Hippo Hooray...turning 3!! Retrosketches #52

On Sunday, my niece turns three.  Three! I can't believe how quickly time has flown; I can't believe that there was a time when she wasn't in our lives!  Truly, I'm amazed at how her presence has transformed my life - actually, the lives of all of us, who have been touched with the presence of this little girl. She's 'the first' - first grandchild for my folks and my sister-in-law's parents; first niece for me; first born (my nephew will be one soon...and he'll have his own 'post' later on).   Before she was born, I confess to having zero knowledge about small children, so infrequently did I cross paths with anyone shorter than four feet!  Being an 'aunt' wasn't something I ever dreamed I'd be.  Then, my brother married my sister-in-law, and two years later...

Along came my niece.  One glance and I was 'done.' Smitten.  Heart given and heart taken.  She is full of fun and frolick; a tumbling, giggly, darling blend of sweetness - and sometimes 'brat' - whose presence adds so much texture and dimension to my life.  Love her?  Only absolutely!

My niece's third birthday is my inspiration for Retrosketch Challenge #52, celebrating its '52 birthday'  with a  'choose your own adventure' style challenge, drawing from all the past sketches.  Selecting which sketch to follow was challenge #1!  After plenty of hemming and hawing, I made my choice:  Retrosketch #13 
Here's the sketch:

and here's my card - with the 'official debut' of my new Paper Smooches stamps!! Yayyyy...

My niece LOVES polka dots, so what's an Aunty to do, but...use polka dots!  The sketch calls for a tag-topping bow, however, given that anything 'ribbon' sees me 'unravel' (bow challenged! Even my bow easy doesn't make the task easier. I'm klutzy!), I opted for the leaves as an alternative. Artistic license?  Hope so...

I can't resist sharing close-ups of my new stamps; they're just soooo adorable. The hippo is pure cutie-patootie, while                  the leaves are a perfect size to stamp or, in my case, to fussy cut...

If someone would have told me, years ago, I'd be an Aunty - and I'd love the 'position' - I'd have raised my eyebrows Spockian style and muttered, "Illogical."  Oh, how glad I am that 'logic' found a way, through the  most precious gift possible: my niece.  Happy Birthday, my girl!  Love, Aunty C!

Thank you for stopping by!  I wish you a hippo happiness day and weekend, wherever you may be!!