I don't get to see my nephews much anymore every since I moved from Atlanta to Lake City. I get to see them maybe twice a year and even then my younger nephew Nick is usually sleep so it doesn't really count. Seeing a family member sleep is like looking at a picture of them. A snoring, drooling, incoherently mumbling picture.

I have two nephews and I love them to death. They are the only people in my family that are younger than me. All my other family members were already alive when I was born. I has been a thrilling experience to watch my nephews grow through the different stages of life. Of course, some stages are more thrilling than others.

The early baby stages were not very thrilling. All my nephews did as babies was sleep and cry. At least thats the way it seemed to me. I'm sure they also ate and pooped, but whenever possible I was far away during these periods. I learned very quickly that when it comes to sheer grossness (if that's a real word) watching a 1-year old eat is rivaled only mammal childbirth and maybe that episode of Fear Factor where they ate blended sewer rat. I've seen pictures on Rotten.com that turned my stomach less. And we won't even start on the pooping.

Once my nephews started talking I was able to get along with them better. My younger nephew, Nick, who is three, can now speak fairly well. Last time I saw him he could say a few words. Now he has a whole vocabulary. It's quite astoinishing to hear him say something like "Uncle Tim I want to play the train game" in perfect english. Last year he would have just grunted and pointed somewhere in the general direction of the computer. He also sings. My Dad tried to get him to sing 'I've been working on the Railroad'. He preferred Fat Joe's'Lean Back'.

My oldest nephew, Frankie, is now 8. I had to ask him how old he was when I started writing this article, because I always forget.

"Frankie, how old are you now"? I asked. "Seven or eight"?

"Eight." he replied, with an expression of total disgust on his face. "I can't believe you thought I was seven"

I apologized for making such a mistake. I know that confusing an 8-year old with a 7-year old is an offense paramount to confusing Spiderman with Batman, or SpongeBob with Shrek. I've learned over the past eight years that age is a very sensitive subject for children. They say to never ask a woman her age, I say to never ask an adolescent either.

The older my nephews get the harder they are to wrestle with as well. When they were small I had to worry about hurting them. Now, I have to worry about them hurting me, or worse, me hurting me as I flee from them down the hallway in a desperate attempt to get to the bathroom and lock myself in.I've found that I have to prepare for they're visits much like an athlete prepares for the Olympic. I have to get my body and mind in shape. I run. I lift weights. I practice my Thunder Power Slams, Killer Elbow combos and tapping out. And I spend a lot of time on my sprints.

I have a lot more to learn and look forward to as my nephews get even older. Soon they will be pre-teens and then teenagers. They will even reach adulthood one day I suppose. One thing I do know is that no matter what age they are and no matter what phases in life they are going through I will always love them. They are My nephews, My family. And the best tag-team wrestlers I know...