happy birthday, heidi

today i would like to talk about a very special person in my life.
her name is heidi, and she is my one and only sister.
she turns {older than me} today and i want to let her know how much i love her.

you see, as sisters, we have had our ups and downs.
agreements and {many} disagreements.
fun times and trials.
but one thing remains the same.
my love for her.
{even though i am terrible at showing it sometimes}
the Lord has taught me so much about love and i pray that i can show my love for her through Him.

she happens to be 10 years older than me.  :)
that is quite a span of years that has brought it's challenges and blessings.
it has been a source of contention in years past.
it has allowed us to embrace our differences in recent years.
the journey has been a lesson.
and it continues...today.


she is a beautiful person, inside and out.
she loves deeply, and because so, she can hurt deeply.
she is fun.
she is tenderhearted.
she has insecurities{who doesn't?}.
she is an 80's girl at heart.
she loves adores her family.  all of them.
she is a servant.
most importantly, she knows Jesus.

meet my sister...

the butterfly lover{see the earrings?}.

the sports enthusiast{who loves the steelers, even though we live in packer country...i'll forgive her, today}.
:)

the feisty girl.

the perfectionist.

the daughter{sorry, I couldn't find a picture with dad, too}.

the mother.

the goofy one.

the loving cousin.

the church secretary/worker.

the friend{and 80's girl}.

 the auntie.

the  sister.

the beauty.

the mother of the groom.

the proud parent.

the wife.

the family {and dog} lover.

this is only a small sampling of who my wonderful sister is to me and to so many others.
today we celebrate you, heidi, for the unique, awesome person that God made you.
today i'm thankful that you are my sister and i cannot wait to explore the many facets of you that remain unknown to me.
we've got a lot to learn, huh?

happy birthday, sis.
i love you very much.

xo,