Are those ear plugs? (Abigail update)

Ok, so this post is a sort of update on what my oldest has been up to lately.  She is 7 almost 8 years old and often times she seems to fly under the radar because she doesn't need me quite as much as the boys do.  I do feel guilty sometimes, like I've totally ignored her all day because Jackson takes about every ounce of energy I have.

Austin, my 5 year old doesn't get as much attention as Jack either, but Austin is more of a loner type.  He doesn't need or crave a whole lot of interaction from others.  Wow, I don't want to make him sound like a hermit or socially awkward or anything because he's not.  It's just that he can entertain himself more easily than Abigail or Jack can.

Anyway, so here is a little update on what my funny girl has been up to lately.

Back in May she had her dance recital.  She did such a great job.  She took Ballet and Tap this year.

For the entire month of June she went to Art Camp 5 days a week from 8:30-11:30.  She loved it, but it wasn't super easy getting myself and three kids up every morning during the summer to bring her and pick her up from camp every day, but it was worth it.  They had their Art Show yesterday.

She did a lot more pieces, but I didn't take a picture of them all.

The of art camp was South of the Border.

They had these funny little mustaches for people to have. 

 Abigail and Austin were cracking up at themselves.  

One of the things Abigail and I have been talking about a lot lately is being healthy.  Let me just preface this next topic by pointing out that in no way am I putting Abigail on a diet, it's all about being more healthy.  

One undesirable trait that I passed down to my daughter is the love of food.  My girl loves to eat.  She loves all types of food and would eat every hour if she could.  

In the past year her body has changed a little.  She has gotten thicker and has a little bit of a pouchie belly.  She has already voiced to me her concerns, and told me she thinks she's fat.  It breaks my heart!!

I really hoped to not have to deal with this until like teenager time, but here it is.  I do my best to encourage her and tell her she is not fat, but maybe we could be healthier and exercise more as a family.  We've made some new rules around the house about asking before getting snacks and playing outside more.  

I've also been encouraging her to stop eating when she feels full and that she doesn't have to eat every bite off her plate.  

She is also short for her age, which doesn't help. There is so much pressure out there for young girls to look a certain way, even at 8 years old.  Body complexes and eating disorders are on the list of a mothers worst nightmare.  

What I don't want to do is act like I'm in denial that she is a tad bit overweight for her age and if not dealt with properly can turn in to a lot overweight really quickly and there are so many health risks for obese children.  

It's a fine line trying to encourage Abigail to eat healthy and exercise without making her feel like there is something wrong with her.  I hate that she is having to go through this already at such a young age.  I just pray that God will help me to say and do the right things to help her.  

Let's end this post with a laugh shall we?

The kids and I were watching TV the other day when a Tampax commercial came on.  It had a lady swimmer on the commercial.  Towards the end of the commercial Abigail turns to me and asks:

"Are those ear plugs or something?"

Hahaha

Luckily I was quickly distracted by Jackson and couldn't really answer her and she didn't ask again.  

It won't be long until Abigail and I need to have some serious talks about some serious things and I'm not super excited about it.  She will be 8 years old in September and starts 3rd grade this year.  I was sort of thinking that maybe next summer would be the time for "the talk".  I don't want her to learn from kids at school and the kids at school know WAY TOO MUCH, WAY TOO YOUNG!!  

Anyway, what do y'all think?  

When did you give your kids the talk /or when do you plan on giving your kids the talk?