After 22 years of living, I’ve come to realize that there is one person in my life who I can count on no matter what. My mom has been there for me through thick and the thin since day one. Whether it was something massive, like helping my decide what college I should go to, or something small, like what top I should wear on that date with that boy I really liked, she has made my life infinitely easier.

I wouldn’t be where I am today without her love and support. This list could, in fact, go on forever, but I’ve narrowed it down to the most important.

Here are 11 things every girl should thank their mom for:

1. She is the shoulder to cry on in any given situation.

I don’t care how old I am or how far away from home I might one day be. If there is ever a problem, I know my mom will put down whatever she is doing, whether it is important to her or not, and listen to me sob for an hour about whatever is bothering me. Regardless if I’m sad that I’ve just gotten a poor grade on a test— it was the end of the semester and I was stressed. I deserved that cry— or I’m just feeling really down about who I am as a person, I know for a fact my mom will sit there and listen to my cry it all out.

2. She is the best advice giver.

And after I’ve sobbed to my heart’s content, she will put on her “mom hat” and give me the world’s greatest advice. Big or small, I can always count on my mom to sit me down and bequeath upon me her wealth of knowledge.

3. She tells it like it is.

Sometimes, that wealth of knowledge will say things that I don’t want to hear and sometimes that wealth of knowledge will say things that I already knew, but have been vehemently ignoring. Regardless, my mom is not one to hold back, and she will tell me what I need to hear whether I will like it or not. Most of the time, I won’t like it, but I always come out of it a better person.

4. She knows everything.

There has never been a time in my life when I have called/texted/sent a smoke signal out to my mom and she hasn’t had some kind of answer for it. Lost your keys? She knows where they are. Not sure how long that thing goes in the microwave for because the instructions are vague? Not only does she know, but chances are, if she's up, she'll put it in the microwave for you. Car making weird noises? Half the time my mom doesn’t even need to hear the weird noise before she knows exactly what is wrong and how to fix it. I’m assuming this is “mom magic” and I will acquire it someday when I have children, but until then, I will sit in awe every time.

5. She is always down to spend time with you.

I am a woman of simple needs and wants. An exciting Friday night for me consists of sitting on the couch and binge watching Netflix shows until I fall asleep. I am not ashamed to admit this. However, because I am 22 and most of my friends are also 22, their idea of a fun Friday night involves a bit more alcohol. Which is fine, more power to them. I know that my mom is always down to spend a night on the couch watching stupid TV shows with me until the wee hours of the morning. I also know that she is totally fine with going to the mall and spending all day out and about too. There is no one more ready to spend time with me than my mom, and there is no one I would rather spend my day with.

6. She is the biggest cheerleader you will ever have.

I would be hard pressed to find someone who genuinely wants me to succeed more than my mom. And I know that when she says “You are doing so well” or “I am so proud of you” it is entirely selfless. There’s no hint of resentment in her voice, she’s not secretly upset that I am doing better than her. She’s honestly just really proud, and sometimes, hearing that is the thing that gets me through the day.

7. She has seen you through every bad decision.

My mom has known me my entire life, obviously, and in that time, I have made several (hundred) bad decisions. I have befriended people who I shouldn’t have befriended, I have made a bigger issue out of things that I needed to, I went through the weird emo phase that every high schooler went through and she paid for the clothes and the haircuts that went along with that. Despite all of this, she has never left my side or told me what I was doing was wrong. Sure, she put in her two cents when she thought I needed it, but even when I went against her wishes, she understood that I needed to make my own mistakes.

8. She is your best friend.

Yes, my mom is my parent and she has done whatever she has felt is appropriate as a parent to raise me for the last 22 years of my life. Despite that though, I’ve never felt like I couldn’t go to my mom with whatever issue I had. I never felt like I had to be self-conscious when I asked her a question and I’ve never felt like I’ve had to hide any parts of my personal life from her. Whether it’s a silly question about my outfit, or a more important question about what I’m actually supposed to be doing with my life, my mom is there.

9. She will always give you the last piece of cake.

I can, without a doubt, guarantee that my mom has wanted the last piece of cake more than once, and has ended up giving it to be because I made an off-hand remark two days ago about how I really wanted that piece of cake.

10. Even if it’s embarrassing, she will call that store back and demand you be treated with the respect you deserve.

My mother is a force of nature, and when someone disrespects any of my family (me, especially) you can bet she is on the phone in a matter of seconds, and you can bet she has the manager personally apologizing for any wrongdoings they might have caused. I can only hope to be as fierce as she is one day.

11. She’s shown you what real strength is.

Whether it was staying up until 5 a.m. because I was sick with the flu and kept throwing up, or holding it together because she knew I needed to cry after my grandfather died even though she desperately wanted to cry as well. My mother has been the one person I look up to when I think of real strength. Sure, she isn’t Wonder Woman, but I’d wager that my mom’s ability to keep a cool head while she struggled to teach me simple accounting principles is up there with Wonder Woman trying to defeat the God of War. You can try to argue with me on this, but you would be wrong.