that I’m raising.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨I’m going to run around like a nut job and give of myself all day anyways. I might as well push off the to-do list for a hot second and take the time in the morning to just BE.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨The benefits of meditation are well documented. It helps make us better humans. Better me=better life. Period.
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Buuuuut like I said, 👋🏼 overactive mind over here. Figuring out how to quiet it and reap the benefits of meditating isn’t easy. Here’s how I’m doing it:
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👉🏼 app. Thank you for clueing me in on this gem. Guided meditations (FREE) that I can do in just a few minutes. Boom.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼Starting small. Just 3-5 minutes a day. I can handle that. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉🏼Letting the thoughts come and go. Seems ridiculous but I always thought that I had to empty my mind or something to meditate which feels impossible. But by just observing my thoughts and letting them slip by me, I’m not getting caught up in them and getting frustrated with my inability to shut them the F up.
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Seriously, give it a try. I’ve been really surprised at how quickly it’s getting easier and I’m feeling the benefits. 👊🏼
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❓Do you meditate? What are your mediation hacks??

“...you mean, she’ll always have two different colored hands?”
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Not even on this earth 12 hours and my heart was already breaking, thinking of what she’d have to deal with on the playground and in school someday.
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⚡️Flash forward two years⚡️
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“...this one has a rare birthmark, too. Do birthmarks run in your family?”

😡NO THEY DO NOT. So what the F?? What did I do wrong by them?
And more importantly...
How do I help these girls?? How do I raise them to be strong, confident and kind in a world that will point, stare, ask rude questions and make fun?
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It hit me like a ton of bricks.
👉🏼ME.👈🏼
It had to start with me.
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✨I had to love myself fiercely. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨I had to walk in confidence, bare my vulnerabilities and insecurities. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨I had to face the tough questions with kindness and compassion about my own stretch marks and loose skin. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨I had to commit to caring for myself - mind, body & soul - to being my best and paving the way for them to do the same. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
✨I had to shift my mindset to find genuine gratitude for who I am every day, and always remember that I’m capable of more.
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✨I know now that they were chosen for me, and I was chosen for them.✨
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We have the power to change the world, and this is how we do it. It’s an inside job. The change starts with us. We lead the way. 👊🏼