(46/52) LIFE LESSONS ON LOVE...

every day another lesson is learned.

on kindness, forgiveness, compassion, patience, help, and/or fun.

you teach me as i teach you.

we learn together how to grow in love each day.

 i pray our unconditional love for one another

reminds us how to love others well all our lives.

you teach me so much.

and i am thankful for each of these day.

(38/52) TWENTY-FIVE...

There have now been TWENTY-FIVE years of Sara Kate.

That also means TWENTY-FIVE years of getting to be a sister

(in my head we will now both be TWENTY-FIVE forever).

SKL, You are loved TWENTY-FIVE times TWENTY-FIVE

times TWENTY-FIVE times TWENTY-FIVE.

And you always will be.

"HAVING A PLACE TO GO IS A HOME. HAVING SOMEONE TO LOVE IS FAMILY. HAVING BOTH IS A BLESSING." -Donna Hedges

three years ago adelaide and graham moved into the same room.

(original photo taken by lisa woods photography)

one year ago they began their extremely specific requests for

a bunk bed, a loft bed, and that mae move into their room.

we told them it probably wasn't going to happen (i was in denial mae was ever leaving her crib, we didn't want to mess up the arrangement of kids that all slept well, and other logical reasons). but the more we listened to their requests, the more we realized this season might be fleeting and the lure of potential sibling bonding and memories won out.

however, not even a week after we bought the bunkbeds (and had them hiding until build time in the garage) adelaide came in and asked if she could have her own room someday. i panicked for one minute, texted evan, and he said talk to her about it secretly and see if she still wanted her own room if the bunkbed dream was about to come true. as soon as i whispered the plan to her she giddily declared once again she wanted to share a room altogether. she kept the secret so well for over a month. we didn't let her when the switch would happen so there was still some fun surprise for all.

so one sunday afternoon in june, i took the kids to the grocery store, costco, and a birthday party where we spent many hours at chuck e. cheese. meanwhile back at the house project bunkbed immediately went into play.

four generous newlywed friends gave their sunday to make this surprise happen. they along with evan (who had already spent the rest of his weekend painting all the pieces) took down two twin beds, assembled two bunk beds, and set up the room exactly as i had envisioned in order to be reveal ready upon our return. and it did not disappoint! 

the big kid slumber party just got even more entertaining with another roommate.

of course there are plenty of hurdles with this new setup too, but we are jumping those one at a time. and for the first time in six years we have a guest room again, which is wonderful and already been put to good use.

my favorite thing in the big kid room (other than obviously the three kids who sleep there) are their pillow shams. i barely sew and i barely quilt, but i was determined to use their outgrown monogrammed items and turn them into a fun personal touch for each. i used this great pillow sham tutorial for the pattern. and as for the quilting, i learned a lot about patience. i am just stubborn enough that after many late nights (and an abundance of creativity to fix my mistakes along the way) they were eventually finished. in the end the labor of love was worth it.

"Siblings are the people we practice on,

the people who teach us about fairness and cooperation

and kindness and caring." -Pamela Dugdale

A SNAPSHOT...

sometimes i see others' snapshots and think i can imagine the whole scenario around it. but a snapshot is defined as "a brief look" for a reason. at a glance you see four smiles and a successful cart full of groceries.

not pictured: the clock reading 10:20am when we made it out the door. the drive-thru for breakfast. the diaper blowout of the year. the broken sunglasses tantrum. the spit-up on my happy, happy, happy shirt (which adelaide picked out for me). the tight pants. the life lesson(s) on whining. the innocent aisles and bystanders the giant car cart bumped.

also not pictured: the high school grocery store employee who took this picture, helped load all the groceries in the car, and shared the awesome lessons her momma taught her about helping one another. the voices in the backseat praying for our friend having surgery. the siblings singing to the crying baby- "sweet girl, sweet girl, whatcha gonna do when we come hug you?" (to the tune of bad boys, bad boys). the simple giggles. the eager "helpers" to unload the groceries once home.

it's safe to say a snapshot is just that, a snapshot of any moment. but my memory holds all these details and more when I look at this still frame. mostly it holds gratitude.

TIC TAC TOE, THREE IN A ROW...

To the outside world, we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters.

