Three

When I left the States back in October, my youngest nephew Joey was a few months over two years old. He couldn't say "Aunt Shannon" so he just called me Sha-Sha (which was cute because that's what his mom used to call me when she was a kid and couldn't pronounce my name either). About six weeks later, I was Skyping with ToadMama, my sister, and all the kids. Luckily someone blogged about it because I just checked and it wasn't me. What isn't mentioned in that post, though, is that at one point during the Skype call, Joey ran over to the computer screen, grabbed at it, and said "Aunt Shannon, got your nose! Got your nose, Aunt Shannon!" before running off again. Ok, so that's cute because of the got your nose game happening via Skype, but the only thing I could think was, "When did he learn to say my name?! I haven't been gone for that long."


And now, today, Joey turns three. I realized way back in November that this little guy wouldn't stay two just because I was on the other side of the planet. I can only imagine how much he's grown (literally and figuratively) since then. I've missed it and that makes me sad, but I know I'll be home soon enough. Til then, Happy Birthday, buddy! And to use Joey's words: I miss you whole bunch! Someone give that kid a big hug and kiss for me!