My baby girl turned 6 in February, so I wanted to write a little birthday wish to my daughter. I can’t believe she’s 6 already. It honestly feels like yesterday that she was born. There are many moments when I mourn the fact that they are getting older – that I’m done having kids.

I miss the baby phase and the toddler phase. My baby girl was a tough baby, she had really bad colic, but I still miss it.

She’s still a tough one, but I hope she’s always tough. She is strong-willed and opinionated. She fights for what she wants, she may even boss you around, but that strength and determination is what is going to get her far in life.

I guess I shouldn’t be so surprised. She’s a lot like me in that way. She can be shy, sweet and loving, but she can also be sassy and out-spoken.

My friend once told me she’s my karma. I don’t know about that. But maybe she is – she challenges me, but she also makes me better. I want to be a good mom and a good woman for both of my kids. They look up to me, she, especially, emulates me. So I need to be better.

The love I feel from my daughter is the most precious love. It is so pure. She tells me every day how much she loves me and I know she means it. Often, I think about ways I need to act and be as a woman so she learns to be strong, to be confident, and to love herself. I want to be the best role model for her so she never has the self-doubt I have.

When I think about what I want for my daughter, I want her to have a better life than me. But not just that, I want her to love herself unconditionally.  I want her to know she’s enough – she doesn’t need anyone to make her whole. It’s something I struggle with a lot, and I don’t want her to have those same struggles.

I want her to know she’s perfect, just as she is. No matter what happens, she is always going to be more than enough for me. She also needs to know that I believe in her and I know she can be and do anything she sets her mind to. She is special and she is loved beyond measure.

This little birthday wish to my daughter is just a way for me to look back on all she is. To remember what a firecracker she is and how blessed I am that she’s in my life. My G. I love you more than you will ever know. You are my best girl.