Sister Tag

Many of you have received the husband tag, but I thought I would deviate and do the sister tag.  Most of you know my sister and I are not very sappy, but sometimes you need to publicly express your gratitude, admiration and appreciation of someone.  So here it goes...

My parents had waited nine long years to get another perfectly wonderful child as my self.  One very hot summer in the tiny town of Coolidge, AZ we added Sarah to our family.  My excited of having a sister was soon extinguished as I realized I was now not the center of the world.   For many years, friends was not a word that described our relationship.  We were just family.

As I got into my teenage years, I became more and more enamored with this adorable toddler and elementary school child.  We would hang out at my high school games and go to do some activities together.  Still friends was not a word to describe us.  We were a work in progress.

Once I moved to AZ and Sarah was still in WI, we got closer.  As Dan and I lived together and would bring Sarah out to AZ to visit we developed some great memories.  Dan and I took her to Vegas, for many late night escapades, then to Disneyland and CA.  It was fun to be the older sister providing fun summer experiences for her little sister.   But we were still at very different stages in our life.  

As I got married and settled into adult life, we spoke, but not with regularity.  Then Sarah became a parent for the first time and our worlds began to collide more and more.  It was amazing to be a part of her experience of having Reed and watching her develop into an amazing mom.  One I am still in awe of.   Amazingly, we had nine years between us, but aligned our adult lives to have children with 18 months of each other.  We vowed to visit and ensure the cousins were close.  Then she had Drew and oddly after six years, I found out I was pregnant and she found out she was pregnant with her third child, due only two weeks after me.  So now we have two kids that are only 18 months apart on either side and two that are only weeks apart.  

With the kids and husbands we have become closer and closer.  I was inspired to learn to blog from here, create fun activities for my children and create community service opportunities for my children.  I was able to watch Sarah as a parent and learn so many tips.  We almost never go more than a day or two without talking.  It is kind of weird to be the big sister who is always calling my baby sister for parenting advice, but I never hesitate to pick up the phone and call for advice. 

Just the other day, Sarah sent me an all about me forward email, and I cried when I read that I was her longest friend.  This meant so much to me, and enforced me the change in our relationship over the years -- we are FRIENDS!!!

I couldn't be luckier to have a sister and a friend like Sarah.  She is caring, compassionate and loyal.  I always know I can call on her when I need that extra advice or pick me up.  

I challenge anyone to find a better sister!!  I only wish we lived closer so we could do more with our families.    Love you!!!!