This weekend my baby sister got married, and by baby I mean soon to be 30. With 11 years separating us, I sometimes forget that she is a grown woman. Even with as much as we have been through together and the friendship between us, I often still think of her as that little girl that I used to make call me mom when we were out in public. After our mother passed, I felt as if I took on a maternal role. I took on all the worry, the protectiveness. I glowed with pride at all of her accomplishments and watched her mature and grow.
I looked at her over the course of the evening. She was so beautiful, so happy. I watched as she kissed her new groom & it felt almost surreal. When did she become this woman? She caught me watching her a few times, “What’s wrong?” she asked me. “Nothing.” I replied. She never did care for me thinking of her as a little girl. Why should she? She is a woman.
Our daughter was fortunate enough to be included in her auntie’s festivities as a flower girl. She was very excited to be a part of the wedding. She was dazzled by the whole day. Mai put on her beautiful dress. She had curls in her hair & a basket of flower petals. She oohed & aahed over the lights and flowers and flirted with the groomsmen. It was a night to remember.
This morning, still beaming from her first march down the aisle, our daughter asked to put on her gown again. We obliged & let her spend her day twirling & dancing in her new princess dress.
“Mama, someday I will grow up & I will get married.”
All of a sudden, I was having flashes of talks about the birds & the bees, young suitors, broken hearts, and my husband armed with a shotgun waiting at the front door to greet her dates. What kind of man will win her heart? Is it someone we know already? Will he be a nice boy or a punk? Will he be good to her? Will we like him? One day this day might come & as with my sister, I know that I will have a hard time. Even though she will someday be a woman, she will always be my baby girl to me.
“Yes Mai, someday when you are a big girl you might get married.”
For now, let’s take a nap in our princess dress & have sweet dreams about Play-doh.
36 comments
Aww, look at that last pic. Mai is such a cuite and loved your answer to her. I am so not ready for my girls to grow up either, but ready or not, it is coming and god help me. Still, huge congrats to your sister and such a happy occasion indeed 🙂
Thanks Janine. She is a sweetie pie. She had a blast, but both mommy and baby were pooped after.
What a great read! I just cant imagine my little one, all grown up one day, set to undertake his own journey, will let go of my hand, the same hand that held him first thing when he came in this world, the same hand that held him tight and hugged him to sleep, the same hand that taught him how to walk, fed him and ran through his hair, patted on his back..calmed him down. Yes! some day, they will be big..big enough to make their own decisions!
I am holding on to these years with all my might. Lol! I know those years will arrive in a blink of an eye.
Oh, this is so sweet. 🙂
Thank you, Tricia
looked like a beautiful event 😀
It was really beautiful. Thanks.
I have a 7 1/2 year old daughter… I dread the day this comes up. She can’t get married until she’s 50! I insist! Lol.
I have a 7 1/2 year old daughter. I dread the day this comes up. She can’t get married until she’s 50! I insist! Lol. 🙂 She’ll always be my little girl. 🙂
50 seems like a good age for marriage. I might be able to deal with that.
That is so sweet. I love the things that come out of little kids mouths sometimes 🙂 And congrats to your sister.
Thank you. They do say they darnedest things. They are in such a rush to be big boys and girls.
Beautiful post! What a gorgeous bride your sister was. I especially liked the phrase at the end, ” sweet dreams about playdoh”:)
Thank you Merryn. My sister is a beauty. Let’s hope the dreams are of Play-doh for a good long time.
You two girls are gorgeous. Congratulations!
Thank you. I am a proud big sister.
Aw! I think all little girls dream about their wedding day don’t they? Boys not-so-much…
I didn’t realize that they start dreaming it at 3.
Aww, what a show stealer! She is adorable! Those moments when they talk about their future — on their own, independent, and so on — always make me appreciate these few years we have with them :-). Congrats to your sister!
Thank you. It was a beautiful day with my two favorite ladies. The independence and yearning to be a big girl started so early. Just stay my baby a little longer.
such pretty pictures and great story and I like you know our little girls will grow up and be married one day:/ but for now we enjoy the days we have them all to ourselves.
I am holding on to those days with all my might.
We are at that stage now that we have to have the talks with the kids.. they grow up very fast and sometimes its hard to think of where you are in life.. Congrats to your sister!
Thank you. She will always be my little girl, even when she becomes a woman. She will still be mama’s baby.
I feel the same way about my little sister. Great pictures!
Thank you. A sister’s bond is a strong one.
This is such a touching post. I have two girls and I already feel like they are growing up way too fast. I know that some day I will have to let them go and be married but wow that will be a hard thing to do. For now we will just dream about play-dough. I love this and agree! Suck a cute photo of her all tuckered out. 🙂
If only they could keep dreaming of Play-doh and not boys. Lol! Thank you. Good luck to us mamas as our babies grow. If only we could hold on to that innocence.
This is absolutely wonderful & your girls are beautiful. Just when you imagine your kid all grown up & follow their own path, it gives you some sort of relief as well as bit of sadness. But at end of the day, life has to go on. Thanks for sharing.
Yes, let’s all revel in the moment and treasure their baby days. It flies by! I love that your daughter was a part of your sister’s special day.
Thank you for your beautiful, touching story! There are lots of comments here and there won’t be anything new in what I write but I just would like to share. My little girl is 10 now. I haven’t noticed her changing from a child into a little woman till one day, when I saw her in bath and noticed her figure started changing. It struck me so deep, because it was the first time I realized that one day she will go her own way, will have her own home and her own family. I’ve always knew it in my mind, but it was hard for me when I knew it in my heart. It’s hard time to every mom, I think.
Thank you. It is scary to think isn’t it. It is much easier to have them small and know that they are in your arms and safe. You hope they grow and make the best decisions and that they are happy, that they don’t get their hearts broken and you hope that they always love and need you as much as they do when they are little. Oh! I am making myself sad again. Lol
Such a great post. I got married before my sister who is 7 years older than me and she was shocked that I was an adult… she still is. LOL. Now that we both have two kids (her two sons and I two daughters), we find ourselves shocked that WE have kids and that they are connecting marriage and themselves! Time flies!
Time truly does fly. All the cliches you hear about it going by in a blink are true. My sister is planning in trying to start a family right away. I cannot wait to see her as a mommy.
What a beautiful post and a fantastic wedding. It is amazing how time flies by so quickly, and our kids and our siblings grow up and move on with their own lives. Girl, you touched my heart because I know, some day, my girls will fly the coop too, and I will also pray that they find loving mates. I’m glad I checked the old threads to make sure I hadn’t missed any posts. 🙂