Un-Bake times 10...

For those of you who don't know, I have nieces and nephews. The first niece I had (I wasn't the father, but hopefully you know what I mean) has the name of Jaedyn. When Jaedyn was first able to start talking, I was her favorite uncle (maybe because we happen to have the same maturity?). She would always call me Un-Bake. Basically, she couldn't say uncle or Blake, so I happen to be un-bake. It didn't bother me at all.

Well, as of 11:37-ish yesterday, I am now an uncle again. My steph brother josh and his wife trina had their child. A little boy named seth. So, if My count is correct, I now have 10 nieces and nephews..

Jaedyn, Samantha, Nathaniel, Kylie, Brooklyn, Tristian, Bethany, Ethan, Aubrey, and Seth...

What is so sad, is that while I love all of them dearly, I wouldn't bet my life that I got all their names right.. Heck, when nathaniel was first born, I could have sworn that his name started with a W. So, needless to say, my small group of the time called him Wathaniel. Funny people they are..

Playing with kids makes me incredibly happy. I guess one of the things I enjoy most is them laughing. And since un-bake is the coolest uncle, he makes them laugh often. Something about pure joy, I guess.

That got me thinking. Lately, I have been incredibly happy, or even joyful. When I notice something, I like to look at the happenings behind the new realization. Here is what I have discovered.

1) I love the sun. I think one of the best things about the valley is the fact that the sun shines almost all year. I love light, I love the warmth of the sun. I just enjoy being out there.
2) When God works on your heart, it sucks. He changes who you are in your core, and its hard to change, but the end result is pure, and more centered on Christ.
3) Along with God working on your heart, another result is confidence in where you are. For instance, I know God ultimately has everything in my life under control. Whether it be work or personal, He has only the best for me, and that is a relief.
4) I feed off of other people, and lately, the people I have been dealing with at work have been happy. So when they see my bright and smiling face, they can't help but smile, which makes me smile... so on and so forth.

I am still a work in progress, and always will be. But there is something very comforting about knowing that you are headed in the right direction. It is contagious..