A Little Backstory

I'm not their mom. I don't have any kids of my own. But let me tell you something: I love the hell out of these babies. I'm their nanny, yeah! I'm also their dance partner, snack dealer, emotional support human, and personal comedian…But I wasn't always Auntie. I wasn't always wiping noses and shaking my ass to toddler karaoke. I wasn't always someone's safe place.

Once upon a time, I was just a girl trying to figure her shit out. I had big feelings, loud opinions, and no idea where they fit in the world. And then came these two tiny humans. Squishy, wild magic. My niece and nephew, but more than that. They made me Auntie. Not just a title, a transformation. Now I'm the woman who keeps spare snacks in her bag. The one who sings off-key just to make them laugh. The one who will throw hands if someone threatened their joy.

I'm the woman with the sensitivity that lets me read their moods before they say a word. The bossiness that keeps the schedule running like a daycare military operation. The weirdness that lets me joke about poop and still be taken seriously.

Every day with these kids is a full-body contact sport. I'm lifting, chasing, rocking, redirecting, narrating, wiping, spinning, soothing, and laughing all at once. If I had a step tracker, it would file for disability. There's always music. We don't just listen to music. We become the music. Sis is twirling like she's in a freaking Disney reboot and Bubby's got the rhythm of a man who's lived a thousand lives. And me? I'm out here dancing like I've got a Grammy on the line.

I used to think I wasn't “enough” to raise kids. That I was too chaotic, too emotional, too different. But now? That chaos is magic. That emotion is empathy. That “too much” is exactly what these babies needed. And maybe, just maybe, it's exactly what I needed too.