I have dreamed a dream, and now that dream is gone from me........

I think that is one of my all time favorite movie quotes. In part because I think Laurence Fishburne was absolute perfection for the role of Morpheus, and he delivers the line in a way that even after watching the movie 4,000 times I still get chills, but mostly because I believe this to be true in so many peoples lives. How many people let their dreams go because they are told they are impractical or unattainable. I worry over this, and the impact that such nay-sayers could have on my own daughters future aspirations and dreams. I know that in a perfect world the teachers in our school systems would not only have the ability but also the desire to nourish and encourage our children to dream in vivid color. To believe in themselves and believe in their dreams. I realize that as parents a large portion of the encouragement should come from us, and believe me my child has mommies encouragement in spades, and always will. I am also not so naive to think that at some point in her life, my precious, beautiful baby is going to decide that her friends know more than Momma. That is a scary thought. We all hope to raise our children with a strong moral compass and confidence in themselves and their abilities, and to follow their dreams.

I want my daughter to grow up knowing she can do anything she puts her mind to, and knowing that although some things take a little more work, and you may not always succeed the first try that sometimes it is the things that we have to work for that are the most worth having. I will encourage her in every way I can, and work to keep her dreams alive.

What are some of the activities you do with your children to foster their creativity? How do you help them to handle disappointments? I am open to ideas and am very excited to hear what you all do to help your children reach their dreams!

Here are some photos I shot of my daughter and my nephew having some fun. It is amazing how just some backyard fun opens up a whole new world to explore for a toddler. I love it!

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!