Thursday, November 19, 2009

Brought to you by Bridesmaids ~ Rachael

   This is the first of a new mini-series.  I treasure my friendships.  I have the most amazing friends!  I want to bring some of their amazingness to you, so I thought I would start with my bridesmaids!  I will be highlighting my 7 bridesmaids & my little flower girl (who is all grown up now).    I am gonna highlight the girls & then bring you an idea from them.  They are all so different from each other & all so cool.  Once you read about these girls...you'll want them in your lives too!

I was married 11 years ago.  So these pictures will probably make them squirm a little.  That just makes it more fun for me :)

Here is the Gang!


Since you already know Kate I am finally going to introduce you to our baby sister Rachael first!

   Rach & I were very tight growing up, she is the sister that I played Barbies and dollies with.  I was actually pretty bossy to her but weirdly enough she never even seemed to mind!  She was just happy to tag along & go with the flow.  Even as a little girl she was full of compassion for others, gentleness, & tons of love. 

   Now we are really raising our families together.  We each have three kids & two of our due dates were about a month apart! 

Here we are with our 2nd babies (one month apart):

And with our third babies (two months apart):

Here are all our kids together...

That is a lot of kids between us!  They really do act like sisters & brothers!

Last year her Christmas card made me laugh soooo hard!
   I don't know if you can see it, but there is a lot of lotion in their hair too!  But when you opened the card up it had the sweetest Christmas message:
   One Day, Isaiah was telling me about how much fun he had playing with a friend's toy semi-truck.  Thinking 'what a great present idea,' I told him, "You should ask Santa for a semi truck for Christmas."
   Isaiah paused to think, and then he said, "I think I'll ask Jesus instead."  I know his response sprang from his huge fear of Santa combined with his knowledge that we can ask Jesus for anything, but his words had great wisdom!  I've had many humbling moments in my life, but none as humbling as that.
   It's a great thing that Isaiah has chosen to believe in Jesus over Santa.  Under Santa's 'clause' my little ones would probably be due for coal this year (see exhibit 'A' on the front of this card for more details).  Instead, they will be enjoying the grace they receive through Jesus, new clothes & toys, and of course, a new semi-truck.
   May you too be enjoying the grace we recieve through Jesus this holiday season and throughout the new year. 

Then she closed it out with this picture of her angelic kids.

I don't think I will ever recieve a more precious card.

   This is the time of year when I start fretting about "the perfect Christmas card!"  I hope this gives you inspiration to send a card that sends the message of Christ's birth and love.

   I have many more ideas from Rach but I think I will stop this post right here.  We have lots of time later to share her decorating tips and recipes!  Thanks for sharing Rach!





Thankful for sisters!
Lib

19 comments:

Auntie Cake said...

Very sweet, Rachie. And you forgot the part where you actually paid her to practice the piano for you. That one still cracks me up.

Andrea said...

Absolutely adorable. Isn't it awesome to have sisters. My youngest sister was killed at age 17, 20 yrs ago. I always wonder when I see others her age what she would be doing now.

Blessings, andrea

Heather said...

What a sweet post! I love these pictures, I cherish my friendships too!

Deborah Ann said...

You gals are beautiful! What a blessing to be close to your sisters, and better yet for your children to carry on the legacy of love. Your wedding picture is too gorgeous for words!

Cheryl ~ ZanyMayd said...

Hi Libbie ~ Thanks for Stopping By.....
I am Thrilled Kate won the contest ~ I think she will enjoy all the fun items ~
This is why I Love Blogging, You get to meet the Nicest People ~
Love Your Blog, Love seeing the closeness of Your Family~
Take Care, Have a Wonderful Thanksgiving
Cheryl

He & Me + 3 said...

You are so blessed to have sisters. Noting like them. I only had a brother and don't get me wrong...I love him...but I see so many sisters and their friendships and relationships..& I just wish. Your sisters are beautiful and so are you. Beautiful families too.

Lori said...

This is my 1st time to visit and i love this post! I have an older sister and she's 2 years older than I am and we are very close!

Unknown said...

What beautiful pictures! And isn't awesome that God can use our children to teach us?!

-c

Karen said...

Ya'll are just darling!! The kids are so cute, how great that they will grow up so close in age. Wonderful reminder about the Christmas card message. You all are beautiful!

karen said...

wow that is a stunning wedding photo.
It must be wonderful to be so close with your sisters. My little sister and I were very close when we were growing up. Unfortunatly when I moved away we kinda lost that closeness.
Would it be ok to take the photo christmas card idea and run with it. I was struggling with idea's for this years hand made christmas cards but I do have the perfect photo for this sort of card.
(((hugs)))
karen

Deb said...

You did a great job of introducing your sis.

I have four. And they still boss me around!

Sweet dreams.

koralee said...

Wow...what a lovely sister. I think sisters are the best! Thanks for sharing and you were stunningly beautiful on your wedding day.

Liz Mays said...

How wonderful of you to share your sister with us!

Melinda said...

Oh, I love this post, Libbie. The Christmas card was just precious. You are so blessed to be able to live so close to your sister. My sister lives about five hours away and I so wish we could raise our families together, too. Your kids are gonna be such great friends!

Christina Davis said...

Beautiful relationship. Love the lotion photo. Love the "asking Jesus" part.

sharon said...

This is a beautiful post of your families, and the love you have for each other! Thank you so much for viiting my blog!

Stacey Cannon said...

You have such a beautiful family!!! And so neat to be that close to your sister! I love your blog...thank you for following me! I'm going to keep up with you as well!!!

Rita said...

Love your blog

charmaine said...

hi Libbie! what a beautiful heartwarming post! you just made me smile! i have one sister and she is truly a blessing to me. i love the closeness of your family, especially the way your children are close. i hardly know any of my first cousins. every one changed and has drifted apart. but i believe it starts when children are young. i love how you and your sisters are doing that. keep it up please, because when they become adults they will be there for each other. my sister doesn't have any children yet so i look forward to becoming an auntie someday. the picture with all your children together is just beautiful. children are such a beautiful gift from God! it so important for siblings to love and respect each other. unfortunately my mother has 4 brothers and 2 sisters. i love and respect my grandparents very much, but as far as raising their children to embrace and love and respect one another no matter what, they missed the mark. i see the sadness sometimes in my mothers face. but she always says, "i thank God for giving me children." every single one of my mother's siblings is alive but can't come together. we pray for them all the time and know that God will get the glory in putting this family back together. so, i just want to say thank you! i love seeing families embrace the gift of being a family. your wedding pictures are beautiful! you were both very lovely brides. oh, before i go, i love the Christmas card! how adorable and true is that. for that baby to ask Jesus instead of santa. my heart is so happy to see who he would go to first. God Bless your entire family! you all are truly blessed. and yes, Christmas is all about the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. have a lovely weekend!

God Bless,
Charmaine