We know each others hearts. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys.

We live outside the touch of time. -Clara Ortega

adelaide, graham, mae,

the moment you were born

my heart grew again, and again, and again.

you each add spice to our family

and unexplainable joy to our lives

in your own unique ways

and in your own perfect timing.

you are a gift

every day.

i love watching your relationships with one another.
i love your similarities and your evident uniqueness.
i love you. and you. and you.

Siblings are the people we practice on.

The people who teach us about fairness and cooperation and kindness and caring,

quite often the hard way. - Pamela Dugdale

PARTY OF FIVE...

throughout our hospital stay we were blessed with visits
from many who were so excited to meet you little miss mae.

no one's excitement could possibly compare
to that of your brother and sister.

adelaide and graham stayed at our house with
poppa, grammy and sara kate the four nights we were at the hospital.

every evening they would come visit and the joy was contagious when they entered the room.

the first night they came they opened big sister and big brother treats.
they loved the shirts, bracelets, my little pony and thomas train from you.

when it came time to leave the hospital we dressed you in your coming home outfit.

adelaide and graham dressed proudly in their best big bro and best big sis shirts

and joined us on our first party of five road trip, the drive home.

the nurse in charge of wheeling you and me out made your siblings' day
when she offered to push them in the wheelchair with us.

it was a tight squeeze but such a memorable ride.

adelaide spoke to you in a sweet voice as graham pretended to talk for you in a sweet baby voice.

he has treated you like his own personal puppet ever since.

you snoozed through your first of countless car rides with the world's best chauffeur, your dad,
and were oblivious to the circus going on around you:
my ouches as we went over every bump in the road,

graham's constant commentary and adelaide's voice from the backseat too.

it's a good thing you looked so adorable in your coming home outfit,
because you stayed in it for quite awhile.

once we arrived at the house i realized it was the ONLY piece of clothing you had clean.

a trip to the attic and a load of laundry later, your drawers were filled with other options.

welcome home baby girl, it's already hard to remember what our house was like without you!

Having a place to go - is a home.
Having someone to love - is a family.

Having both - is a blessing. 

~Donna Hedges

GROW BABY GROW...

it's time to embrace the camera with the tiebreaker in my belly.

i love you so much already little bit, grow baby grow.

your big sister joined me outside to embrace the camera

with you too, you are loved.

embrace the camera is happening today at andersonfamilycrew.blogspot.com

A PRESENT FOR BROTHER...

November 7, 2011

ME: Have you thought about what you'd like to give Graham for his birthday?
ADELAIDE: YES!

ME: Really? What?

ADELAIDE (with more excitement than you can possibly imagine): A NEW TOWEL!

ME (trying not to laugh): Sounds great. Why do you want to get him a towel?

ADELAIDE: Because he will love it. I was thinking a good monster towel.

ME: You're a good sister. We will have to try and find him one.


December 2, 2011

January 12, 2012

You know your brother well. It was love at first sight.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ON THE FIRST...

my FIRST IMPRESSION of my SISTER...

i'll never forget the day i came home from school to see a one-week-old baby at our house. she was just ours to hold for the afternoon while her foster mom went to a doctor appointment. when baby sara's foster mom came to pick her up we begged for her to let us babysit again and soon.

soon turned out to be the next afternoon while she took her teenage daughters to an event in town. we giddily got my baby clothes out of the attic and played dress-up with the dark haired porcelin doll of a baby that lay in our living room.

although we tried not to get attached to this precious newborn we were babysitting it was impossible. she had the hearts of my mom, my dad, and me from the first time we saw her. all three of us longed for baby sara to be a part of our family. but how? my family wasn't on the waiting list at the adoption agency. and where would the money come from to cover the fees even if adopting her was a real option?

what should have been an impossible scenario for adoption became an incredible story of God's mighty plans. through prayers answered, "YES!" almost overnight that newborn baby became my sister and a part of our family forever.

somehow she went from this,

to this,

to this,

to this,

and now this!

i'm not sure how she grew up so much that she's starting college this fall. or how she is old enough to drive herself to come visit us. i don't know the exact moment she changed from being not only my kid sister to my dear friend too. but i do know that i love her with all my heart. and i know that will never change.