I hope everyone is having a good day so far. We had an early (scary) wake up call this morning from our neighbors. Their son, who is only a little over a year old, woke up acting differently and was non-responsive. My husband ran over there to help, while the paramedics arrived. Little did they know that their little boy was suffering from a seizure. They rushed him to the hospital and found out that he suffered from a febrile seizure, a sudden spike in body temperature that causes convulsions. Luckily, everything is okay, but it was sure scary. You just never know what can happen to anyone, at any given time. It makes me appreciate and be thankful for my health, Keenan’s heath, my husband’s and the health of our families. With experiences like these, it SO vital to cherish each and every moment with your loved ones and always tell them that you care about them. You just don’t know what can happen tomorrow…

Sharing a cookie together after lunch today…so precious!

Anyhow, on a more positive note, I’m excited to talk about a new music video for the song, “How to Be Beautiful,” that was recently released by Danika Holmes, a singer/songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. Danika contacted me about a month ago, asking me to check out her music video/song and write a review. You might be wondering how her song relates to health and fitness and my blog. To be honest, I thought the same thing when she contacted me, but after watching her video and listening to her lyrics, I saw the connection. As women and mommies, we tend to put everyone else first, our kids, spouse, pets, family members, before we even think about ourselves. I’m certainly guilty of it! The last thing we think about is taking of ourselves, both inside and out. Danika’s song talks about finding the good in life, smile to be beautiful, let your words be kind, and it is not what the mirror sees that counts for all the happiness you give out. When I heard her words for the first time, they resonated with me. It seems that in our society, being beautiful is based on our looks, and someone is only attractive if they have a nice body. The imagery of an “attractive mommy” that is portrayed in advertising and other media is all around us, all day and every day, but is that really the definition of beauty?

Beauty isn’t and shouldn’t be about what we look like on the outside, it should come from within. I look at my mom and see such a beautiful person, not just because of what she looks like on the outside, but because of all that she does. She gives so much of her heart and soul to others, helping them when they are in need, putting our family first, before she thinks about her self. With so much love and care my mom gives to others, you can’t help but want to do the same. This is what I define as beauty.

All of these thoughts reminded me of “The Mom Stays in the Picture“. If you haven’t already read the post, you really should. What I really loved about the piece was the number of responses, and the amazing photos that moms around the world submitted. It was a reminder about what beauty really is, and Danika’s song reminded me of all those moms that are beautiful women in their own way. They don’t need anyone else to tell them they’re beautiful because they see it in their children’s eyes, every day.

If you haven’t heard of Danika Holmes, take a moment and watch her music video below. If you like, you can download the song for free on her website. Another reason why I love her music is Danika writes, composes and plays all of her own music. As a musician who struggles to play piano and sing at the same time (a goal that I’m working on!), I appreciate and respect artists who do it all–from the creation of the music, to performing it. After listening to several of Danika’s songs, you can see she is very passionate about what she sings about. All of her songs are truly from the heart. In addition, Danika’s music career started when she was only a dissertation away from completing her PhD. Instead of writing her dissertation, she wrote her first album and has been pursuing a career as an artist. She is real, and just trying to follow her dreams!

Questions: What does beauty mean to you? Who is beautiful in your life?