It was an emotional time when the announcement of my niece's birth came about. I was sixteen and my sister had just finished high school. It was January so I was super excited to have another baby be born in October, just like me. I had no idea what being an aunt meant, especially since both my sisters were pregnant at this point.

My niece Hayden Kayleigh was born on August 2, 2014. She weighed three pounds and two ounces. Premature and I was scared. Not only was I scared, but my sister Jordan, her mother, was scared. Hayden was born two months early due to my sister having pre-eclampsia. My sister's body was physically shutting down due to this life inside of her.

My sister is a strong, independent and beautiful woman. I don't think I could have gone through what she went through in order to give birth to one of the greatest gifts that could have ever been given to this world.

Hayden went into something like an incubator right after she was born and that's where she stayed for almost two months. She had to continue the growth of her lungs, she had to learn how to eat on her own, to breathe on her own, how to do everything a baby needs to do in order to survive. Her diapers were smaller than the size of a tube of chapstick and her hand could barely grip onto my finger. But the moment I saw her blue eyes in that small chamber, I knew she was going to be a fighter just like her mom.

Hayden is now three and a half years old. She's energetic, wild and hilarious. She loves Doc McStuffins and Sophia the First. I never thought I would know the theme song to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse but here I am humming it as I write this. She loves ice cream and more than anything she loves her family.

Being an aunt means I pick HayHay up from daycare and I make her breakfast, lunch or dinner. I pick her up when she falls. I give her medicine when she's sick. I get to tickle and laugh with her. I give her baths and I watch too many cartoons with her. But not only am I an aunt, I'm a God Mother. That little girl is my little girl, too. She is wonderfully made.

Jordan, you did good. You made and raised a beautiful little girl and you're a great mother.

Seeing Hayden go from three pounds then to two pounds and then up to twenty pounds and more has made me so grateful.

Visting her in the hospital meant I had to pull a Grey's Anatomy scene where they scrub their hands for like ten minutes to make sure they're cleansed properly before surgery. I had to do the same. I had to scrub my hands and arms before I was allowed to touch my niece or even be in the same room with her as a baby. We were scared she would be underdeveloped her whole life, but we were proved wrong with this beautiful, strong little girl.

Being an aunt is rewarding in the little ways that she says "I love you Aunt Alex" or "Where are you going? I want to come." Coming home from school is exciting because her little grin makes it worth the three-hour drive. She runs to me and hugs me, but sometimes she's so caught up in her toys. She makes the little things the big things.

I've never been asked the question "Why?" more than when I'm with her. Like "why do you eat ketchup?" or "why is pappaw older than you?" or "why are you going back to school and leaving me?"

Honestly though, at the end of the day, the best part about being an aunt is that I get to give her back to her mom -- that's when she's extra whiny and Aunt Alex needs a break.

I love you, Hayden Kayleigh.