She is my sister, and one of my best friends. She's such a strong woman - honest, not afraid to be herself, goes after what she wants, helping others on the way. And I think she'll be a great mother. I might be getting ahead of myself on that one though.
I remember sitting in a restaurant with my sister around this time last year, just laughing and catching up on each other's lives. She started talking about the Aussie she had been dating for awhile, and I could see the gentle and caring love in her eyes. I wasn't the least bit surprised when she said she thought he was the one - my sister isn't one to hide her feelings. She'll tell you how she's feeling right then and there which has proven a bit scary in the past, being her sister and all.
A month later in April I received a phone call from the Aussie. Expecting him to just ramble on in his Australian accent like I was used to, I was surprised by his short conversation. All he needed was to ask a question - if I knew what my sister's ring size was. Of course, I didn't because I'm a terrible sister, but after telling him so, I threw down the phone and practically fell down the stairs running to my parents to share the news.
Again, a month later, the two love birds shared the news on Mother's Day. My sister and I had organized a big buffet brunch to be had in the backyard for the day, and after eating, gifts were given. The last gift topped the cake though - figuratively speaking of course (my mom isn't a big fan of cake - something about it being unhealthy). My sister simply said, "There's one more thing. You just gained a son-in-law". Since the news was out, I got super excited and opened my big mouth which just made everyone cry more. But what I shared is kind of interesting, I think. About 4 years before giving birth to me, my mother had actually given birth to a stillborn baby. This baby just happened to have the same name as my brother-in-law. It's like it was meant to be.
On July 27, 2010, my sister said her vows and joined forces with the incredibly goofy Australian native. I must say that the two make a perfect pair. They aren't afraid to laugh at each other, which I can assure you happens quite often. The wedding took place on the same day as my parent's anniversary, and in the same place as the groom's parents were wed. The wedding was small, but intimate. It was everything you could want in a small backyard wedding, with the water creating a peaceful backdrop, matched with the sun setting right as they said "I do". I have never seen my sister so happy as she was that day.
But now, almost a year later, they are scheduled to move to Australia. While this does mean that I'll probably get to fulfill my childhood dream of going to Australia, I'm not too thrilled. I am extremely happy for her, but my selfish self would rather her be here.
Anyways, I decided to do a little something for them before they left. After the wedding I took the liberty of making a scrapbook for the two, but since I'm a perfectionist, I wanted to design something more clean and durable. I found this great online program called Blurb.com where I can design a complete book, which they make and send it to me. I'm including pictures from before they were engaged, and then trips they took and the wedding. (Yes, I did raid their facebooks for said pictures). I plan to put the complete script of the wedding, snip-its of everyone's toasts, and their vows. I've also asked their close friends to say a little something, so that I can incorporate little well-wishes throughout the book. I'm very excited about how it's turning out so far.
Here are some screen shots of the book: Sorry for the poor quality.
COVER:
OPENING PAGE: (that little blurred spot would be their last name. I figured I'd keep it a little anonymous)
Listening to Joshua Radin's albums "We Were Here" and "Simple Times" - highly recommended for weddings :)
