Skip to main content

30 Blogs: Siblings

Before I start my "30-blog-challenge-sibling-post" -- I need to give a shout out to all the Veterans who do such a great service to our country! Ryan and I had our traditional (3rd year now) Veteran's day lunch at Applebee's -- where he got a free meal.

I also ran 20 miles prior to this lunch date - so let me tell you I was ravenous!!!!!!

Now onto siblings....

I started writing a post 2 days ago on this. But it turned into a book. I started writing about each sibling I have, and the unique traits they have that has impacted my life. But it would've gotten long -- for my siblings are as follows:
Chad, Emily, Kevin, Julie, Emily, Jason, Lisa, Erin, Nick, Michael, Alexa, Sophia, and Jack!!!

That's a long list! I consider my sister/brother-in-laws siblings too. When you marry someone, you truly marry into their family I believe. So instead of writing a 700 page book on sibling love, I'll break it down into 2 sections

1) My Immediate Siblings: (Chad, Kevin, Emily, & Lisa)

-I feel great comfort knowing that these are 4 people who will always be close to me throughout my life. No matter what changes happen in life, or where our jouney takes us -- there will always be get-togethers at the lake cabin and holidays that will bring us together.

-Their unconditional love brings incredible joy. As I've grown, I've gotten much closer to my siblings.

-Growing up, I wanted to be just like my siblings. Maybe a litte too much. In other words...I annoyed the crap out of my sisters & brothers!! They put up with one annoying little sister!! ;)

-I would not be the person I am today if it weren't for my siblings! I always strived to be "like" them -- so I think it matured me faster. I look up to my brothers and sister whenever I make a big life decision, for they always have and always will be role models to me!!


2) In sibling-in-laws (Emily, Julie, Jason, Erin, Nick, Michael, Alexa, Sophia, & Jack)

-It is hard for me to separate Emily, Julie, and Jason as "in-laws" first of all...b/c they've been a part of my life since I was like 7 years old! They are definitely family to me. And besides being incredible people - they make my own brothers & sister VERY happy. Our family would NOT be what it is without my sister & brother in laws!

-Erin, Nick, Michael, Alexa, Sophia, & Jack are Ryan's siblings -- who I am very blessed to have such awesome in-laws! I always worried I'd marry into a family where the siblings were disapproving and cold to me. But that is definitely not the case with Ryan's family. They are all like family to me and I am so lucky to have them!
-Alexa, Sophia, & Jack are younger than me -- which fulfills one of my dreams of being an "older sister".... Growing up, I always wanted a younger brother or sister. But, being my Mom & Dad were 40 when they had me, I learned pretty quick that this was NOT going to happen! It's so fun to see them grow up -- and we live 1.62 miles from them -- so get to see them often!

(....Just to explain why I know that I live 1.62 miles from my in-laws...(which comes across odd and creepy, I am sure) -- I run my neighborhood every day with my GPS. And I run by their street every time almost every time. I know the mileage down to the tenth of a mile everywhere in my community. )

My siblings are on the top of my list of "favorite people in the world"! I wouldn't be the person I am without them!

Comments

Oh my gosh, I never thought about how many siblings you have when you include Ryan's siblings! Holy moley! That is a lot!

I kind of complained about being in a big family when i was younger because I hated sharing the bathroom and I hated sitting in what i thought was the worst spot at dinner (wow, I sure had it rough...). Now I love being part of a big family! Can't wait for us to all be together at T-giving!

And I agree - I don't really make much of a differentiation between my in-laws and siblings!
Lol wow I just got SOOO confused reading this about how you had this many siblings- for some reason your siblings husbands and wives made sense to me but I forgot about Ryan's- I was like HOW ARE THERE SO MANY? Makes no logical sense because I only have Eric's brothers as my brothers-in-law since my sis and bro are much younger than me and not married :)

So glad you included all of them in your siblings. I wanted to include Eric's brothers in my mine but it was getting long and crazy. I love them too though.
Amber said…
I can't believe you have SO MANY siblings between all the in-laws! That is intense! But you are very blessed to have so many great people in your life :-)

I laughed out loud when I read that you live EXACTLY 1.62 miles from your in-laws. Lol!
Mama Nastase said…
Awww...I love this entry!

It's so funny to think of your brothers and sisters as so much older than you, your parents seem so young to me. Also, I met them all at your wedding, so from my perspective, you're all "adults" together. (Does that make sense?!)

I am so happy that you consider Ryan's brothers and sisters your "siblings", as well. That means so much to me!! I do know Alexa and Sophia look up to you as an older sister and that makes me happy as well, because you are a wonderful role model for them!

You are truly blessed with a VERY large and unique family, Abigail Nastase!! I'm glad you enjoy it.
Marlys said…
Great post, Abby! I grew up in a pretty large family - 7 siblings, and I love each and everyone one of them, too! I can't fathom life without them and their spouses are also like family to me! Paul's family are like family to me, too! It is so great to have lots of family to love and learn from and lean on when we have to!

Popular posts from this blog

What is your color?

Green My favorite color ever! I have to control myself to not purchase too many green things. If I had no control, my house would be green. My kitchen would be lime-themed. With greenery everywhere. My bathrooms would be green. My bedroom would be green. You would all feel nauseated-green after entering my home. (So I don't have a green-themed home) Many things I love are green, such as: Spinach (I eat it a minimum twice a day usually) My weding color was green. (clover green) Limes (I have at least one time a day) Grass. I love the feel of grass, especially since I see it so rarely in AZ (except in my neighborhood that has amazing landscapers with grass-galore) Palm trees. Any tree. Christmas trees. I love Christmas Green Beer. I think the green beer on St. Patty's Day tastes better. My favorite color of eyes. When I was in 9th grade, I so badly wanted to get green contacts. But they made me keep my brown eyes. Diet Mountain Dew (my guilty pleasure) Granny Smith

Currently - May edition

   I haven't blogged much - but the last time I did one of these, Maddy was 9 months old. It's really fun looking back on the things that were "stressors" to me at that time. Prior to that - my currently post was a pregnancy edition.  So here goes May 2022. Maddy is almost a 15-month old and summer has set ablaze here in Tucson.   Reading :  I really wish I had a better answer for this one, but I have not been the best about reading lately. The only book I'm reading is "How to talk to your kids so they'll listen and listen so they'll talk". It is really good. Most of the book is geared more to school-aged kids, in my opinion. But it highlights some great communication skills with children to help them trust you as a parent to be open and honest. Eating: All the smoothies. It has been getting really hot here - and every day when we get home from our stroller run I make a smoothie for Maddy with whole milk, Fage, and fruit - and then a smoothie for

8 Months

 Well, I missed month 1-8. But it is never too late to begin, right? Here is a recap of Maddy at 8 months. (I'm totally stealing this idea from my sister, Lisa. I thought it was so neat that she recaps her son's favorites and happenings every month)   How am I sleeping? Better than I was - but not as good as my peers. It also depends on if I'm teething. Last week, her 2nd tooth was poking through - so she was awake 3 times.  No matter how much I let her cry it out, I cannot seem to cut down her feedings. When I go in there - she is literally pulling at my shirt with her mouth wide open. So clearly she's hungry.  She eats 2 times/night and luckily goes right back to sleep. It is what it is. What am I eating? While we have had breastfeeding and bottle refusal struggles - I am so glad that taking to food as been relatively smooth. We are doing baby led weaning, and Maddy really enjoys most every food I've given her.  Her favorite foods are scrambled eggs, apples, and c