Being an Aunt changed it all..05.13.26

In 2004, I sat down to take the ACT for the very first and only time. As names were being called, I heard them say “Nelson” and immediately realized there was apparently another Nelson at my school.

Naturally, in the most teenage girl way possible, intrigued, nosy, giggly, and probably a little dramatic, I turned around in my seat to see who this mysterious Nelson was.

That was the first time I indirectly met Justin Nelson.

From there, I learned one of my good friends, J, knew him, and whatever a Scorpio considers a love story started unfolding after that.

Fast forward a few years. We dated. We grew up. We got engaged in 2012. We got married.

But something else happened when I committed myself to Justin.

I got five kids.

Five kids slowly and permanently wove themselves into the deepest parts of my heart.

When Justin and I first started dating, the oldest boy was freshly born. I remember meeting him for the first time, and Justin introduced him as his son.

 Immediately, I thought, “Oh absolutely not. We cannot date. You are irresponsible. You have a child. This is not going to work.”

And honestly? I was READY to end it.

Then a few weeks later, Justin finally explained, “That’s not my son. That’s my nephew.”

Suddenly everything was back on.

But if I knew then what I know now, in those weeks where I thought, “This isn’t going to work,” I would have never tried to end it  

Because marriage is hard. Relationships are hard. Building a life with another person takes work, patience, grace, and a whole lot of choosing each other over and over again.

But something Justin had that I had never really experienced before was family.

And when I tell you these kids became my family, I mean that with every part of me.

Affectionately, I call them my older kids because that’s honestly what they feel like to me. Somehow, God allowed me to experience the love of motherhood through them long before I ever thought about raising kids  

I got football games.
Dance showoffs.
Field trips.
Late night TV watching.
Random conversations.
Teenage drama.
Girl talk.

“o” talk. 
Laughter.
A little chaos.
Noise.
Love.

MUSIC, ALL the music.

And through all of that, these five kids helped shape me into the mother I would eventually become.

I thank God for them all the time.

I don’t know why He allowed me to become part of this family, but I am forever grateful that He did because they taught me what love can look like outside of biology. They taught me that family can be chosen, built, and grown.

To my older kids:
I hope y’all know how deeply loved you are.

You are hardworking, funny, and resilient, Most of y’all are kind, and I say “most” because honesty matters.

But truly, I don’t think the world is fully prepared for who you are becoming.

Watching y’all grow has been one of the greatest privileges of my life, and I hope you always know that there is somebody in your corner cheering for you LOUDLY every single day.

Thank you for shaping me into the mother I am. And thank you for loving me back.

 

That's the message :)

 

Don't be shy, Let's be social!

 

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