The day I met...

As many of you know, I have 3 nieces and 1 nephew. I thought it would be fun to revisit the day I met each of them.

Miss M was the first born in the family. I waited and waited for her arrival. I was so excited to meet her. I was in college at the time and when I got the call, I immediately went to see her. She was so small and she smelled wonderful. I made a promise to myself that I would be a part of her life; that I would make knowing her a priority. She changed my life forever.

The second born was Little D. She was born on a frigid day. M and I were together when my brother-in-law called with the news. We did a happy baby dance and practiced holding and feeding a baby doll. We met her the next day. She was so precious. It was so cute to see M holding her, being the big sis. We knew early on that she was a cuddler. She still is. It's amazing how much capacity we have to love.

The third born is my only nephew, S. They don't live here, so we all went to meet him together. It was hard to wait a few weeks! He was such a sweetie. I'm always amazed how small they are. We stayed a few days during that trip, and then a month later, my Mom and I went back for a week. I'm so glad we did this. We were able to get to know him better and hold him for as long as we wanted. I'm sad we live so far apart, but I'm happy that we get to see each other as often as we do. I make every effort to see him on his birthday and I take care of him and (now his sister too) when his parents travel.

The last born is Miss A, the baby of the family. Like me. We all traveled to see her too. She was so beautiful. Everyone wanted to hold her. When I finally got the chance, she was wide awake, looking around and smiling. I remember when my niece first saw her, she said her heart was going to burst. I couldn't say it any better.

For each new miracle, I made the same promise to myself that I did with my first niece; that I would make knowing each of them a priority. I'm so glad I did. I've said this before, but they are 4 of the coolest people I know.

Now, when we all get together it's such a joy to watch the cousins play together. We might go months without seeing each other, but it doesn't matter. They always pick up where they left off. I have a great family!