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I was a chubby kid who grew into a chubby teenager. When I hit 14 years old I had a friend of mine tell me that I was well "padded". I had never really seen myself as heavy until then. I dropped 40 pounds in three months. I came back to school after the summer break a size 5. My teachers actually called my mom to ask her if I was ok. I am over 5 foot 8 and they were concerned. I have to say two things would have helped me growing up. I wish someone in my family would have talked about body perception and taking care of yourself in a healthy open manner. It didn't matter what we had to eat, we had to eat it all. And I mean all of it. We were viewed as somewhat ungrateful if we didn't. So I grew up with the you eat all things on the table and you finish it. The concept of leaving food on my plate wasn't something I grasped until I starved myself through high school and into college. And the positive enforcement of not eating through the women in my family, looking back, made a very strong impression on me. So I think communication, as well as healthy options for eating, coupled with exercise on some level would be much better than any celluloid role model. :)

...we had to eat it all. And I mean all of it.

Same here!!! We managed to get around it, when we really wanted to. Since my parents couldn't watch all six of us at the same time, we got creative about hiding food in our napkins, in our milk glasses, or throwing it out of the dining room for the dogs. That last one was tricky. If you missed the entryway, there would be a big splat of pot roast on the wall and you were done for. We never talked about our bodies or weights or self-images growing up. I don't know why, really, we just didn't. It was really tough for me. All my sisters are very pretty and I'm the original plain jane, with buck teeth to boot. Plus I wore leg braces until I started fourth grade--by that time I was convinced I was the ugliest duckling of all. That self-image stayed with me all through high school. Now, I don't even think about how I look. I keep myself well groomed, that's about it. One weird thing about starting back at work is that I am wearing makeup again--just a little bit, but it makes my face feel really strange, like I'm wearing a mask.

I don't have any daughters, and in a way, I'm grateful. Not because of their sex. I just had a wretchedly lonely childhood. In trying to keep any daughters of mine from experiencing the same, I would be bound to screw them up in some other way!