Today I will continue and introduce the rest of my nieces and nephews; again, in age order from the oldest to the youngest. I will mention here that my sister, Connie, owns 50% of my nieces and nephews. I have three sisters, two of them have a boy and girl each; Connie has two of each.... fifty percent! I like to tease her about it. She knows I refer to her kids as the “gaggle”. She also knows I love them very much.
Julie is the mother of the two oldest kids, Diane and Reynaldo. Connie is the mother of Cristina, David, Willie, and Emily. Phew! Bertha is the mother of Daniel and Angela. Like I said, I love them all!

David: The words to describe him would be helpful and caring. He proved himself to be a gallant young man a couple of months ago. His sister, Cristina, was in very hot water with their mom (I must admit that part of it was my fault, but that is another story) and was grounded from using the computer indefinitely, a very big deal when you’re a teen. Knight-in-shining-armor David to the rescue! Now, I have to say, I personally didn’t witness this but everyone has confirmed its validity and I must tell the story. David approached his mother and advocated for his sister, thereby gaining her a pardon and the prized computer/internet privileges. This was very gallant and admirable in my eyes for he could have said nothing. The punishment would not have affected him in any way. Way to go, Dave!

Daniel: Happy-go-lucky little boy. Always has an impish smile and a gleam in his eyes. This story was told to me by my sister and is one to cherish.
My sister related that while she was in her bedroom, Daniel, seven at the time, ran in and explained that he knew when we, the world, were going to die. Knowing Daniel, she simply rolled her eyes but he was insistent. She stopped what she was doing to follow him into his bedroom for the proof of his reasoning.....the calendar. He turned the pages to December and pointed to the 31st.
“See, Mom, the last day! No more days after that. After that we will die.” When my sister told me this, it took a few minutes for me to stop laughing.

Angela: This little girl, with a heart of gold for everyone, especially her brother, will be a different child when Daniel starts dating. Daniel has been her playmate since she was born and they are very close. She loves him dearly and I have seen how she has suffered watching him play with someone other than herself. The time I’m thinking about was when all the cousins were at my house for a summer. Daniel, as well as all the other kids, was playing outside and having a great time. Angela sat inside, on the staircase, looking so forlorn, refusing to join in the play because Daniel was playing with Willie.

Looking into my crystal ball I can see that any girls Daniel dates will probably pass inspection with his parents. Angela’s inspection? Good luck, Daniel!

Willie: I didn’t have too much luck with the three youngest children of my sister, Connie, in that they did not want anyone looking at them, much less carrying them. Willie was no exception. Here was this adorable pudgy little baby that needed for me to hold and kiss him but I had no such luck. Until he was two and one-half! That was a memorable day for me.

I met my sister at the Museum of Natural History in the city. She with her gaggle, I with my Limited Edition. Willie was fascinated by the dinosaur bones as long as he was a very safe distance from them, and everyone else.

The timing must’ve been written in the stars because he was alone in his stroller as the other kids were viewing the bones from the second floor mezzanine. Willie wanted to see them as well so I cautiously approached him. When he didn’t cry, I reached for him. To my surprise, he raised his arms so I could pick him up! Wow! Not only did he let me carry him and talk to him, he didn’t even say a word when I planted a big smooch on his pudgy cheek!

Emily: She is definitely a little lady well aware of how much she is loved. My favorite moments with her are when her family stays at my house. I love when she asks me to feed her “beksis” (breakfast) or when she wants to help clean the canary’s cage. But I cherish the moments that she spends time standing on the sofa while my husband sits there and she grooms him with her play scissors and brush. To me she is Emi-ly, who is only one plus three!

“Children are living jewels dropped unsustained from heaven.”
~ Robert Pollok