If I’m very very honest, I’ll admit that I was really hoping for a girl with my last pregnancy. I probably shouldn’t admit that. I love my son beyond belief and I wouldn’t ask for him to be anyone other than himself. But I really did want a girl. Not for all the frills and bows that I could dress her up in, I really could care less about those. But because I have a daughter already, and I wanted something special for her.
I wanted her to have a sister.
Maybe it’s just me and the house that I grew up in, but sisters seem to have a special bond. Admittedly, I have no experience with brothers as I was raised in a house full of girls. But as I’ve grown older, I’ve seen how special that bond is between sisters and how deep it can grow. I really wanted that for my daughter. The bond of sisters.
There’s something about siblings that is special. They get you like no other does. They know exactly where you came from and how you got there. They know all your quirks and your secrets as they both keep them and torture you with them.
With the large age gaps in my family, we didn’t exactly grow up as playmates. My older sister would challenge me to a race up the stairs at bedtime. Being eight years older, when she held me back so she could win, it wasn’t exactly a challenge (I STILL say that was cheating Kim!!) But she made for a great babysitter and confidant as I grew older. With my younger sister, I don’t think we got along, really, until I left the house for college. But I can still remember how after we’d been sent to our rooms for fighting (regular death-matches I believe), we would end up talking and giggling through the walls like we hadn’t just been trying to kill each other.
My older sister Kim, has been my go-to for parenting advice for as long as I can remember. She’s older by eight years, and she’s got it down! She’s my Love and Logic guru, and can come up with the best natural consequences! Most of her kids are older than mine, and she’s great at helping me see where things are going and the best way to get there. My younger sister Katie is also raising young children, (her 3 are between my 2nd and 3rd), and she gets what it is like to have these little people driving you crazy. She also fully understands the challenges of our family. She is my go-to when one of them is driving me crazy. You would think that issue would have been left behind with acne, but no, I’ve still got both.
They’re who I call. Even now. If my parents and their siblings are anything to judge by, my sisters are going to be important people in my life for the rest of my life. Which makes me pretty darn lucky. This is what I wanted for my daughter. Hopefully, my boys will manage to be close with their sister. And if they can’t manage that, they’ll marry women that can be. Because there’s nothing like that family bond-whether they’re blackmailing you with what you did or bailing you out for it. It’s why I wanted a bigger family, and why I’m really grateful for the kids that I have. I’m really hoping that twenty years from now, they’ll be really grateful to have each other like I am with my sisters.
Happy Birthday Katie.
And in a few weeks, Happy Birthday Kim.
I love you.