07 Jan “Self-Ease” Meets Selfies in 2016

Thanks to Today.com Parenting Team for publishing this “Resolutions” blog post from our co-founder, Stacy Katz!

Dear Fellow Parents

We’re all in this together right? We’re juggling more than ever before. Yet we live in a selfie world where the expectation is that we should gracefully manage our escalating to-do list while rocking ripped muscles and a killer hairstyle. Oh, and don’t forget to document and post your fabulousness daily.

I live in L.A., arguably the birthplace of the Selfie and for several years have felt the mounting pressure to basically stop aging. The reality is that I’m a single mom to an amazing, very active son, am fielding client demands and launching a new card game to help reduce family screen time. I am mostly too pooped to curl my hair and put lipstick on and I’m sick and tired of feeling badly about this. So my resolution is to have “SELF-EASE” meet Selfies in 2016.

SELF-EASE means giving the middle finger to the façade that the current Selfie phenomena has ingrained in our culture and in our daily lives. Aren’t you as fatigued as I am of comparing our daily reality to the botoxed, photo-shopped world of vacation moments as reflected back to us via this selfie culture?

So this holiday, while my Facebook was flooded with friends feeding the homeless or on exotic ski and beach holidays, my son and I were invited to Legoland. This is not exactly my idea of bliss, but it’s my sons so there you (we) go. And then it happened. A parent was so busy retouching and uploading a family selfie to social media that she actually lost her kid. Fortunately, he didn’t wander far and there was a quick reunion.

But enough already. Parents need to stop putting pressure on themselves to take a perfect pic and start just embracing the chaotic nature of being a parent – publicly.

So for 2016 will you join me in blending Self-ease with Selfies? Either take a selfie that reflects true parenting life –unmade beds, car backseats full of crumbs and chaos. Or refrain from taking selfie pics altogether and just embrace (surrender to?) the moment.

In this spirit, I’ve shared a selfie of my son and I a few years ago after he gave me a makeover. He pleaded with me to sit still for 20 minutes while he lovingly attacked me and my makeup drawer. The look on his face when I told him I needed to wash it off to go to brunch was crushing so I just rocked that purple and black war paint all afternoon in public. In LOS ANGELES.

So let’s ring in the new year with the resolution to bring more authenticity to public photo sharing and embrace the freedom that comes with easing up a bit more. Enjoy –or at least laugh at and promote the process of parenting with all of its messiness. Please join me in this SELF-ease meets Selfies movement. What will this look like for you in 2016? Share this post and join the #2016Selfeasemovement.