Under Armour Mommy and Me Fall Style

*This post is sponsored by Under Armour and ShopStyle

Today I’m going to kind of jump all over the place and cover everything from fall kicks (referring to shoes) to kindness and I was actually really excited to sit down and write this post. When Under Armour asked me to write posts involving Landry and Back to School style, I happily obliged because I truly love having her be a part of this with me and it also gives me a chance to cover other topics as related to motherhood. I polled Instagram a few weeks back and asked what motherhood topics in particular that you’d like for me to write about and the resounding answer that came up more than any other was tips on how to teach your kids kindness and empathy and also how to deal with kids who aren’t kind or empathetic towards your own. WOAH man that’s a loaded one, right?! But since I am in NO way an expert, I thought that it would be fun to make this more of a reader written post, with all of the best advice from moms across this community of women and they had some AMAZING words of wisdom on kindness and inclusion! Keep reading, I think you’ll like this one!

My Tank | My Sports Bra | My Leggings | My Sneakers | Landry’s Active Tee | Landry’s Leggings | Landry’s Sneakers | Landry’s Backpack 

First, let’s talk about how cute our Under Armour outfits are! This is pretty much what you can find Landry wearing to school daily and what I’m wearing if it’s not a shoot day or if it’s the weekend! We both adore athletic / athleisure clothes and love the selection that Under Armour has for women and girls.

Landry went for a solid grey legging to pair back to her favorite pink UA top (see it also HERE and HERE) and we got her some new sneakers for her ever growing feet. We have this exact pair in a different colorway (and smaller size) and she liked them so much that she decided to get the same ones but just a different color. As you can see her little backpack is well worn and well-loved and has really served her well this school year as it’s a great size. She’s loving the whole athletic look and I love that she’s finding a style that’s comfortable and really suits her needs for school.

I went out on a limb and got colored leggings, which I’m not sure I’ve ever done. I’m a black leggings girl through and through, but this beautiful wine color totally won me over and I love how they look paired back to a black or grey top. They are such a fun fashion piece to add to my athleisure line up and they feel elevated and different. This is my second color in this tank and I adore the fit. I mostly wear it for athleisure, but like it so much that sometimes I knot them up and wear with jeans too. They’re so comfy and the cut is so cute.

A great outfit can really do wonders for a gal’s confidence and that’s why I love turning to Under Armour when either of us have athleisure needs.  

Speaking of confidence and kindness, that’s really what you guys wanted me to write about in this post and I called in the troops to make this an open conversation about raising kids with empathy, kind hearts and an inclusive attitude. So, here’s the best advice that I got to inspire and empower you today, wherever you are in your motherhood journey.

For me personally, it’s just about learning how to plant the seeds of kindness within my girls, exemplifying it myself in our everyday lives and also knowing how to help them cope if someone wasn’t kind and/or inclusive of them. If there’s anything that motherhood has taught me thus far, it’s not to cast stones in glass houses, because no two kids are alike and it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll have kids with different personalities, thus having to take different approaches with each. In our family, our oldest (Landry) has more of a sweet, kind and empathetic nature. She came out of the womb that way and it’s always been her personality. She feels all the things and feels for others too. I’ve not really never really had to worry about if she was being kind to other kids or not, but we do struggle with her getting steam rolled by others at school with stronger personalities, and she does take that to heart. On the other hand, our youngest (Lawson) came out of the womb with an attitude. She’s got a dominant, head-strong personality and even though she’s only 2.5, it’s clear that I may have the complete opposite issues with her and will have to adjust my parenting accordingly.

This is what makes it all so hard. There’s no textbook, no right or wrong, and it’s really on parents to know their kids’ personalities and tendencies and adjust their dialogue at the drop of a hat. 

Raising Kids with Kindness in Mind:

Here were some of the best pieces of advice that readers, moms, teachers, nannies, and counselors chimed in with that we can use with our own kids and we teach kindness and empathy. I loved these so much!

1. The Golden Rule | Really, beyond all else, it’s just that simple… Treat others how you’d like to be treated. Would you like to be spoken to that way? Would you like to be left out? etc.
2. Make sure that you praise your child when they speak about playing with someone new. Ask them questions about that child–what did you like about them? What makes them fun and special?
3. Find the kids who they really connect with and help to foster those friendships. Friendships should be happy, exciting and rewarding—find those friends and help them to grow that relationship
4. As the adult, always model it yourself. Introduce yourself to strangers, help out people in need, pay it forward in the drive through, sit by a mom sitting alone at a sporting event—always practice kindness and they will follow suit in their own lives.
5. Teach them that everyone brings something special to the table. EVERYONE. And that there’s always a place at the table.
6. If they are ever feeling left out—NORMALIZE their feelings by sharing your own experiences of being left out. Talk through it with them, be their safe place to land.
7. At the end of each day, it’s always good to ASK what was at least one kind thing that you said or did today?
8. Teach the importance of walking away. If a friend isn’t being nice or isn’t being inclusive, there’s such beauty and maturity in empowering them to simply walk away from the situation.
9. Give grace when needed. You never know what’s going on with the person who’s hurting you. Hurt people, hurt people. Empower them to pray for that person and lift them up—even if it seems impossible.
10. Be a positive difference maker! If you see something negative happening, how can you step in and do something positive to turn it around? See someone feeling left out? Go play with them! See someone being picked on? Stand up for them! etc.

Weren’t those SO good???? I felt so at peace and empowered typing them out, knowing that it really does all start with us and feeling confident that I could give them a good foundation upon which to be kind human beings. Listen, having school-aged kids is not for the faint of heart and I can only imagine the progression of how each year will go, but I do think that everything good in life starts with love and kindness and if we can spread a little of that today through this post, I’ll be so happy!

It’s still 90′ here in Texas today, but I ordered us each an Under Armour pullover to hopefully will Fall to us. They’re dang cute, but so far no Fall! This poncho is easy for Landry to throw on as temps cool over a short sleeve shirt and then later on over a long sleeve shirt. It’s a really good functional top for her to wear multiple days a week to school.

I’m absolutely loving this sleek black pullover for myself. It’s edgy and cool, but still neutral enough to pair back to any of my athleisure wear. The mesh insets and black on black logo make me feel way cooler than I actually am 😉

My Pullover | Landry’s Poncho