Let It Go Aunt-style

Oh my gosh, this video shared by my sister-in-law hits home on so many levels!  It's been a tough week being away from my NC niece and nephews and while many other things have been keeping me busy, during the quiet moments of the day I miss the sticky little arms wrapped around my legs from when they would give me hugs, the smiles from Baby Nick as I entered the room, and dare I say the having to sort out who should be sharing what toy among the older kiddos.  I miss seeing Mason snuggle up with Dusty while saying he was, "the best dog ever", and Clark's mischievous little twinkle in his eyes as he told me a story.  Braden, the daredevil, is the one I thought of when the woman in the video sings about not wanting to see one of her children in a cast...!  

Yes, the last four years were drastically different from life before the year 2010 in more ways than one.  For starters, there were only two children when I started my PhD program but now there are four!  As far as the younger two are concerned, I have always lived with them since they were born during my first and third years.  While it will be nice to be in my own place again where I can host a dinner party whenever I might like it is going to be a lot quieter and perhaps a bit lonely if I'm honest with myself.  One of the greatest honors of my time in NC has been to be a live-in aunt and getting to be a part of the daily lives of those beautiful babies.  Anyhow, it was great seeing both the PA and NC niece and nephews (and my goddaughter from Pittsburgh to boot!) this past weekend.  I look forward to hopefully seeing more of my PA nephews this summer before moving to Ohio.

In the meantime, I hope all you parents and other caregivers enjoy this humorous parody of my niece's favorite song.  Keep up the hard work; our kiddos need all the love they can get!