Thirty-Eight

A few thoughts for Stella:

1.) Grow up slowly, enjoy being young. You will never get these years back, enjoy being a little girl. Pigtails, bows, smocked dresses, baby dolls, stuffed animals, naps, cartoons. The world around you will push for you to be a young women way before I am ready for it so please just enjoy at that it means to be my little girl.

2.) Girls do get dirty. I am talking about the dirt that God put on the earth. It is OK for you to play in it, roll around in it, have a great time in it. Dirt is not only for boys, Princess' also enjoy it.

3.) Don't let the boys win. You may be a girl and they may be physically stronger than you at times but you will always have a brain, use it. There is nothing wrong with being a smart, powerful women and if the boys around you don't like it then they are not man enough for you. Sports are not just for boys, if you want to play then beat them at their own games. Boys are not the only ones that can be leaders, if you want to lead then be smart enough to step up and do just that.

4.) A handshake says a lot about you as a person. It is one of the first things that a person will know about you, so much can be read into it. Make sure that they know that you are a strong, confident women even if you are not feeling it 100% fake it with that shake, they will never know.

5.) Make-up is a good thing but please remember that less is more. You are a beautiful person, the make-up is only there to help highlight that beauty not to create a mask so no one can see the true beauty that you are all on your own. Lets remember that your outside does not make you a beautiful person but how you act and treat others shines through to make you a glowing, sparkling beauty.

6.) Have faith in yourself. Have respect for yourself, if you don't respect yourself then no one else will. Whatever you are doing, were ever you are, be proud of what you are doing. Have faith in what you are, show that confidence to those around you. God made you to just who you are and would not have it any other way, have faith in the fact that you are being the best that you can possibly be in each moment.

7.) Choose your role models wisely. It is OK if they are not the number one singer of your time, if it is not the same person that all your friends think is cool. It is OK to march to your own drum.

8.) Don't be afraid to love. It is a scary thing for a girl to do, love. It is so hard to trust our heart to another because it can be so easily broken but when we find the right person it makes all those heartbreaks along the way so worth it. Don't ever be afraid to love another, it is one of the greatest gifts in life that we can give and receive.

9.) Don't be afraid to make fun of yourself. You are going to do some really silly things in life, you will belch on a date, you will pass gas really loud at the wrong time, you will make an incorrect statement, you will fall down stairs, you will trip. These are all just part of life, just laugh at yourself. Tell your girlfriends about, I can guarantee that they have all done something just as silly and you will get a good laugh out of it. There is nothing better in life than laughter and to be able to laugh at ones self only makes you stronger.

10.) Expect the man in your life to treat you like a princess. Your father raised you to know that you deserve to be treated like royalty. I do not mean that he needs to drip you in diamonds, buy you extravagant gifts, it would be nice but what I am saying is he needs to treat you right. Open doors for you, pull out your chair, surprise you with a flower, listen when you are talking(and really hear you), make you feel like you are important, tell you how wonderful you look when you are in sweats and a pony tail, be there for you in bad times not just fun, make you laugh, picks you up when you are down. A man that treats you like something of value, that wants you to walk with them not beside them is a man that you will want by your side forever, never settle for anything else. (At the same time you better remember how to treat a man, with respect and kindness, your mamma will come after you if you don't)

11.)Be a Godly Women. No matter were life takes you, what you do, how much money you make, what material possessions you own remember that you would be nothing with out the Lord our God. Stop each day and thank him for all that he has given you, spend time in his word not matter how much is going on around you always make time for him.

12.) No mater where you are, what you are doing, who you become, I will always be here, you can always come home. My arms will always be open, my heart will be full of love,