Rosie Molinary, the author of Beautiful You: A Daily Guide to Radical Self-Acceptance, empowers women to embrace their authentic selves so they can live their passion and purpose and give their gifts to the world.
It may have been cold and rainy outside, but the Piedmont Natural Gas conference room in Charlotte, North Carolina was filled with bright warmthon Sunday, May 5th when over 60 mother/daughter pairs and sponsors came together for the 2013 inaugural Right in the Middle conference.
Born from a desire to celebrate the transition from elementary to middle school while giving mothers and daughters a chance to deepen their relationship at a time when they typically pull away from each other, Right in the Middle provides insight on brains, boys, and bodies at a time when things rapidly change and don’t always seem to make sense on the surface.
As families arrived, the excitement was palpable. Girls dashed between tables to visit with one another while mothers introduced themselves to one another and visited the sponsorship tables. One of the sponsorship tables that drummed up plenty of conversation? The Karina Dress table. Karina Dresses graciously offered to raffle off a dress for the moms and five styles and patterns caught the moms’ eyes as they dropped off their raffle tickets.
“Is that one of those dresses?” A dozen moms asked as I moved through the conference space, introducing myself before we got started.
“Yes?” I answered, proudly modeling my Marissa dress.
“Oh, what style is that? What pattern? Where can I buy one? Can I feel it?” I heard, as woman after woman grabbed my hemline.
The conference kicked off with Michelle Icard of Michelle in the Middle talking about brains, bravery, and botox brow. Everyone learned that cognitive development continues until into one’s twenties and that, sometimes, the best judgment isn’t always available to a teen and that’s a great time to call mom in for some help and guidance. When Michelle shared her Botox brow tip, girls and moms all laughed AND nodded in recognition.
After a lucky mom won the Karina Dress raffle, the daughters went with Michelle to talk about how Friends and Frenemies and the moms stayed with me to talk about how to improve their own body image so that they are modeling what they most want for their daughters as they grow. Then we gathered together again for cake, a crash course in media literacy, and a closing performance by Caroline McLeod, an up and coming young musician with talent and poise in spaces.
The rain was still falling when our happy, encouraged moms and daughters departed with goody bags and cupcakes but that didn’t dampen any spirits. Some early reaction?
“Thank you for the mom and daughter conference. It was inspirational, empowering, informative and FUN! It opened the door for [my daughter] and me to have “those” sometimes awkward conversations. In fact, last night she shared with dad the pre and post photoshop images. She let him know that it is important to like yourself just as you are! Bravo and thank you. I have already let our school community know it is a must for all!”
“GREAT EVENT! My daughter and I have already had so many great conversations about the important topics you discussed today.”
“Thank you for providing insight and tools to help me as a mother! Great event!”
“What a fabulous afternoon. I was impressed from the moment I walked through the door. Everyone did an amazing job and the content was spot-on. The moms and the daughters learned a lot and had fun. I was a strong supporter before, but now I’m an avid believer!!”
It was a great afternoon, and we’re already at work to make our next three Right in the Middles even better!
Intrigued? Find out more about Right in the Middle.
Want to register? Select a date and location below.
August 4th, 2:00 – 5:00 pm: Columbia, SC
August 18th, 2:00 – 5:00 pm: Charlotte, NC
August 21st, 6:00 – 9:00 pm: Charlotte, NC
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