A mother and daughter from Federal Way are behind a new children’s book.
I Love You Just Because was written by Catrice Dennis and illustrated by her oldest daughter, Asiyah Davis.
Dennis was inspired to write the story after the birth of her fourth child.
"I call it this ‘divine download’ that came to me and I was like, ‘Oh I just love you, I love you just because,” she said. "Then I just started thinking about all my children and just the whole journey that got me to that point. And then something hit me - you might want to write this down."
She filled notebook pages with examples of unconditional love. But the story felt incomplete without illustrations, so Dennis turned to an artist she believed in: her oldest daughter.
"Since I was a kid, I've always liked drawing flowers and people and I used to create little fake books and draw pictures with them,” Davis said.
At her mother’s urging, she illustrated the story while attending college.
"I lost the love for it for a while and now, this whole book process has helped me regain that love and have the confidence to pursue my art,” she said.
The words and drawings landed Dennis a small publishing deal, and I Love You Just Because is now available online and at local stores.
"I was just in amazement because when you put a little action into something, it manifests," Dennis said. "Other people are impacted by these very simple words that I wrote and that just blows me away."
She hopes her expressions of love will become part of an even greater story.
"Starting young and teaching our kids to say these powerful things about themselves only helps them become better human beings and will only help our world become better,” Dennis said.
The book is available on Amazon and at Columbia City Art Gallery in Seattle, Marlene's Market in Federal Way, Positive Vibes in Federal Way, Evergreen State College in Olympia,and EyeSeeMe Bookstore in St. Louis.