Dear Kennedy:
If on some days I seem impatient, I apologize for not taking the time to relax with you,
I probably spent the night up worrying about how to protect you forever.
If on some days I seem distant, I promise I am always by your side.
I have a thousand thoughts a day, but you are the center of them all.
If on some days you have more energy than I can muster, I promise to still get up and dance.
Even if for just a song or two, I will never say no to the chance to spin with you.
If on some days you seem hell-bent on doing something by yourself,
I promise to let you try, but always be within reach to catch you if you fall.
If on some days I seem to need a “time out” for myself, I promise to make it quick.
3 minutes by myself to breathe and refresh to continue trying to being the best mommy I can be.
If someday you fall and hurt yourself,
I promise to kiss your boo-boos and help you heal, even if only through my prayers.
If someday, no matter your age, you are sick,
I promise to give you homemade soup, endless cuddling and cookies of your choice.
If someday in the future, you feel bullied at school and your feelings are hurt,
I promise to hold you, to listen to you and to help you understand what is going on.
If someday in the future, I find out you are doing the bullying,
I promise still to hold you, to listen to you and to help you understand how you are hurting someone else.
If someday in the future you cannot solve a problem,
I promise not to solve it for you, but help you get to an answer.
If someday in the future, you feel like you cannot accomplish something,
I promise to show you your strength and how anything is possible if you work at it.
If someday in the future, I feel you are making poor decisions,
I promise to gently guide you without ever truly changing your direction, for that is for you to do.
If someday in the future you rebel and disobey,
I promise still to love you and trust you learn from your choices.
If someday in the future, you feel I simply don’t understand,
I promise I probably do not, but I will work to listen to the words you say instead of just hearing you.
If someday in the future a boy breaks your heart,
I promise to sit you down, wipe your tears and explain the difference between a boy and a man.
If someday in the future you are betrayed by a friend,
I promise to show you strong examples of friendship that I have created with the people who love you most, as my mother showed me in her bonds with the people that surrounded me.
If someday in the future you question yourself,
I promise to sit you down, as my father did with me, and explain exactly who you are, where you came from and how strong your roots are.
If someday in the future you feel scared,
I promise to protect you.
If someday in the future you feel the need to travel,
I promise to give you a journal and a map and send you on your way.
If someday in the future you feel lost,
I promise to pray for and with you.
If someday in the future you fall in love,
I will trust that this person respects you, makes you laugh, honors you and holds you in the highest regard.
If someday in the future you fall in love,
I will trust that you will return this respect, humor, honor and hold your partner in the highest regard.
If someday in the future you choose to marry the love of your life,
I will trust that you came to this decision together in love and with God for guidance.
If someday in the future you become a mother,
I will weep at the understanding that you will finally know the love I have for you.
If someday in the future I am able to watch you love and learn with your children,
I will listen to your concerns, soothe your fears, and thank God for letting me witness the strength of my daughter as a mother.
If someday in the future I am not around,
I promise you I am, even if not physically.
If someday in the future you find yourself missing me,
I promise you will feel me at your weakest moments and pray you find strength from our memories.
If someday in the future I am gone for good,
Know that it is because of you that I ever was the woman you remember, the woman I became and the woman I worked every day to be. Without you I was nothing, with you I realized I could be anything and because of you I had everything.
Love You to the Moon, Around the Sun, and MORE Than All of the Stars in the Universe,
Mama
This is astoundingly beautiful! You are an amazing mom. We are blessed to have you in our family. Love ya!
rdestiny51@aol.com
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Thank you Ruth! I am blessed to have been welcomed into your family and to have shining examples of mothers surrounding me. Love ya back!
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A beautiful love letter! Kennedy will treasure this when she’s older.
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Thank you Zoee!! I can’t wait until Kennedy can read this when she’s my age one day.
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This is so beautiful. I hope you have this framed somewhere!
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Tee, thank you so much! I do plan to put it somewhere in writing so Kennedy can look at it when she is older. Thanks for reading : )
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This is so beautiful! I have also had these same feelings about my little one!
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The perks of Motherhood Tara! Having someone to love so much!
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I love this. So many of the things you wrote made me think of my relationship with my daughter.
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This is so beautiful! I have so many of these thoughts everyday as well!
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Get them down on paper Shannon… even if not to post in a blog… I am so happy I wrote it all down.
