This post was originally published on Her View From Home.

If a parent tells you they don’t have dreams for their children, they’re lying. From the moment the pregnancy test turns positive, your mind runs wild, and it never really stops. Of course, everyone wants good things for their children: happiness, love, and a family of their own. You constantly mull over your child’s future in your thoughts, wondering what their strengths and weaknesses will be and who they will become. It’s just our job as moms to worry—it’s what we’re good at.

I want you to be brave enough to make the right choices. And if it ends up being the wrong choice in the end, I want you to be brave enough to admit that.

I want you to value family. I want you to rush home at the end of the day to get to the dinner table and get the kids to bed. I want you to treat family as sacred as it really is.

I want you to be vocal in all aspects of your lives. But I also want you to know that words hurt, and once spoken, they can’t be retracted.

I want you to date with intent. I don’t want you to be frivolous with another’s feelings—that’s not fair to who you date, and it’s not fair to treat a relationship as anything less than what God intended. 

I want you to fail. Failure will teach you more than I ever can, more than books and teachers ever can. But, I want you to get back up with purpose and know failure is a step in the right direction. I will never let you fail so much you lose sight of who you are. 

I want you to always take the time to slow down—for your own mental health, for your marriages, for your children. The small things really are the big things and you don’t realize that until they’re gone.

I want you to always be a friend first. Set aside your differences with whoever is in question and remember to love them as God would. 

I want you to be persistent in all endeavors. Whether it’s a lemonade stand or medical school, I hope you never slack. Character is built when you struggle, and I don’t want you to give up just because you’re disheartened.

I want you to experience love and not just in the romantic sense. I want you to love learning and to love others. I want you to see love as more than hearts and realize it can be passion for what keeps you moving. Love truly knows no bounds—just ask your mother.

I want you to know that questions are good.

That means you are learning. That means you truly do, somewhere deep down, have the faith to ask the hard things. You know there is an answer, and you aren’t afraid to look for it. God answers in a million ways, and I know if you are brave enough to ask, He will always answer.

I want you to be open with your struggles. You never know who needs to know they aren’t alone. You never know who can find strength in your story.

I want you to find happiness within yourself. I don’t want you stuck in a job or life that leaves you unfulfilled. Do what brings joy and never settle for less—even if the paycheck isn’t as grand as what others have. Never rely on someone else to make you happy.

More than anything at all, I always want you to come home. Please, never knock on the front door. I want you to burst in and lie on the couch and let your worries fade away. I want you to know I will always be waiting on you to come through the door, with open arms.