There is no force as powerful in a girl’s life as a positive relationship with her mother. Although my interactions with my own mother and stepmother weren’t always the best when I was growing up, I still have evidence in friends and family that girls who have strong, positive maternal influences in their lives, thrive. I know that the women who took care of me did the best that they knew how, and as I got older, I appreciated the effort a lot more than when I was younger. Even with that understanding, I always knew that I wanted to develop a relationship with my own daughter that she didn’t have to wait to appreciate.

I want my daughter to remember laughing and spending quality time with me. I want her to hear my voice in her head as she goes to make tough decisions, remembering lessons that I shared and trusting me enough to believe that what I tell her is true. More than anything, I want her to grow up knowing that she is loved and can take risks because I will never, ever leave her alone or let her fail.

A few weeks ago, Ayva wrote me a note and said that I am “the shine” in her life. I was blown away. Out of all of the friends that she has, the fun activities, the toys, the games…me, her mama, I’m the shine.

I plan to live up to that.

Once again, I’m rededicating myself to my daughter. Focusing intentionally on creating a year of memories and experiences that she’ll be able to look back on when she’s older and remember me being there. There will be daily pictures, quality time, and a commitment to being intentional in the way that I raise her. As always I’ll be documenting it all here on the blog. I want y’all to join me! Tips, pics, encouragement…use the hashtag #365daysofdaughter to participate!

Let’s celebrate our girls, Mamas!

Read about last year’s #365DaysofDaughter project. Check out the hashtag on Instagram. Take a look at my daughter focused content for ways to be involved with and empower your girl this year.