Do you remember the scene in Sleeping Beauty when the fairies bestow their 'gifts' on the not-yet-doomed baby princess? Gifts like beauty, wit, grace and song? Those are all nice things, I'm sure. But at Christmas, my brother and sister-in-law gave Madeleine a beautifully-illustrated book called Amazing Babes, and inside it are the kinds of gifts I would like the fairies to give my princess.

Gifts like heart. And commitment. And conviction.

Bravery. Dedication. Curiosity.

And more.

The book celebrates inspirational women from around the world. Women who changed the world they lived in. Women like human-rights activist Aung San Suu Kyi, author and early feminist Miles Franklin, peace activist Leymah Gbowee, and passionate artist Frida Kahlo.

"As I grow," it begins, "I want..."

Since there were no fairies present at either Madeleine's or Harry's births (that I know of), I will have to do my best to foster these 'gifts' in my children myself. It might be time to visit Nanna.