5 Things I Learned from My Best Friend's Children

One of the greatest things about being a best friend is when your other half pushes out a little spawn. That's when things get real. Everything changes; your relationship with your better half, their life, the time you spend together. Everything you never thought would change when you were kids changes. The plans of living together for the rest of your lives (because people suck) are over. It seems tragic, but when you look at that little nugget for the first time, you realize nothing has to change. What does change is what's best for the child.

There's one thing I was never told when I gained tiny best friends. That thing was not only do they learn from you, but you learn a lot from them too. So here are five things my little nuggets have taught me, and hopefully this helps all of you soon-to-be big best friends.

1. You start taking better care of yourself.

Kids get sick easily. We all know this. But out of nowhere, you start to notice yourself taking some extra steps during flu season to not get sick. If you're like me, then getting sick is the least of your worries, but you can't see the kids while being sick, and not seeing them is worse than being sick.

2. Every day becomes a holiday.

It starts off as "oh, those are cute" and grows into "THIS IS SO COOL! THEY NEED THIS! AND THIS! AND OH, ALLLLL OF THESE!" Every. Time. It doesn't matter where you are or why you're there. If there is a kids section, you're in it. As they get older, you find yourself knowing all of the characters on different shows they like, who their favorite princess is, and what animal they think is the cutest. Who cares if you're a broke college kid? Gotta make sure your little BFF has it, and you stop caring about the fact that it'll end up in their closet or toy box in a week and they won't play with it. Seeing them smile is all worth it.

3. You start to change as a person.

Everyone will tell you that the parents change when a child comes into their lives, and as true as this is, you change also. You start finding yourself thinking about how you'd like the kids to see you. You are in this child's life, so now your actions affect them, too. Maybe not as much as the parents, but kids are sponges; little baby parrots. If they see you do something (or hear you say something), they will repeat it. You start making better choices. You watch you language around them. As time passes, you notice that you have become a better you because of them.

4. You are their family.

You've been there since day one. They know the sound of your voice as well as they know their aunt's or uncle's. To them, you are family. Every hug, every kiss, and every "I love you" is filled with excitement and pure happiness. Even though you and your best friend are basically sisters at this point, nothing means more than those small babies looking at you with all the love their tiny heart holds.

5. You start to love yourself.

I know what you're thinking. How can a child that isn't even mine teach me to love myself? Trust me, I know it's hard to believe, but it happens. When my best friend's first child was born, I was so deep in self-hatred, I couldn't even look in the mirror. I hated how I looked, who I was starting to become. I started shutting myself out, but then this little girl looked at me with her big eyes and her ear to ear grin, and from that moment on, I knew I never wanted her to see herself like I do, because to me, she's the most beautiful little girl ever. I started pushing myself to look into that mirror and remind myself every day who this is for. In the world we're in today, it's important for a little girl to have strong women in their life. Yes, they have their mother, their aunt, their grandma, but what about you? Be that strong woman she can look up to along side the others in her life.

One of the first steps I took was pushing myself out of my comfort zone. I always felt weird in dresses, so I put one on and wore it. All day. In and out of the house. "I do not care what others think," I kept telling myself. "I only care about being me." And a few weeks later, I wore one in front of my tiny BFF and she told me I looked like a princess. From that day on, every time I put on a dress, I feel like a damn princess.

So yes, it is possible for you to learn to love yourself because of a small child, and it's a damn good feeling.

You learn more and more from these little bundles of crazy as they grow older and start seeing the world on their own. Each day is one adventure after another.

So when you gain the title of "Big best friend," be prepared for your world to be turned upside down (in the best way possible of course).