The 30 Day Affirmation Challenge

Repeat after me: 
I will no longer allow me to beat myself up.
I am in charge of my own happiness
I will recognize that I may be the most mature one in the stepfamily
I will let her issues be her issues

Ladies, I've just come off of another fabulous airing of The Stepmom's Toolbox Radio Show. Tonight, Peggy and I talked with Tricia Powe of Stepfamily Systems about how Stepmoms can use self assessment and affirmation to combat negativity that might come up in their lives.

Part of the conversation that really got Peggy and I charged up was Tricia's challenge to make a habit of daily positive affirmations. Each day, write down a new affirmation that you can keep with you at all times. (One of the recommendations was to write each affirmation on an index card or on a sticky note.) In order to turn anything into a habit, experts suggest doing it for at least 21-30 days.

Seeing as though Peggy and I are self-aware, self-challenging women, we decided to turn the habit into a challenge.  See if you can make a daily habit of noticing (and noting) a positive affirmation about yourself for at least 30 days.

And so the challenge, ladies, if you chose to accept it, is to write at least one card per day for at least 30 days with a positive affirmation. Your affirmations don't need to be long and they don't need to make sense to anyone but you. The point of the affirmations are to remind you that you're not a mean or evil stepmom who is out to make people's lives miserable; in fact, you're quite the opposite and you have 30+ reminders to prove it.

Need some inspiration to get you started? The following ideas came up during our show:

• She has issues I cannot control, but I can control my actions and emotions
• Her immaturity or lack of self-awareness has caused her pain which she takes out on me; this is not my fault
• I have a good, loving heart
• I do not give up easily
• I make a good parent

And so the challenge is on: Who's up for the 30 Day Affirmation Challenge? And best of all, what is your first affirmation?