There are no books out there about how to be an aunt, so the only thing I knew to do when I found out I was going to be one was to look at the role my aunt had in raising me. She loved me as her own and has taught me life lessons that I will hold with me forever. The most important thing she has done for me, though, is teaching me how to be the most amazing aunt I could ever dream of being.
An aunt holds such a special place in the lives of their nieces or nephews. You are not their parents so you can spoil them. However, you are not their grandparents who only spoil, so if the situation arises, you can step up and discipline them as well. My aunt taught me how to be the perfect combination of these two and that is something that I am forever thankful for.
My aunt has always been someone that I can completely open up to about any event that there is going on in my life. She taught me that this is a very important key detail about your relationship with your niece or nephew. There are going to be events in their lives that they need an adult for but don't want to talk to their parents about. When this happens, it is important that they know you, as their aunt, are always open to listen and give advice about anything.
I have sometimes wondered how I will ever love another child more than I love this one. What am I going to do when I have one of my own? My aunt has shown me through having one of her own that the love is completely different. It's almost like God made a special place in your heart just to be filled by love for -- and from -- your nieces and nephews.
My aunt taught me that the sacrifices for your niece and nephew start at a very young age. I can remember watching my aunt pour herself a drink and me assuming that even though she was pouring it, the drink was just as much mine as it was hers. I now get to watch my niece's eyes light up the same way my aunt watched mine, anytime I have something that she wants.
I love to get a good night's sleep, but I will easily give that up for little feet in my back at three a.m. and a sweet wake up call when the sun comes up because since its awake we should be too. When I am laying in bed with my little person I remember the nights that I would steal all of the covers from my aunt and she would act like it was no big deal. Or Christmas mornings when she would get woken up not long after she had gone to bed simply because I wanted to see if Santa had come yet.
I honestly love my niece like she is my own, and having her makes me so much more grateful for the love that my aunt has for me. It's not like a parent, you don't have to love this child as your own. But I have come to realize from both having an aunt that loves me unconditionally and loving my niece as much as I do that being an aunt is one of the best titles you can have. If you are really lucky you will also have a niece or nephew that love you just as much as you love them..it may just take them becoming an aunt or uncle to truly appreciate your love for them.
And I'm so happy to announce that come June 2016, I will get to welcome a new niece or nephew into this world! Congratulations to my sister and brother in law on their second baby! Thank you guys for continuing to bless me with these special little ones!
