Jelly Bean.

S, my adorable lil niece, called me the other day to tell me she missed me. I almost cried. Again. Sigh.

Now, these last two posts may lead you to believe that I'm a total kid-person. Let me admit something. Children and I do NOT get along. Never have. To all my friends with kids -- I'm sorry, but it's true. I may have tolerated your kids, even found them entertaining/funny, but we never got along. It's not that I don't really like kids, but I just don't get them. And, kids, being infinitely wise in their own ways, must always be able to sense that truth. Anyway, bottom line, I'm not a kid-person. At all.

But with S, it's just different. Maybe it's just blood. Maybe being there since the actual beginning -- I helped deliver her! -- just makes all the difference. But even if that were true, that would only make sense on my end. But with S, there's a mutual love and understanding. It's simple. We just adore and love each other unconditionally. And more than that, we get each other...and thus, we have fun together. S is 4...but speaks to me like an adult. She's calm, sweet, honest and articulate. Mostly, though, she just melts my non-kid-person heart.

The night before she left, we had a long goodnight talk. She explained that she would miss me when she left the next day...and we discussed being able to talk on the phone, mail things to each other and video chat online. She told me she knew that I loved her and she loved me too. And JB too.

Who's JB? JB is Jelly Bean. That's what the hubs and I call the lil parasite, er, I mean baby that's growing. Jelly Bean who lives in my Jelly Belly. Silly, I know, but for us it was better than always saying "baby" or "it" or whatever.

So as S was bidding me goodnight/goodbye, she hugs me for the millionth time, then, as I stand, she kisses my belly, says, "goodnight Jelly Bean" and looks up at me with those impossibly darling little slits she has for eyes...and I melt.

Perhaps I'm turning into a kid-person after all.