Building Self-Confidence in children

As I was sitting here thinking about some of my recent thoughts (deep, right?) I considered that I needed to consult something, (a book, a website, a trusted opinion...). Then I came upon one of my best and most revered friend's blog here and as I read it I felt as though she was having her conversation with me, that we were back in high school, and we were sitting in one of our bedrooms hugging our pillows as the night hours drew on and on and we talked and talked of life and all its mysteries. Her blog made me miss blogging.

So, here I am. Blogging.

Now, before I get too wordy, here are a couple pictures of our family's most recents:

Yes, we took off to Disneyland last week and it was SUPER fun!

And, of course, we took our children to the beach with no towels, no swimsuits, and no extra clothes...AND WE GOT WET!

And here are my recent thoughts: I want my children to have confidence as they grow older. I want them to stop whining right now, and use pleasing voices. I also want my actions and interactions with them to lead them to a place where they look back on their world, their home life, with affection and revere it as a happy home, a home where they were taught and where they KNEW that they were handsome, beautiful, smart, capable, and loved.

And, here are some of my musings about these thoughts: I feel like I'm failing so far...in the confidence realm, and others. Ultimately, my screaming and irritability of late are NOT getting me to that place where bliss abodes. I'm afraid that, my little hatchlings think that I think they're nothing but naughty (boy have we had a naughty week...makeup, brownie bits, and juicy popsicles all over the carpet on different occasions). So, how do I do it?

Thus my conundrum. Thus my desire to reach out to a world of blogging...to post my question out to the world to aide me on my path of motherhood.

So here it is: How do you instill a sense of confidence in your children (even at a very young age)? Is it possible? How do you handle the good, the bad, and the (very) naughty? How do you prepare yourself each day, so that you feel able to tackle your world? When you fail, if you fail, how do you recover?

And, for funny sake, what sort of outlandish threats have you ever made to your children? (I find myself doing this all the time... "Pick up those brownie pieces NOW, or else you'll never eat again!")