What makes a woman? Everyone seems to have an opinion. Does she dress a certain way? Does she talk a certain way? Is she a particular size? I guess it depends on who you ask. The thing is, who decides that there is a specific way to be a woman?

There’s something that bothers us every time we hear or read it. It’s when we hear people talk about what a real woman is or what a real woman looks like. Things like “real women have curves.” Or “why doesn’t anyone on TV have a real woman’s body?”  And “Of course, she looks like that. She’s a model. She’s not a real woman.” There are many circumstances where this whole real woman thing is thrown around.

Real Woman

Do we really think “real women” all look a certain way? What if younger women with perky boobs walked around talking about “real women don’t need bras”. Silly, right? Isn’t it all kind of silly? Some of us have a belly, some of us have a whole lot of booty, some of us are hippy while others have NO hips at all. Some of us have stretch marks, others don’t. Who is to say which of these features makes us “real”?

It just feels like another way to divide women. Don’t we do enough of that with the good ole “mom wars?” Can’t we just be women…moms…real – all of us?

Everybody has something they’d like to change with their body. More boobs, more booty, flat tummy – something. Just because someone else has all the changes you’d like to make doesn’t make them any less of a real woman. Maybe she worked her arse off to get the body she has. Maybe she has a live-in chef and a personal trainer that comes to her house every day to get her right. Great! Spoiler alert: If we had the money, we probably would too!

We’d all probably love to have Naomi Campbell’s legs and Kelly Rowland’s chiseled stomach. Boobs that don’t require a push to be perky would be nice. Trust us, you’re still a real woman though. Maybe your calves could be bigger but you’re cool if they stay the way they are. After a couple of kids, you might have more tummy than you’d like but, eh, that’s life. All you can do is work to change it. Another “perk” of having and nursing kids, your boobs might be a lost cause. That’s why they make good bras though! Your body is amazing. It does amazing things. Anything else is just icing on an already pretty sweet cake. Guess what? That’s real.