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Capturing A Child’s True Beauty

It’s no secret that I spend a lot of time on the internet, as bloggers do. Because of that, I sometimes feel like I have seen everything the internet has to offer. Yesterday, however, I was reminded that there are still amazing things happening that deserve to be talked about and I want to share one of those with you today.

A friend shared a link to an online magazine yesterday (linked above) and mentioned that it was a powerful read. It took me about a half a page before that stinging feeling started and I was wiping tears away. By the time I got to the end, I had already typed out an email to the creator of the magazine to ask if I could share it with all of you. The magazine, entitled “Kids – All About Love”, mostly features photographs and stories of children who are battling some form of illness. The pictures are incredibly done, really bringing out the personality in all the children, and the stories are so well written that I felt invested in all of them from the opening paragraphs.

The creator’s name is Lisa Kelly and she runs a website called, Salt and Light Studio. I was so touched by the stories that I arranged a phone interview with Lisa that day to talk about them and her inspiration for them. I love and agree with Lisa when she says that “Our life stories are a gift we give to the world“. I hope these stories move you the way they have moved me and please feel free to share them if you see fit. We need more stories of love in the world and these kids have helped me remember that we need to make the most of every second on this planet!

You can find more of Lisa’s work on her website, Salt and Light Studio, or on her Facebook Page.

13 Things About Her

She is…

The provider of light in times when I see only darkness

Driven to want more from herself, even though she is perfect as she is

Forgiving. Almost to a fault

Unaware of how beautiful she really is

Kind. The deep down variety

Passion

Unwilling to settle for the status quo

Not afraid to be vulnerable

Inspiring

A leader in every sense of the word

Perfection, in my eyes

An amazing mother to my children

The reason I am the luckiest man alive

How Princesses Provided A Fairy Tale Ending For One Little Girl

Official Princess Parties

The opinions on Princess culture run from those who love everything about the fairy tale stories, to those who think princesses are ruining our little girls and driving us further into debt with all the commercialization. I have always been in the middle. I love how much my little girl adores the princess culture but I don’t think it’s turning her into anything more than a little girl who has found something she loves.

I had a change of opinion this past week, however, when something amazing happened. My friend Christine, who blogs for “Life on Manitoulin”, was forced to take an emergency helicopter ride with her 4 year old daughter, who was experiencing severe stomach pains. When they got to Ottawa and were released from CHEO, following the little one’s surgery, I got the chance to spend some time with them. Her little one, tough as nails by the way, started telling me all about her favourite princesses, as little girls do.

Christine had asked me if I thought we would be able to hire a princess on such short notice and seeing as how I am no stranger to hanging out with and writing about all things princess, I decided to try to help out. I called Official Princess Parties, a company that has already impressed me in the past, and I definitely wasn’t prepared for the kindness that followed.

I explained why I needed someone on such short notice and the owner mentioned that they were all booked up for the next couple weeks, but would send out a feeler to see if anyone was interested in the extra work. Not one minute later, while we were still on the phone, she had already received 3 messages back with people saying they wanted to help out. That would have been enough for me to sing their praises but the owner then mentioned that she wanted to provide this visit, to cheer up a scared little girl, on the house, and my heart exploded. Our princess showed up that night and had everyone mesmerized and smiling from ear to ear. She was perfect and it is exactly the thing that little girl needed at that moment.

Long story short, you can think whatever you want about the effects of princess culture, but this single event and watching the joy on that little girl’s face was enough to convince me of the overwhelming positives that can come from it. At the pace life is moving these days, sometimes it’s just nice to let kids be kids, and when it comes to princesses, I am fine with doing just that. Thank you to the amazing staff at Official Princess Parties for making this little girl’s pain a little more bearable.

Princess Funny Faces

Princess Beauty Julia

Princess Tiara