I have sat here for the past 30-ish minutes trying desperately to figure out what exactly I wanted to talk about tonight when something my eldest niece said this weekend jumped out at me. We had been to take to fall pictures down by the lake and when we got home as we all climbed out of the car she said to her mom "I miss Uncle Steve". Let me tell you that just broke my heart right then and there. It wasn't the first time she has said that and it won't be the last time I am sure, but how do you respond to that? Thankfully my sister came right back with "we all do". It does not surprise me that she misses her uncle even if he wasn't in her life for that long and didn't really truly get to know her like I do, he still loved her and she sure loved him. I will never forget the day of our wedding... let me set the scene for you... 

From where this was taken everyone was there on the grass watching... About midway through my niece realized something.. this GUY she didn't know much about was taking her Aunt Ash away from her, so far that she couldn't visit me whenever she wanted too. I remember looking up to Steven crackin a huge grin and giggling as my dad was speaking and I raised an eyebrow thinking I had missed some little funny dad had said and didn't get a chance to ask until later that night what that grin was about. When I did ask him his reply was this "oh you didn't hear her... She realized I was the bad guy taking you away from her and she started crying saying that she wouldn't get to see her Aunt Ash anymore". Let me tell you folk's I have a huge soft heart for this girl... and I nearly lost it when he told me this because I had battled for month's on if we should move to West Virginia or stay in Arkansas. West Virginia won... of course. I have this thing for adventures you see.... 

Anyway we lived in WV for almost a year till we moved back here in June 2012 and so she really didn't get to know him well except for when we came down for Christmas. 

I realized he had finally won her over in Feb of this year when we took her out for her birthday. Since we had missed her last one being so far away we decided to take her out to Krispy Kreme and she wanted shrimp from Captain D's. So that's what she got. While we where out we took her to Hasting's to get a book but as it turned out.... she and steven bonded. Over, of all things, Comic books. The thing I knew nothing about and she knew nothing about, but once she found out they had TMNT comic's she was all over that stuff. I forget how long we stayed in that store but after that day every time she climbed into my car she would grab up one of the many many comic's in the backseat and read away. After that day they got along perfectly fine. 

That is one of the best memories I have of the two sillies together... Always with their heads in a comic book till we got to wherever we where going. So whenever she tells me she misses her uncle all I can do is grab her up in a huge hug and whisper how much I miss him too and remind her how he is watching over us.