The Beginning

When I found out that I was pregnant , it was one of the happiest and most exciting moments of my life. I was awed by the fact that I had a living being growing inside of me. I spent hours visualizing what my baby would look like, talking and singing to her, caressing her, and beginning to plan for our new family.

However, as my love for my baby grew with each new day, so did my apprehension about whether or not I would be a good mother. Would I know how to take care of my baby? How would I contribute to her happiness or unhappiness? How could I make sure that she treated others well, that she felt secure, that she was on the right path? What was the right path? I became overwhelmed thinking about the responsibility of being a good parent

I started to think more about the way in which my parents taught us, how they made us feel loved, and how easy it was for us to communicate. During my pregnancy I was inspired to make commitments to myself about how I could emulate what I had learned from my parents, as well as from other family members, ancestors, friends, books and from my own experiences in life. My hope was to give our baby a childhood filled with wonder, magic, adventure, and mystery. And I felt intuitively that the time to start was while she was still a part of me — I somehow knew she would be listening.

So I started to write down promises to myself and to her. These promises were inspired by all the love and hope that I felt for her and by the anticipation of who she was going to become. As I wrote, I realized that each promise was inspired by something that I myself had actually experienced or learned. I started to write down the stories, memories, and lessons that I wanted to share with her as she grew up, as well as the values and intentions I myself needed to be reminded of as I faced the challenges of parenting.
 
As a result, I have pages upon pages of notes, letters, stories and quotes that I want her to one day see. This blog will be a work in progress, and I will continue to add all my thoughts and feelings as I go.
 
If your reading this, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I got out of writing it. Or at least a good chuckle out of my idiosyncrasy.
 
Thank-You in advance for taking the time to read The Things I Want Her to Know.
 
Shannon

credit: M.C