Puberty will bring on lots of mixed up feelings. Exciting? Yes. Embarassing? Sometimes. Awkward? Sure. And while all these changes are happening, there will be people in your life who are amazed. But the most embarrassing part can happen when people feel the need to say something about it. That’s when knowing how to deal with their comments becomes a bigpart of getting through puberty with a little less embarrassment.

When grandma says something like, “My, my my. Aren’t you looking like ayoung woman?!” It can make you want to crawl under a rock. You know she’scommenting on your growing breasts, but you also know she cares about you, so you try to be polite. The best reply in a situation like that is to just smile (if you can) and confidently say, “Yes, I am.” Then feel free to change the subject.

Puberty at age seven? Normal? The research is telling us that seven is the new eleven when it comes to girls and puberty. But I have a feeling Mother Nature is not entirely on board with this one. Neither am I.

As we lead Girlology programs, one of our hopes is that our “grads” will use what they learn in helpful ways. And we love hearing stories of how that’s happening. The note below came via email last week from a mom in Charlotte, NC.  This is why we really love what we do!

Thank you Jen Plym from Charlotte Smarty Pants!  Check out her blog and review of our class!

http://charlottesmartypants.blogspot.com/2011/02/girlology-conversations-that-matter.html.

As your child stumbles into puberty, she needs guidance and reassurance.  Knowing what to expect ahead of time can go a long way to ease the awkwardness and improve body confidence.  Check out Dr. Holmes’ blog over on one of our favorite sites www.Tweenparent.com to learn how you can help your daughters and sons through the Body Morph...

Lucky you.  9 is a magical age where girls are growing up and can understand some “adult-ish” things, but are young enough to still have that innocent sense of wonder and awe.  Unfortunately, it’s also the age (4^th grade is notorious for this) where some kid in her class has already provided their interpretation of what “sex” is – right or wrong.  That means it’s the perfect time to set the record straight and take the opportunity to interject your family values.

Early in the fall, my daughter excitedly told me she had a “bud.”  Not a buddy, but a bud – as in breast bud.  Thanks to loose T-shirts, wearing a bra was not on her radar, but with the school year, came uniforms and tighter shirts.  That meant “they,” meaning the buds,  became a little more noticeable.

Puberty is inevitable, but every girl has a unique experience and handles it in her own way. You can help make it a positive experience by helping your daughter know what to expect and reassuring her that some of the weirdness is actually normal!
To help her (and you) know what’s coming, here’s a brief overview of “the order of things”

Dr. Hutchison was a guest speaker with Katherine Schwarzenegger, daughter of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mariah Shriver on Kids Count Radio Network!   Katherine  has written “Rock What You’ve Got” that talks about her struggles with her own  body image. 

So this weekend, my oldest daughter who is nine and I were driving to her soccer game.  Beautiful weather, windows down, hair flying and just enjoying the day.  Well Katy Perry’s song, “Teenage Dream” comes on the radio and my daughter who really can’t follow a tune started belting out…”Let’s go all the way tonight, No regrets, just love. We can dance until we die.  You and I, we’ll be young forever.”