Hi,

I've been raising my nephew for two years now. He's four next month and the light of my life.

I have to say that it was difficult to start over at this stage in my life. I quit my career to be a stay at home mom again after raising my two daughters.

For a while, I really grieved. Even though he was/is a joy to me, I greived my losses at the time. At this same time, my father passed away without ever meeting him.

It can still be difficult dealing with his parents, and their disabilities (mental/emotional). Many times when the beautiful, meaningful or just plain cute things happen, I cry for them. They have no clue what they're missing. They haven't even called to see how his first two weeks of preschool have gone. It hurts my heart. He wants to see them, but not often. I limit his time there to a few hours per week. It breaks my heart that I have to call them on his behalf, and then sometimes be the bad guy by saying "not today".

When he first came to me, he found security and had to be pulled from my arms to go with others...parents as well. His little mind knew that I was safe and that he felt safe with me. He's now doing much better with that and displays himself as a very secure little boy. He knows that mom will keep him as safe as possible.

This beautiful, intelligent, witty little boy is missing nothing in his little world, though. I'm mom. My hubby is papaw. Yes, you should see the looks when we're in public and he's calling me mom and him papaw.

It's less a struggle now than ever. It's as if I bore him myself. He's my life just as mine were. He's my little man.

There are days that are hard though...when my TN is acting up, or I hurt all over from Fibro and feel my age, I wonder if I'm going to be everything he needs and pray that I'm given the strength that I need.

That's my life as a caregiver for my little man...the most perfect littlest man in the world.

KD