Jesus loves the little children...

and so do i.

if you were at my wedding you remember that i didn't have the traditional flower girl and ring bearer.

why?

because kids have always been a huge part of my life and i love them dearly. so i had a 10 kid parade!

there have been 2 incidents within this last month that have really captured my attention and made me thank the Lord for the little ones in my life.

here's a little about the children i love most:

my nephews: big and small. taylor, cade, and rowan. when taylor and cade were young we shared a special bond. i was young enough to play with them and old enough to take care of them. now, they are transitioning from childhood to becoming young adults. tear. rowan? he is a wild man. he is so smart and funny. my whole family loves when he comes to alabama. he lights up our lives.

jackson, vi, and elle: when i started working for the ross family jackson was 3 and the girls were 9 months old. jackson had a hard time with me at first because he missed his first love and nanny, marie. once he figured out that i didn't want to replace marie we became good buddies. he is so smart, kind, and compassionate. we used to race in the front yard, swimming pool, and down on the court. elle and vi were  the sweetest babies. i watched them learn to crawl, walk, run, use the potty, and write their names. i cherish those years and the time we had together on a daily basis.

rhett and sawyer: my best friend's boys. although rhett is little he has this deep voice that makes me smile. i used to imagine what our kids would be like and rhett and sawyer are better than i could have ever imagined.

tripp and landry: landry is my sassy little friend. she goes every where with me and talks as if she's a teenager. she and i share the same love for CFA. you never know what she might say or how she'll say it. be prepared to get a good laugh. tripp is a sports loving boy. he doesn't like toys or tv. he just wants to play outside. basketball, football, baseball; it doesn't matter, he just wants to play. he is so curious and fun to be around. i think marrying will gave me cool points with tripp. :)

naomi, elijah, jeremiah, and ava: kevin and susan's kids. when i met the campbell family jeremiah was just a tiny infant. next year he will start first grade. wow! these children bless my heart. they are total clones of their parents. i miss seeing them on a regular basis. never a dull moment at that house!

thank God for all the littles ones in my life. the second cousins and the new nieces i gained through marriage. can't imagine life with out them.

dateline

something happens when i run, walk, or hike a public trail (like torrey pines or the ladiga). i start seeing the most normal looking people as if they were subjects on this week's dateline. a tv episode in my mind. i'll see a normal man and think, "he probably has some grandkids, maybe he was a teacher, and then i'll think about his 'secret' life as a criminal or kidnapper." the funny part is i don't even watch much tv much less dateline. as a girl i guess those stories are implanted into our skulls at young ages. for good reason. john gardners are out there looking for the amber dubois and chelsea kings. random story but literally this kind of stuff plays through my head every time i'm out running or walking the pups (and carrying my pepper spray).