Raising Siblings

A candid shot of my three amazing children.
I was so anxious and ladled with guilt when I was pregnant with our second child. I worried horribly that our son would feel he was being replaced by our newest addition. He was our first child and the first grandchild on both sides of our family. I firmly believe he received enough love and attention in his first 2 years of life to last anyone a lifetime! Not only did I worry about his feelings, I even started to wonder  about my feelings. I wondered how I could love another child as much as I loved our first. Ohh…the guilt! What a battle this was inside of my head! Then, someone told me “One of the best treasures you can give your children is a sibling. There is something about growing up in a family together that creates a very special bond …sharing the same family memories is priceless” Wow….that was all I needed to hear.

I am an “only child” by my parents, however I have 3 half- siblings. Unfortunately we didn’t all grow up together in the same home or have the same memories of our childhood. I wish we did!  If I had any control over that, I would have done anything to grow up with all of my siblings. However, it just wasn’t so…but, nonetheless, God has blessed me abundantly. I love watching the three of my children grow up together and have SO enjoyed watching “siblings in action”. They laugh, fight, play, hug, cheer on, and love one another on a daily basis. I pray every night that they keep this bond throughout the rest of their lives.



Love to you, 
Janelle



“Like Branches On A Tree, We May Grow In Different Directions, Yet Our Roots Remain As One. Each Of Our Lives Will Always Be A Special Part Of One Another.” ~ Unknown



 

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Comments

  1. love this post as we have three little ones! and oh my- i have that same bette video on my blog!!! i'm so blessed to have a front row seat to see our children grow together.

  2. I have 3 sisters myself and now I have 2 girls of my own and I am so happy they have each other! I love my siblings more than anything and I hope my girls grow up to be the same!
    Your kids are adorable! 🙂

  3. Awww, what precious pictures! I felt the EXACT same way as you when I was expecting my second child. My firstborn was already 7 years old and for years, I had honestly thought she would be my one and only. As it turned out, I now have FOUR beautiful children (and one grandson!). Even with such a vast age difference (my oldest and youngest are 13 years apart), they are all very close, and the best of friends.

  4. I remember feeling like that when I was pregnant the 2nd time. Now it is hard to remember life without each one of them.

    Life has been crazy lately and I feel so out of touch with my beloved blog world. I am several posts behind but hope to catch up soon on my favorite blog!! I have been slacking a little in the kitchen so I need some inspiration or maybe a kick in the butt 🙂

  5. Keri On says:

    Siblings are great! I love watching our children together…developing their own relationships w/ each other and in so doing, defining our family. Siblings are definately a relationship one can be certain that God Himself intended. The good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful….one knows that God put certain kiddos in certain families to bless and encourage us to Godliness!

  6. Homeschool on the Croft says:

    I too remember that exact feeling when I was pregnant with my second child. In the end I decided that I'd just have to be content with not loving this 2nd one like I'd loved the first – after all, it was going to be *impossible* to love *anyone* like I loved my boy….. wasn't it??!! Hah! Number 2 arrived and blew my thoughts right out of the water!!
    As for giving a child siblings…. I have no doubt in the world – it's one of the greatest gifts you can give a child – other than teaching them the Truth of the Gospel – there's nothing like loving parents and a few siblings to share life with!
    Thanks for posting this…. it made me happy 🙂

  7. I know how much I cherish my siblings

  8. I felt that way when I was pregnant with our 2nd too. But Grace and Eden are best friends and Eden has brought so much joy to our family. We're probably going to start trying for a 3rd this coming Winter and I'm already slightly freaking out about the little things like the girls sharing a room and me having to hurry up and potty train Eden. And then I take a moment and I know everything will happen in God's perfect timing. Siblings are a blessing. Children are a blessing.

  9. Janelle Nehrenz says:

    Thank you Ladies 🙂 Siblings sure are a blessing. Having children is certainly a wonderful thing….it isn't easy, but it is worth every moment. Love to you, Janelle

  10. I would love for you to share one of your yummy recipes in my linky party today.:):) Just go to my blog and you will see the "Fit and Fabulous Fridays" post. Have a wonderful weekend, Janelle.

  11. Kathryn says:

    Beautiful post!

  12. Janelle Nehrenz says:

    Thank you 🙂

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