A Daddy’s Wish For His Newborn Daughter

I am so grateful for a loving God who knows the end from the beginning and who expects us only to give our very best. He knows our hearts and He cherishes our souls.

Just a week ago, my husband and I were privileged to bring a little girl into the world. She is our first daughter and the third after two little boys. This birth has been unique and special in many ways, but as we have contemplated the blessing of being parents to a little girl who would grow someday to become a woman, our thoughts have dug deep.

I cannot think of a better time in the history of the world for women to be born. Women now more than ever have nearly every avenue and opportunity open to them. Opportunities for education are especially plentiful. For that reason I am especially grateful that my little girl is born in this time.

There are also unique challenges associated with this time for women. The internet especially has increased pressures for women to look a certain way. With more time on our hands than ever before with all of the modern conveniences provided making home life easier, we have more open avenues than ever to choose how we will spend our time.

As I have prepared for my daughter’s birth I have pondered on what I hope for my daughter. As any parent hopes, I hope more than anything that she will be happy. I hope she will choose a life of gratitude and giving. I hope she will be confident yet humble, strong yet meek, a woman who loves to learn and share her knowledge and wisdom with others. I hope she will have the great blessing of being a wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, and friend. I hope she will choose a life of fulfilling relationships. I hope she will work hard and become the very best she can become.

As my husband and I prepared for her birth, I asked my husband to write down the hopes and dreams he has for his daughter. What he wrote was so tender that with his permission I would like to also share his thoughts here. Here I quote directly from a brief sketch of his writings.

“I hope you will understand your innate value in God’s eyes and that you will love Him and His Son. I hope you will come to understand what He wants you to become and that you will dream big, but also stay well grounded. I hope you will love life and that you will live with gratitude and full of awe at God’s creations.”

I love what my husband wrote. It seems that every good thing hinges from first, the relationship we have with our Creator, second, the relationship we have with ourselves, and lastly the relationship we have with others. Relationships are so important, which is why I suppose we were sent to live in families.

I feel profoundly grateful that I was born in a home where I was loved and cherished. I am grateful that my parents nurtured me: body, mind, spirit, and soul. I am grateful my Mother and Father gave me wings to fly, to become just what I hoped and dreamed I could ever become, that they gave me opportunities to learn and to grow. I am grateful that my Daddy told me often not to worry about being any different looking than I was, that I was “just right”, that he never focussed on my looks, but rather valued my work ethic, my mind, and my creativity. I am grateful that my Mother pushed me but with great love and kindness to become the best person, first spiritually, then morally and intellectually and socially that I could become. I am grateful she taught me through her example to be kind and loving, patient yet firm. I am grateful for ten older siblings who set a high bar and standard for me to follow. I’m grateful for their continual encouragement, love and support.

This is what I want for my little daughter. I hope that as a family we can provide for her, the same love and nurturing that I was given, and my husband also was given as a child. I want her to find joy every day in life. I want her not to feel the pressure of being an adult, until she is one. Rather to help her prepare each day to develop the skills that will enable her to be as ready as she can possibly be for that time.

While I recognize that not everyone is born into such loving circumstances as I have been, I am so grateful for a loving God who knows the end from the beginning and who expects only to give our very best. He knows our hearts and He cherishes our souls.

We love you sweet little girl, and we wish the very best for you. As parents we only hope the best for our children. We know that many failures are a part of the journey, but it is through failing that we also grow and learn. I am grateful for a merciful Father in Heaven who sees our efforts not necessarily our outcomes.

Invitation: Write a list of hopes and dreams you have for your children. Then prayerfully write a list of goals for yourself to enable you to help yourself and your child achieve those goals with divine help. Come back to them on a weekly or monthly basis and account for how you are doing.

Please share your thoughts or experiences below.