The making of "Little Messages"

A few years ago I was visiting a friend and fellow musician/parent Corrie Collins. We were talking about how potentially fragile our self esteem and self image is as we attempt to navigate our way through life and pondered the various ways to helpmour children with this crucial area of development.

We've both wrestled with self confidence (or lack thereof...) for most of our developing years,, and we were really struck by the impact this can have on both children and adults alike.

It shapes our whole perception of ourselves, our sense of worth, our motivation, our creativity and our ability to control our environment.. Put simply, self confidence is a vital and valuable commodity to possess in this fast paced, competitive world.

It didn't take long for us to realise that being both parents and songwriters more than equipped us to deal with this issue in an innovative and original way, and be able to deliver it to our young people. We were (are) very excited about the concept and got to writing straight away!!

Hence, "Little Messages" was born. A series of 10 songs, some interactive, that could become a nightly routine for children and their carers alike, building self confidence and positive self image.

The 'messages' put simply and musically are things like..."The Real Me' which says that there's more to me than just outside appearances. 'Highs and Lows' gived kids a chance to tell someone the high and low point of their day. 'Everyone's Good at Something' is self explanatory!!

Getting the positive messages is only half the vision of this recording however. Our lives are so incredibly full and tiring, and shared special moments with our children become a rare thing indeed! We believe there is real power in these shared moments, and this CD can ritualise bedtime (or any other quiet time such as rest time at preschool or kindy..) giving our children a lovely experience with someone they care about, and also being a wonderful 'wind down' for the carer!