[Verse 1]
No one ever told you it would be like this
That you keep on getting older, but you feel just like a kid
Now they treat you like a lady
Sometimes all you want is to cry like a baby
In your mama's arms

[Chorus]
Hold on, little big girl
Hold on

[Verse 2]
See her in the mirror in your make-up case
Who's that little girl with the lines on her face
Painting on the eyes of a grown woman
And the smile of a child trying to please someone
You look like your mama when you smile that way
Standing in the kitchen at the end of a working day
Children on her mind, wine on her breath
Finishing the dishes in the darkness

[Chorus]
Hold on, little big girl
Hold on, little big girl
Hold on, little big girl
Hold on

[Bridge]
Hold on a minute, mom
Tell me why
How come I feel so small sometimes?
I thought by now I'd have it all figured out
Well I don't
How come you never told me?

[Verse 3]
You grow up by mistake
Grow up by surprise
Grow up underneath the gaze of many grown men's eyes
Try to act your age now, but you don't know how it's done
All grown up and somehow still afraid to disappoint someone
Let him have his way instead of saying what you want
Hold on
Tell him it's okay instead of telling him what's wrong
Hold on
How come you're ashamed to show your face without your make-up on?
Maybe you should face that you're ashamed to not be young

[Pre-Chorus]
Standing in the kitchen
With a ticking clock
And you catch your own reflection
In the window in the dark
And for a moment, it's your mama
Coming home from work
Tell her you love her
Tell her you're her

[Chorus]
Little big girl, hold on
Little big girl, hold on
Little big girl, hold on
Hold on