Sisters

Just after returning home from the hospital, my friend gave me a gift for Oaklee. With a new baby in my arms and more hormones than I knew what to do with, I’m sure you can imagine my reaction when I saw the picture below.

When we learned we were expecting a girl, I was ecstatic. Not only were we going to have another little girl in our home again, but one of my first thoughts was that we were going to have two girls – sisters! I was the only girl growing up in my family, sandwiched right in-between two boys, so the fact I was going to be able to give my girls a sister literally made me incredibly excited.

The excitement didn’t last long when just seconds later I remembered our situation. I realized that Oaklee would never know her sister in this life. Disappointed, I quickly pushed the thought aside, and relished over the fact we were having another little girl.

As I was driving home from my ultrasound, I remembered a handful of e-mails I received following our pregnancy announcement, just months after losing Preslee. Friends and strangers shared how their older sibling had passed away when they were young, or even before they were born. Almost all of them let me know they really did have a relationship with their sibling who who had passed away. Some went on to share personal experiences that left me speechless, and some were more broad, but they all encouraged Pat and I to talk about Preslee to our kids, and include her in our family, because they knew she would be in our home often.

It was during that drive home, I realized Preslee and Oaklee’s relationship might not be what I wanted or even hoped for, but I have no doubt these two sisters can have a relationship, and I’m hopeful.

As a mom of two girls, I’ll do what I can to help form a relationship between the two of them. I hope this picture stays up in Oaklee’s room for years to come, reminding her of the sweet guardian angel who looks over her,and the person she’s lucky enough to call her sister.