13

My little (or not-so-little) nieces have turned 13. They've entered the exciting world known as the "teens". And I'm hit with feelings of nostalgia & old age. 13 yrs ago, I was merely a college student, trying to figure out my life.
13 yrs ago, I held both of them in my arms at the same time--one in each arm. I heard them wake up, one at a time in the middle of the night. And on their 1st birthday, I saw them sitting on the gift table at their party, looking very much like the gifts they were to us all.
10 yrs ago, I landed a job at a pharmaceutical company, took a semester off and worked full-time.
10 yrs ago, we went to the Children's Museum where they stood straight up inside a tunnel, painted their faces and pretended to be kings.
8 yrs ago, I finally graduated from college, had a fabulous celebration, made a job change, moved out of my parents' home and in with my sister & the girls.
8 yrs ago, the girls were scared by my voice loss on graduation day (I had celebrated the night before) and I heard Shazia singing (when she didn't think anyone was listening) Rolling Stones "you can't always get what you want but if you try sometimes you'll get what you need."
6 yrs ago, I made yet another job change and survived my first real broken heart.
6 yrs ago, the girls started playing soccer, or I should say standing on the soccer field, and I started dropping them off to school in the mornings with a kiss.
4 yrs ago, I moved out of my sister's and into the city into my very own place and missed driving the girls to school and having their chitter-chatter wake me on weekend mornings.
4 yrs ago, the girls helped move me into my new place, explore my new neighborhood, helped me explore my new neighborhood and walked down the aisle as beautiful flower girls at their mom's wedding.
3 yrs ago, they spent a weekend at my place & we went to see the Blue Man Group for their birthday.
2 yrs ago, they started joking they'd soon be taller than me.
1 yr ago, they were as tall as me, and they became sisters to a new baby girl.
Which of course brings us to the present with two beautiful girls starting their teens. And that's it for my walk down memory lane.