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This is beautiful and I can’t wait for her to be able to read it one day!
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Thanks Lauryn, I also cannot wait!
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So true! I find myself feeling the same way about my daughter. Am I doing enough for her? Will I always be able to keep her safe? I want to many beautiful things for her life. It is such a game changer when you become a mom. I love every minute of it.
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The BEST game changer in the world! Not for the faint of heart though haha
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What a sweet poem for your daughter to read when she is older. 🙂 How special.
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Oh wow! This is beautiful! Such a lovely letter! =)
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Thank you so much Jessica! Easy to write when you believe the words, right?
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This is so lovely! I hope your relationship with your daughter always stays strong!
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Beautiful. I have a young daughter too and know exactly how you feel.
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This absolutely beautiful. Kennedy- you are one blessed little girl to have a momma like this by your side! I especially loved the “If someday in the future, I find out you are doing the bullying,
I promise still to hold you, to listen to you and to help you understand how you are hurting someone else” part. It is not often something we think about (at least I don’t), loving our child through being hurtful to others. But it is equally as important. I am printing this letter out as an inspiration to myself to be the best mom I can be to my little one and to keep my promises as her mom daily. Thank you SO much for sharing this!
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Hello! Thank you so much for posting such a thoughtful comment! It is hard to think of our kids doing wrong, but we have to be there MAYBE EVEN MORE during those times to teach them the right way to go! I am so happy you found this letter helpful : ) Loved your post too!
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This is such a lovely, poetic letter for your daughter. I think it is so easy to assume our kids know that we love them and would do pretty much anything for them. But, it is nice to have it all written down to help them (and us) remember.
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Is Kennedy your sweet little girl in the photo above? What a wonderful note to her. Have you read this out loud to her yet? I bet she’d think her Mamma is the best – not that she doesn’t already 😉
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Hi Nancy, thanks for stopping by! That is Kennedy in the pictures and I haven’t had the chance to get her little 2.5 year old self to sit down long enough to read it, but I definitely plan to! I want her to be able to read this for years to come : )
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Aaww what a beautiful letter! I hope to do this someday for my future children too. I wonder what I would tell them? Maybe like you, I can also tell them about my fears of them facing the real world.
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This is something really special. What a lucky little girl to have a mom like you! Sweetest things, almost shed a tear, lol. We do our best to raise our children to grow up to be respectful and amazing. What an amazing thing to teach them.
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This is truly beautiful. You are such an amazing mom and your daughter is very blessed to have a mama like you. Not many would be as honest as this. I tell my son all the time, sometimes I just don’t have it in me. Thankfully he understands now that he’s a bit older. I truly love this!!! ❤
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What a lovely lovely letter! Truly heartwarming! I am sure Kennedy will treasure this forever! Thank you for sharing something very dear.
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Thank you Cara for reading and commenting! I am glad you liked it and I truly hope Kennedy does as well : )
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I loved this so, so much!! It is just beautiful, it brought tears to my eyes, lol! I feel the same way about my little boy. Especially the first part about worrying about how to protect them forever – ahhh!! Your daughter is truly blessed to have a mama like you.
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Thank you Jessica! Truth be told, I cried while writing it, because I think at the end of the day it is a pure, gut feeling for all of us moms : ) I am blessed to be her mama.
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I lost my mom recently and she was my best friend. Your letter really touched my heart and brought back a lot of memories as my mom so good to me. Your daughter is so very lucky to have a mom like you and I want to thank you for this touching article. As I was reading it, I got goosebumps!
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Susie, I am so sorry about your mother and I am honored that this post spoke to you. Stay strong and remember the beautiful memories you have. ❤
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This is such a beautiful letter to your daughter. 🙂 you can really see a mother’s heart. i hope i can be this loving towards my kids when / if we have them.
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What a very special post, and you definitely covered everything nicely. Some of the things that especially stood out to me was ‘explain the difference between a boy and a man,’ ‘cookies of your choice’ (smile), and ‘ I have a thousand thoughts a day, but you are the center of them all.’ Kennedy is very lucky to have you as a mama.
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I have a little daughter as well. And I wish I could express my thoughts and feelings in such beautiful way. My favorite part is this one, “If someday in the future you become a mother,
I will weep at the understanding that you will finally know the love I have for you.” Thank you!
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