The Joy of Being Avi Lynne’s Mama

There are some people who come into your life and somehow make everything a little brighter, a little louder, a little more colorful, and a whole lot more fun.

For me, one of those people is Avi Lynne.

Being her mama is one of the greatest blessings of my life. I get a front-row seat to this beautiful little girl becoming exactly who God created her to be—and goodness, what a privilege that is.

Avi is the kind of girl who refuses to fit neatly into a box.

She loves all the frilly things. Give her a pretty dress, something pink, a little sparkle, and she’s happy. But don’t let the ruffles fool you.

This girl also loves skateboards.

She’ll trade the fancy shoes for cleats and head straight to t-ball or the soccer field. She can be sweet and delicate one minute and ready to run, climb, compete, and try something completely new the next.

And I absolutely love that about her.

Her interests are just as wonderfully Avi.

She loves Yoda, Mario, Stitch, and—most importantly at this particular moment—Teen Titans Go! Because when you’re little, we all know that today’s greatest obsession could be replaced by something completely different next week.

But underneath all those things she loves is an even bigger heart.

Avi isn’t only an incredible daughter. She’s a wonderful little sister, and somehow she’s an even better big sister.

Watching her love her siblings is one of those things that makes my mama heart feel like it might burst. She knows what it’s like to look up to someone, but she also knows what it’s like to have someone looking up to her. And watching her grow into both of those roles has been such a gift.

She’s loving. She’s funny. She’s independent. She’s determined.

And when Avi decides she’s going to do something, apparently the rest of us just need to get out of the way.

Case in point: she taught herself to swim.

She decided she was ready, figured it out, and took off. That’s Avi. There’s this incredible determination tucked inside that little girl. She may be wearing ruffles while she does it, but she’s going to figure it out.

That same determination is showing up in kindergarten, too.

Watching her learn this year has been amazing. She’s doing so well, and seeing her confidence grow with every new thing she learns makes me incredibly proud. There is something so special about watching your child realize, Hey, I can do this.

And Avi Lynne absolutely can.

I know there will be so many versions of her that I get to meet over the years.

The things she loves will change. Teen Titans Go probably won’t always be at the top of the list. The little kindergarten assignments will eventually become bigger books and harder math. Her feet will outgrow those tiny cleats. One day, swimming across the pool won’t feel like such a huge accomplishment.

But I hope some things never change.

I hope she always loves fiercely.

I hope she always has the confidence to try something new.

I hope she never believes she has to choose between being the girl who loves pretty dresses and the girl who loves skateboards.

I hope she keeps being silly.

I hope she keeps being brave.

I hope she always knows that being exactly who God created her to be is more than enough.

Most of all, I hope she always knows how incredibly loved she is.

Because before the swimming, kindergarten, soccer, t-ball, skateboards, Mario, Stitch, Yoda, ruffles, and Teen Titans Go, there is simply Avi Lynne.

My daughter.

Her sister.

Their big sister.

Their little sister.

A beautiful, funny, determined little girl who brings something to our family that nobody else ever could.

And I am so incredibly thankful that God chose me to be her mama.

Avi Lynne, you are one of the greatest blessings of my life. Watching you grow is an adventure, loving you is easy, and being your mama is a privilege I will never take for granted.

Keep being exactly who you are, sweet girl.

Ruffles, skateboards and all. ❤️