The Mommy Affect: The McQueen’s

The Mommy Affect Description:
Each day this week I will share one to two stories leading up to Mother’s Day. The purpose for TALL District’s Mommy Affect Series is to honor moms who make a difference in our tall lives. It also provides an opportunity to shed light on the ‘tall’ impact that mothers and mother figures of all heights (short, tall, average) have on their tall daughters ‘height experience’ and confidence.

Introduction:
Allow me to introduce the McQueen’s, our mommy and daughter duo consisting of 5’3” Debbie and 5’11.5” Tori, respectively, from Columbus, Indiana.

Tori & Debbie’s Story

Daughter:               Mother:
    Tori                      Debbie
5’11.5” / 22             5’3” /49

Mommy Affect: Daughter’s Perspective (Tori)

Moms Impact
She has always wanted me to embrace my height which is something that has been hard for me to come around to, even in my early 20s.

Activities to Create Normalcy
She tried to get me into sports from a young age but I just was not interested in them, so I never did sports or many extracurricular activities when I was in school. It’s annoying to have to tell people who ask that I have never played sports, I am just too gangly with my limbs to play.

Takes a village: The Tallista Embrace (College years)
Before coming to college, I hardly had any friends who I could bond with over our height. Upon coming to college, I have found several tall female friends that I can bond with over our height among other things…they have helped my experience as a tall female and realize that there is nothing that can be done about it.

Interaction with Tallistas
I have always been one to welcome other tall females with open arms, and make sure that they know I appreciate them. I think my mom has impacted this because she doesn’t look at the height of a person, but their personality.

Recommendations from one Tallista to another
Tallistas, try your hardest to embrace yourself the way you are. Reach the things on the top shelf and wear that pair of heels. Mothers of Tallistas, if you are not tall yourself (my mom is 5’3”), do your best to find places where your daughter can shop for clothes she needs that will fit her properly. If not, you will spend your life unhemming her pants just so she can have an extra two or three inches. She will appreciate you taking the time to help her find clothes that fit her, though it takes a little more money out of your pocket.

Message to Mom
Thank you for understanding my frustrations with myself when my clothes wouldn’t fit, and thank you for helping me find places with clothes that did fit and using your money to make sure I had clothes that properly fit. I know I don’t fully embrace my height yet but I’m sure I will come around soon.

Mommy Affect: Mother’s Perspective (Debbie) 

Height Awareness
I noticed at birth.

Raising a Tallista
I loved it! We all have something that makes us unique, and I am glad one of many is her being tall.

Overcoming Tall Chalenges
Clothes were the biggest hurdle, but I found several speciality shop for tall girls or women, to make sure she got a correct fit. Also, I think her self-confidence is another challenge that we face daily, due to her being tall. I cannot wait until the day she owns being tall and loves it!

Tall Resources
There were not that many local stores for tall women, that carried a pre-teen or young female fashion, so I did a lot of online shopping.

Advice From One Mother to Another
Try your best to encourage and promote self-love, in the hopes of these beautiful girls becoming strong women one day.

Thank you Tori and Debbie for sharing your tall journey with us. Tori, I want you to know that you are beautifully made. My sincere prayer for you is that you continue to grow in self-love and confidence. You are well on your way thanks to your moms hard work and the ‘circle of Tallistas’ you’ve surrounded yourself with. Feel free to reach out if you ever need a reminder of your how beautifully made you really are. – J

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I hope you enjoyed reading Tori and Debbie’s story. I would love to hear your stories as well. Leave a comment in the section below and tell us what you think about the post and/or share your ‘Mommy Affect’ story.

TALL Blessings,
J. Enovy

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