Saturday, June 13, 2009

Things To Remember

Have there ever been little quirks about people that you thought you'd remember forever? A particular saying or habit or whatever? I got to thinking about my nieces and nephew, and how quickly they're growing up, and how easy it would be to forget the little things that were unique to them as smaller kids.

My first niece . . . the first niece or nephew is special. It's really the first time you feel that kind of love that can only be between your sibling's child (or children) and you. You get to spoil them excessively and be the fun one. When she was really small, she'd say "hippohommas" instead of hippopotamus. It was too funny! And one night she told everybody we were having roast beast for supper, instead of roast beef. She used to be very quiet and shy, but as she grows up she's coming out of her shell, and we're having lots of fun together. She really loves helping me with the dogs, and even picked up the dog poop in the yard last time I was away - without anybody asking her! She's extremely smart, and math is her favourite subject. How cool is that?

My second niece . . . the first biological niece. Her family came to live with us for a few months just after she was born, so she's the first baby that I spent any real amount of time with. Her first word was "soup!" and she would grin and laugh like crazy when we said it. She has always said that Farley was her bestest friend, but she does love all of the dogs, and they adore her too. She loves gummies of any kind, and will eat almost anything at least once. She is very closely bonded with my dad (her poppa), but she loves everybody, and always wants to talk on the phone with us. She was a super good baby. Her terrible twos weren't a lot of fun, but she's a great kid now.

My third niece . . . . actually the oldest of the group, but she came third. She's a really neat young lady that is in between being grown up and a kid still. She tries to be cool, but sometimes I catch her playing with lego or watching cartoons and thoroughly enjoying herself. Her love is horses, although she likes dogs and cats and other animals too. We get along well because I treat her like an adult, and I think she appreciates that.

My nephew . . . the only boy (other than my brother), he has his fair share of issues. Legally blind and deaf in one ear, as well as a host of other issues, he's had to fight to survive. He's a pretty hearty kid, though, and is catching up quickly. He's walking now, which we weren't really sure would ever happen. If you say "Should 'a had a V8", he will smack himself in the forehead, just like the commercial. It's too funny.

My fourth niece . . . the youngest of the crew, she is one of us through and through. Give her some food (or a bottle) and she's happy. She is a very good baby - she almost never cried the whole time we had her over Christmas. She loves to snuggle and hug, and she has a beautiful smile. She's always hungry (just like us!) so she often tries to steal her brother's cookies, so he's constantly defending himself from her. But it's okay, because he used to steal her bottle when she was too little to do anything about it.

The kids grow up so fast that I feel like I'm forgetting as much as I'm seeing every day. I don't know what compelled me to write about them, but I think it's about preserving memories, so I don't forget who they were, even as I continually re-learn who they are.

3 comments:

Brenda said...

What a great tribute to your neices and nephew! I wish I would have wrote down more when my kids were that age. Your second Neice's first word being "soup" made me LOL!

Visichy said...

Good idea getting these thoughts on paper (or blog) now as in the future the memories will be faded or gone.

Starmoni said...

You've got the right idea. Keep writing things down while they are fresh in your memory. A couple of months ago I found an assignment I wrote my Freshman year of high school about my niece. After her death last year it was wonderful to read this paper and remember things I had forgotten from 15 years ago.