I have a confession. Before Valentina’s first birthday, I cried for weeks on end while playing Elisa’s “A Modo Tuo” on repeat. I would sob uncontrollably thinking about how she was growing up so fast and listening to the perfect words of the songstress.

I have since not played this song even once, because, even though I find it truly beautiful, it still makes me break down in tears. However, I have added to my collection of “songs that make me emotional” when thinking about being a mom, parenthood or my daughter. So, in honor of her second birthday, I am sharing my list with you. Warning: listen with tissues handy!

I put all of these songs in a playlist on Spotify, which you can listen to by clicking here!

1. A Modo Tuo – Elisa

This for me takes 1st place and always will. The song is about her daughter learning to do things and growing in her own way. 

Best lines:

Sarà difficile diventar grande

Prima che lo diventi anche tu

Tu che farai tutte quelle domande

Io fingerò di saperne di più

Sarà difficile

Ma sarà come deve essere

Metterò via i giochi

Proverò a crescere

(It will be difficult to grow old, before you grow old too,  You who  ask all those questions and I pretend I know more than I do… It will be difficult, But it will be as it should be, I’ll put your toys away and try to grow up too)

and:

Sarà difficile
Dire tanti auguri a te
A ogni compleanno
Vai un po’ più via da me

(It will be difficult, to say happy birthday to you, when every birthday takes you a little further away from me)

2. Per te – Jovanotti 

Jovanotti wrote this song for his daughter. It’s about how everything now, is for her.

Best lines:

È per te il profumo delle stelle

È per te il miele e la farina

È per te il sabato nel centro

Le otto di mattina

È per te la voce dei cantanti

La penna dei poeti

(It is for you the scent of the stars, It’s honey and flour for you, It’s for you a Saturday in the center, Eight in the morning, It is for you the voice of the singers, The pen of the poets)

3. Tutto tua Madre – J-Ax

J-Ax shares the difficulties he and his wife had in having a child in this song. It covers everything from the pain of miscarriage to the joys of fatherhood, and dedicates it all to his wife.

My favorite lines:

Ora so che dietro il caos c’è un senso più profondo

Sei nato a febbraio lo stesso giorno del nonno

Mamma incredula temeva che fosse un miraggio

E i primi mesi ti ha tenuto giorno e notte in braccio

(Now I know that behind the chaos there is a deeper meaning…Your incredulous mother feared you were a mirage, And the first few months she held you day and night in her arms)

(and my other favorite lines:)

Quand’è che ci fate un figlio? (Eh?)

Tutti la stessa domanda

Io trattenevo la rabbia

Perché avrei voluto spaccargli la faccia

Avevo perso da mò la speranza

Non sopportavo più tutto quel dramma

Ad avere coraggio ci pensava mamma

Tra medicine e le punture in pancia

Messo alle corde anch’io

Pensavo alla religione

Se un figlio è un dono di Dio

Forse questa era la mia punizione

(When are you having a child? (Huh?) Always the same question, I was holding back my anger, Because I wanted to smash their face, I had lost hope for awhile, I couldn’t stand all that drama anymore, Your mom took care of having courage, Between medicines and shots in her belly…I was thinking about religion, If a child is a gift from God Maybe this was my punishment)

4. Celeste – Laura Pausini 

This instead is a song about being pregnant, about the maternal 10 months carrying a baby inside of you, and the emotions and questions that go with it. It is raw and poignant and perfect for anyone expecting.

Favorite lines:

Ti aspetterò

Senza andar via

Come fanno già le rondini nell’aria

Nella terra mia

Che invecchia, ma

Sulla scia di un’altra età ballando sogna

Mentre la tenera luce dell’est

All’alba illumina speranze e ginestre

E il cielo è così celeste

(I will wait for you, Without leaving, As swallows do in the air In my land, Who gets old, but In the wake of another age dancing dreams, While the tender light of the east, At dawn it lights up hopes and nature, And the sky is so heavenly)

5. Da Adesso in Poi – Ligabue

Where the other songs were mostly about the joys and sadness of being parents, this song is about the anxiety of becoming a parent. Ligabue is a true poet and captures the feeling of worrying about not being enough, for your children. (Fun fact: Ligabue wrote my first song on the list – A Modo Suo – but wanted it to be sung by a woman so he gave it to the artist Elisa)

Favorite lines:

Per te e per noi

Per te, per noi

Non so se sarò pronto mai

Prova a esser pronto tu per noi

Ascolto mi insegnerai

Che puoi, che vale la pena vivere

Ti chiederò dimmi perché

Tu che non parli dirai

Vale la pena vedrai

(For you and for us, For you, for us, I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready, You try to be ready for us instead, Listening, you will teach me, That you can, that it is worth living, I’ll ask you tell me why You who do not speak will say It is worth it, you’ll see)