Sibling Love

This post is hard for me to write.

 As a matter of fact, after that first sentence, the cursor sat at the end for several hours, waiting for me to form my next thought. The problem is, that I have so many thoughts and emotions about this particular subject that it is difficult for me to put it all into words, and I don't know if I will do this subject justice with this post. But here goes anyway:

The last 12 months have been pretty darn amazing. First, I gave birth to my son, Ryder in December, and I just couldn't wait until we could get the older boys out here for a visit so they could meet him. Then, my husband decided to stay home with us, instead of going back overseas in February.

in the spring, I actually found my elusive twin sisters (not that they were hiding, they just didn't know about me or their other sisters) that I had been trying to find for a decade, and although those relationships are predictably (and understandably) growing at a slow pace, my relationship with my other sisters (Mandy, April, Casey) have all become stronger.

Unfortunately, the summer came and went, and financially, it just wasn't possible for us to have the boys come see us here in Texas. So, the new school year begins, and we are hoping for the best when the holidays roll around.

But then, we got news of my Mother In Law's poor health and had an opportunity to go to Idaho and be with her, allowing us to have the added bonus of getting to visit with the two younger boys, Jace and Jaymes.

Jace (8) and Jaymes (7)  have been begging to meet Ryder ever since he was born. They call all the time wanting to know how their "baby brother" is doing and request that I send text pictures to their mom's phone so they can watch him grow. Needless to say, once they saw us at the hospital, they were so full of energy and excitement, I identified with them immediately!

I too, cannot WAIT to meet my sisters and I am so excited for the day when that dream becomes a reality. It was pretty cool to witness what amazing and caring big brothers Jace and Jaymes are to Ryder! It hurt my heart that their oldest brother, Cody, wasn't there to share in this visit, but I am hoping to take Ryder to visit Cody when we are in California in December, so he can meet him as well.

They were such big helpers and were always wanting to "show him off to their friends". I just love the look of love I captured a couple of times and wanted to share.

 

Jaymes and Ryder eating Breakfast

 

Jace showing Ryder his room

 Jace and Jaymes pushing Ryder in his stroller on one of the many

treks from the parking lot to the hospital

It truly means a lot to me to ensure that Ryder grows up knowing who his older brothers are, what they are doing, where they live, and I promised from the day he was born that I would do everything as his mom to enable him to pursue relationships with his brothers and raise him to know what "family" means. I hope this is the first of many visits with his brothers and the beginning of a lifetime of beautiful and fun memories for Ryder!

 Ironically, Jace and Jaymes are expecting their OWN set of twins (brothers) due this coming Valentines Day. Here is a photo I took of them with their mom, who is 6 months pregnant with the new little bundles of joy. I know that Jace and Jaymes will be very good big brothers to them, and am somewhat saddened that these two new little ones get to be with them every day. For now, I cherish the time that Ryder got to spend with them, and continue to make plans for our next visit!

A special note to my twin sisters: Brittny-Anne and Branae- if you are reading this, please know that I understand your reasons for wanting to take our sibling relationship slow and at your own pace, but just know that I am here whenever and wherever you are ready, and I can't wait to meet you in person so we can share our memories with you and you yours- and that we can all begin to make memories of our own together very soon! I love you both more than you will ever know.