My New Niece

My sister Vic and Equation Boy/Man had a new baby this week!  We went to see her on her birth day and both Nat and I got to snuggle a bit with her.  I even changed a diaper - as good Uncles should do. This is my fourth niece and I have three nephews.  My folks now have eight grandkids! EIGHT!

I know Vic and Marc are thrilled, but secretly (or not so secretly) Nat and I are probably equally excited that they had a girl.  With the Babe being only 3 months old, she'll be right on pace with her cousin who lives down the block (literally!).  Two girls will grow to be a lot closer besties than a boy and a girl would.  

If we're (Nat and I) excited, you can imagine that the new baby's older sister is equally thrilled.  In fact, we had to arm-wrestle the baby out of her hands because she wanted to hold her so much.  She's going to be a great big sister.

How fun will it be to be neighbors and cousins!  I know I was never very "close" to my cousins - and I'm not exactly sure the reasons why it worked out that way.  I suspect that because we weren't in school together, we naturally grew our own independent friend network.  Sure...we played GI Joe's at Christmas time together in my Aunt Barbara's basement, but we didn't stay "close".

When I was holding their new baby yesterday, my mind raced back to the day the Babe was born.  I had a hard time remembering her being so small.  They say that they do "grow up fast", but looking back on the last 3 months, I can attest that the statement is true.  The Babe is like a tank compared to the newborn.  A wonderful, beautiful, smiling tank.

Congrats, Vic and Marc.  She's a beaut!