Dear Daughter, The Things I Hope You Remember

A Letter from Mother to Daughter

I was watching my three year old the other day as she was playing with her friends.

Their innocence made me smile, as everything was just fine and perfect in their “three year old world.” These little ladies playing dress up and house, didn’t have a worry outside of exactly how their sandwiches were cut for lunch and who got to be Doc McStuffins next.

As I overheard their conversations of playing “mommy & daddy” and “pretend school” – it made me realize how fast these three years have gone.

Wasn’t she JUST my little baby that I was nursing in the middle of the night, wondering if my life would EVER be back to “normal” again? Wasn’t she JUST my little baby that was scared to take her first steps? Wasn’t she JUST my little baby that I was rocking to sleep in my arms, singing lullabies to at one o’clock in the morning, and teaching her how to say “MA-MA” before anything else?!

And all of the sudden she had friends over. Full blown FRIENDS. And were playing big girl games and having big girl conversations. I couldn’t believe it.

I wanted to just sit her down on my lap in that very moment and tell her so many things – I wanted to tell her everything that I hope that she will ALWAYS remember as she continues to grow so fast, right before my eyes!

What Do I Wish For My Daughter?

So Dear Daughter, this is for you. These are the things I hope with all of my heart you will ALWAYS remember…

1. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO FIND JOY: AND that it is possible to feel joy even when you are having a bad day, a bad week or even a bad year. {Russel M. Nelson} I hope you will find your pretty smile DAILY. That when you wake up in the morning, it’s the first thing you put on. Tell yourself that “today is going to be a good day!” and then make it happen.

Life sometimes really stinks. But it doesn’t mean you can’t find a little piece of happiness every single day. Find that one good thing in each day – and cherish it.

2. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO NEVER BE AFRAID TO MAKE MISTAKES: Because happy people, DO make mistakes! I make them. Your really cute dad makes them. Even though your Grandmas are pretty close to perfection, they make them too. So you will make them – but the cool thing is, is that you can learn from them too.

Don’t ever be afraid – because “mistakes have the power to turn you into something even BETTER than you were before!” Be brave like I know you are. Be strong. Be courageous. Have faith. And know that YOU can do hard things!

3. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO LOVE THOSE THAT ARE HARD TO LOVE: This is a hard one… but yes. Even those people that will come into your life that aren’t very nice and make bad choices – I hope you will love them.

People will hurt you and say bad things – but don’t let them bring you down. You know who you are and stay strong to that. Look for ways to serve. Serve your friends and serve our neighbors. And always remember to forgive and forget. “People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel.”

4. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO LOOK OUT FOR OTHERS: I recently read something that said, “We need to care less about whether our children are academically gifted and more about whether they sit with the lonely kid in the cafeteria.” I hope that you will find those kids that need YOU. The kids that need your fun, beautiful, sweet spirit. The kids that need a friend.

Be kind to everyone you meet – for you never know what they are going through.

5. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO LAUGH AT YOUR TRIALS: Because they are meant to make you shine. Happy people have really bad things happen to them. When trials come your way – it’s okay to be sad. It’s okay to cry and it’s okay to not understand. But I hope you will remember to pick yourself up and remember that good things are to come. I promise that.

6. I HOPE YOU NEVER FORGET WHO YOU ARE: You know exactly who you are, where you came from and where you are going. You are a daughter of God. You have the GREATEST potential. You are more than what you can even imagine. You are irreplaceable.

7. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO IGNORE SOMEONE TELLING YOU “YOU CAN’T”: Because guess what!? You absolutely CAN. And you WILL!

Don’t compare your life to others – especially to what you see on Social Media or what you think you see in others. You can do ANYTHING you put your mind to. And you can become whoever you want to be.

8. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER THE HOUSE WORK CAN WAIT: Because time goes by so fast. SO SO fast. A spotless house all the time may be nice, but memories of playing together or baking or making bigger messes, are more precious then gold.

9. I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO SIMPLIFY: There are a lot of things that will build up on your calendar and “to do” lists. But remember you can’t do it ALL – and you don’t have to do it all. Find what is most important. Find what is good. Find what is better. And then find what is BEST! And focus on your list of “bests!”

Do what you can. And make it a simple life.

10. I HOPE YOU CHERISH THE LITTLE THINGS: Because let me tell you, one day the little things, will actually be the big things. Oh, please. CHERISH every minute of being a kid. A teenager. An adult. A sister. A wife. A mom. These are precious roles you will hold.

People will tell you it goes fast, but dear daughter I am telling you – it goes faster than you can imagine. Cherish life. Cherish getting dirty. Cherish falling in love. Cherish becoming a mom. Cherish the snuggles. Cherish the kisses. Cherish the sleepless nights and dirty diapers. Cherish the middle of the night wake up calls. Cherish the piles of laundry. Cherish the “I wuv you’s” and cherish the dirty finger prints on your windows. Cherish every little thing.

11. LASTLY, I HOPE YOU REMEMBER TO LOVE YOURSELF AS MUCH AS I LOVE YOU: With the world the way it is, it’s hard not to think you aren’t good enough, but if you can love yourself everything falls into place. And then not only can you love yourself, but you can love others much more deeply.

Danielle is the owner of Today's the Best Day. She strives to provide creative and uplifting content in order to enrich the parenting experience for women everywhere. Danielle hopes to help you and your family to make every day the best day!

November 9, 2016 by Danielle Davis | 1 Comment