Reasons I love being a PANK

Yesterday I read an article in the Star Tribune. It was called "PANKs: Happy with the role of aunt." Apparently I had an acronym label and had no idea! You see PANK stands for Professional Aunt, No Kids. Yep, that's pretty much me. A workin' girl with no kids of my own, but auntie to my sister's kiddos. The article talked about women who choose not to have kids, but relish the role of being an aunt. That's kind of me, but not totally. I relish the role of auntie. But I haven't chosen not to have kids. It just hasn't happened yet that I get to be a mom. Someday. Just hasn't been God's plan for me...yet. But, I was pretty much born to be a mom, so I know I will be someday.

Anyway, getting back to the PANK business. Even though I wasn't like the women highlighted in the newspaper article, by choosing a career over motherhood, I still would like to think of myself as a PANK. Biologically, I have three awesome nephews and one precious niece. By marriage I picked up four more sweet nieces and one cutie-patootie nephew. So, that makes nine. The oldest is eight-years-old. The youngest just turned one. There's a seven-year-old in the mix. Four of them are in Kindergarten this year. The other two are...well...two. It all adds up to wheel-barrows full of adorableness.

Do you know what it really means to treasure something? To me it means to hold dear to something in my heart, to adore personalities, to tear up at the mere thought of any harm coming to my lovies, to rejoice in accomplishments. For these reasons, I treasure my nieces and nephews. I don't use that word lightly.

So, here are my reasons I love (and treasure) being a PANK:

1. All of the fun, very little of the responsibility.
When you're an auntie, you get to take kids to the park, the Twins game, have sleepovers, go to McDonald's, take them to Grandma and Grandpa's for the weekend, play video games, go rollerskating, and all sorts of fun things. What you don't have to do is enforce bedtimes, give timeouts, get them to eat their veggies, break up fights, or administer punishment. On a regular basis, that is. I've spent so much time with my sister's kids, that I've had to do all of those things. Just not very frequently, and certainly not every day like their parents do.

2. Being a cheerleader.
I get to go to the t-ball games, the Christmas programs, the Awana year-end awards, the school concerts, the dance recitals, buy the stuff from fundraisers, ooh and aah over the latest art project. I love supporting the nieces and nephews, and with all they can be involved in, I'm sure there will be events to go to for years to come. Seeing them achieve something they've been working on or learning...it makes my heart swell with pride every time.

3. Presents!
I absolutely LOVE buying birthday and Christmas presents. I put a lot of thought into it and usually what I give is a hit. There have been a couple of clunkers, but not too many. I just really get a charge out of giving gifts. I used to give my sister's kids gifts, for no good reason. For a while it was at a point where I would walk in their house and one of my nephews would always ask, "Did you bring anything special for me?" And I would take turns...sometimes I would give something for all of them. Sometimes I would bring something for just one of them because when I saw it, it made me think of that particular kid. That has tapered off in the last couple of years as the budget has grown tighter. But I still enjoy giving birthday and Christmas gifts. I just love it when my sister or sister-in-law says, "So-and-so really loves the flibbity-floop you gave them." Score!

4. Quiet.
Sometimes after spending time with my nieces and nephews, I go home and just sit for a couple of minutes in  our house in the absolute quiet. I know our house won't always be quiet, once we have our own family, but I  appreciate it now while I can.

5. There's very little incidents of getting puked on.
Just once. I know my sister has been puked on multiple times. My time will come, but for now I'm glad it's not me.

6. The bond.
Oh, the bond. On this point, I could write pages and pages. There is no other relationship like being an auntie to your sibling's kids. Especially when you're close to your siblings. Especially when you're not a parent yet. My sister will never know what it's like to be an auntie before being a mom. It's kind of a treasured thing. I'm still getting to know my husband's nieces and nephew. We're at the beginning of creating memories together. But my sister's kids...I've been there since it was announced they were on their way. I've had a front row seat to watching their personalities unfold and develop. At some point in their lives, every single one of them has gone through a phase where they would RUN to me when I walked through their door. There is nothing like the bond I have with them. My husband's nephew is a similar bond though, because I have been around since it was announced he was on his way. And it's a bond that allows me to tease. I'm a teaser. I like to joke around. The other day I said to one of my nieces, "What up, Homeslice?" She didn't even acknowledge me...she's so used to my teasing.

7. Practice!
For a long time I have referred to my sister's kids as my "practice kids." I have changed countless diapers, prepared lots of meals for them, taught them songs and games, played LOTS of board games, laid the smack down when they were naughty, given baths, driven them many many miles, and kissed owies. More than once I've been mistaken as a mom when I've been out and about with one of the nephews or niece. I don't think you can ever really be fully prepared to parent, and I know that when I am a mom, there will be many times I feel inadequate. But, I've got a pretty good start in getting a glimpse into what the day-to-day part of parenting looks like. I won't have to go into parenting blindly wondering, "What's Dreft? How do I make a bottle of formula? When do babies start eating solids? Why does my infant son's shirt keep getting wet when he pees? What's a Baby Bjorn? What's a Boppy? What's a Bumbo? Do we need all of these oddly named things?"

8. Being an involved auntie got me a husband.
I had to wait 36 years to find out how God would bring me to my husband. How would we meet? It was because I'm an auntie. I decided to volunteer at our church in the children's ministry, once my nephew was old enough to get involved. It was through this ministry that I met my sister-in-law. Who told me about her single brother. Who I eventually met. Then dated. Then fell in love with. Then married. Huge pay-off for being a PANK.

9. I get to be behind-the-scenes, praying these kids into the people God wants them to be.
Many many many prayers and blessings have been spoken for and over these little ones. God has great things in store for them. I know it.

So, there you have it. Nine nephews and nieces, nine reasons I love being a PANK. I look forward to developing my auntie role with my husband's siblings' kids. (Follow that?) I've been their auntie for only five months. Two of them live far away, and I wish they lived closer. Not just because they're my nieces, but they are good little girls with sweet hearts, sweet smiles, and sweet faces. I'll have to strive to get to know them better in a more creative way, because they aren't as accessible as the local yokels. Er, I mean, the ones that live near me.

And this thought just hit me...if I'm a PANK, I guess that makes my husband a PUNK. I knew it.