10 things I like...about myself!

I am finally giving in and posting my own list of 10 things I like about myself. I was inspired by my friend Sarah over at Camp Girl in the Real World, who wrote her own post in response to Christy's (the author of another (new) favourite blog of mine, Avoiding Atrophy - thanks Sarah!). Basically, the idea is that we (women in particular) tend to negate compliments given to us, putting ourselves down but disguising it as humility. We don't want to be vain and arrogant, but what we end up doing is bringing a whole pile of negativity into our lives.  Do you believe that people were created with individual uniqueness, value, and abilities? I sure do! And this includes you and me. However, it is also obvious that we are not perfect people, especially to ourselves.

"But if you believe that you were created and endowed with certain gifts and abilities despite those shortcomings, why oh why would you degrade them? Why would you make your gifts seem like less? How is that humility?" (Christy's words)

The point then, is that it's okay to like things about ourselves, and to appreciate our own talents, ideas, skills, personalities, etc. In fact, it's even a good great thing! And she challenged readers to do the same. I think this is a fantastic idea, so I am joining the party (albeit a little late). So, without further ado, here are 10 things I like about myself.

1. I am creative. I love that I can sew, rock the world of DIY, and come up with unique ideas and ways of doing things.

2. I am organized. I can keep track of things, make lists (anyone who knows me well knows that I even think in lists lol), and make use of small spaces. This skill is super useful as a teacher, student, and overall camp person too!

3. I picked a great guy. For real though. I am proud of myself for waiting until the right time and for the right person (let's be honest, very few people could handle all my craziness anyways). And I'm glad he picked me too ;)

4. I can make people laugh. The other day I told one of my housemates that I missed our other housemate and she replied with, "that's because they [she and her boyfriend] think you are funny!" And she's right - I like that we laugh when we hang out. (She wasn't being mean or anything by the way - she just knew it would make me smile).

5. I'm great with kids - I love kids, and I think over time that built into me also having a lot of skills in this area. That's probably why I am taking Children's Studies and Education and have spent every summer since forever working at camps (aside from the one where I nannied...more children).

6. I can cook delicious food! Being able to cook tasty meals is a fantastic skill to have...great for having people over, makes life exciting, and boys love it! Or, at least one does ;) So chances are high that other people would too. Plus, eating is one of my favourite activities so it's basically ah-mazing.

Baked potato, parmesan asparagus, and filet mignon
- date night at home!

Student life can taste pretty good sometimes...

7. I'm not afraid to have my own ideas. This was (and is) a hard thing to learn, but I like that I have done things that other people think are crazy - like make my own deodorant!

8. My interests make the world a better place - some things I love are to care for kids, take care of the environment, and encourage others, which are all things that brighten the world a little bit in some way.

9. I love my curls. Some people really don't like their hair, and sure, I bemoan the beast that sometimes appears on my head, but I really do love the fact that I have curly hair.

Apparently a random prom picture is the last one I have that adequately showcases my hair. We shall pretend I am not a baby in it and this is a recent picture...because my hair still looks like that, promise (and plus, I am not about to look through more pictures for...my hair). 

10. I build strong relationships, with my family, friends, and my boyfriend. I am definitely a relational person, and people are important to me.

What are things you like about yourself? I challenge you, too, to think about some things that are great about YOU, whether you write it on a piece of paper or journal, write a blog post of your own, or in any format you like!

I have to say, this was probably the hardest blog post I've written to date (even including my 'Why does it matter?' post, that took me pretty much forever to write), which probably speaks to the point Christy was making in the first place. Such a great idea :)

P.s. Check out the linkup over at Avoiding Atrophy and take a peek at some of the other posts linked there! And Sarah's post is the second one, after Christy's!