I love being an aunt. I think it is the greatest job in the world. I say it is a job because I think it is. As an aunt, you are an extension of their parents with the lessons and rules that they are expected to follow, but you are also a mentor and teacher for your nieces and nephews. 

A few weeks ago my two nieces spent the afternoon here with my at my condo. After giving them lunch we embarked on the fun part of the afternoon. They both took turns being my ‘teacher’ and having me practice my alphabet in upper and lower case, getting marked on my homework (getting an “x” when I didn’t do my upper case “J” properly), doing arts and crafts, and then of course the main event – making cookies. That is a tradition that my mom started with the children in her life coming to her house at an early age. All from scratch, cracking the egg, putting in the sugars, flour, vanilla – the whole deal – and of course what is more fun than eating the dough as you go along? haha…I digress.

I love every minute I spend with my nieces. They are not ‘babies’ anymore, which makes every visit interesting, to say the least. Zoe notices EVERYTHING, and will call you out on something if she sees fit. Everyone, including her, knows that my love for purple, and she even notices when I am NOT wearing something purple, and comments on it. When we went to Mexico for my cousin’s wedding I told Zoe that a “kiss” in Spanish is ‘beso’ and I would say to her, “give me a besito” which means a little kiss, or a peck. She started to kiss on both cheeks, and that is the way we always kiss. It is ‘our thing’ and it makes it special just for us.

And then there is Jaime. She is so different to Zoe and also such an amazing young lady. She is serious, and funny, and everything rolled into one amazing girl. We went to the dollar store and I had to buy a notebook for work, and I bought her one, and she took it home and started right away to do ‘her work’. She constantly wants to know, “how do you spell…this or that”…and is always watching and scoping out the scene, taking it all in.

And now my boy….Ezra….he is six months old now, and laughs, and smiles and changing so fast. I am looking forward to seeing what kind of boy he will be; how he will manage with the two girls; and what it will be like to be an aunt to a boy now, instead of just ‘the girls’.

As I said at the beginning, I think being an Aunt (or an Uncle) is a job. It is a job that starts the day your first niece or nephew is born, and you have that job for the rest of your life! I can’t wait to see how the job unfolds. Bring it on Zoe, Jaime and Ezra…I am ready for you!

Love Auntie Lisa (1)