Blog Challenge Day 5 : My Siblings

Blog Challenge Day 5 : My Sibling

Hey there! I told y'all I was going to sit down again and write a little more this week! I've actually been looking forward to telling you about my sibling for a while now! I'm sure most of you know her quite well, but for those of you who don't... I have one little sister, Ashlee.  

To say we were always close and were best friends growing up would be a bit of a stretch.  We fought a LOT! Mom swears I loved her when she was a baby, but I don't really remember that far back.  Here are a few pictures from way back then:

I think this was her 1st trip to the beach.  She was probably about 3-6 months old?

This was her 1st birthday- I guess I still liked her...

My mom was afraid to take us out in public. I wonder why? OK... So, Ashlee fell out of her crib, breaking her arm.  I was tripped while running and smashed my face into a huge glass flower pot (really a tree pot). 

This was us when we lived in Texas. I was 7, she was 3... and apparently afraid of drowning!

 

There are very few pictures of us together from the time I was about 7 or 8 until I was about 16.  Thankfully, once I got older, we started getting along a lot better.  It was sort of sad because we really got close my junior and senior year of high school.  Then, of course, I graduated and left for Troy.  When I graduated from Troy and moved home, she graduated from high school, and moved to Troy.  Then, when she came home, I got married and moved to Augusta.  When I moved home from Augusta, we were both here almost 1 1/2 years before she moved to Nashville.  Now, we're both here and neither of us are planning to go anywhere! It's weird to think we've been "apart" almost longer than we've been together!



OK, about Ashlee... what can I say?  She's one of the funniest people I know.  She's always been witty, but she loves to laugh... and it's contagious, at least to me.  She can be telling me a story, and laughing about it, and before I even know what's so funny, I'm laughing hysterically as well!  She's just a funny and crazy girl all around.  You never actually know what she's going to do.  She can get herself in quite the predicament...

I honestly do not remember the story that goes with this picture, but I'm sure it was a good one! Besides, shouldn't this alone speak 1,000 words?

Ashlee is a great cook! She spent a lot of time in the kitchen with our Daddy growing up, so not only can she cook, she's really confident about her meals!  She can alter a recipe to fit her needs, spice up a bland dish and make sure everything is ready at the same time!

Growing up she LOVED baby dolls.  She probably had 20 dolls in her room! Some were eating, some sleeping, some even sat in the time out chair.  Here is a picture of her with one of her favorite dolls:

I think the doll even had a Teddy Bear???

It should have been no surprise that she would love babies as well.  She & I both took care of our younger cousins as we got older, but she LOVED the babies! When we'd be around family with a baby, she was always in their lap wanting to see the baby, hold the baby, just love the baby!  Even now, she loves to work with babies.  She could sit and love on them all day long- and I'm not talking about her babies, or even mine! She loves ANY and ALL babies! She's happiest surrounded by a room full of sweet little ones. 

I couldn't talk about my sister without telling you she is one of the strongest people I know.  I'm not sure if it comes from being a mother or if she's just always had it in her.  She takes her punches and rolls with them... the best way she can.  After learning her oldest daughter was deaf, she just put her "big girl panties" on and did whatever she could for Maggie.   Whether it meant choosing to put her 18 month old through a major surgery, or picking up and moving to Nashville (where she didn't know a single soul), she found the strength & courage to do it. 

Like I said, the older we got, the closer we got.  I'm SO thankful she now lives less than 5 miles from my house! Her daughter, Maggie & my daughter, Ashlyn are best friends and we're pretty sure our babies, Sami & Georgia will be too, especially since they are only 1 month apart!  (I don't think we are giving them much of a choice)

So, there ya go! My little sister, Ashlee- my one and only sibling, my best friend, a great aunt to my girls and the mother of my precious nieces. I'm sure most of you know her, so feel free to leave your own thoughts about her as well in the comment section!