I have three sisters. Big deal, you might think. But what if you knew that for sixteen years, I was the only girl in my family? I grew up with three brothers; one older and two younger. I did my share of playing Legos, building forts, and jumping over couches… and I also had plenty of Barbies, Polly Pockets, and dress up clothes!

Then when I was 16, Anna-Hope was born.

Simeon was 17, Josh was 13, and Jakin was 10. What a life-changer! To make a long story short, my parents felt that God was calling them to surrender their will to Him. After Jakin was born, they had decided our family was complete.

And for almost 10 years, that was the end of it.

But both of my parents began to feel that that had not been their decision to make; it was the Lord’s. They told my brothers and I that they were going to give God control of what happened in our family. Anna-Hope was born a year or so later. I loved having a sister. And the boys doted on baby Anna-Hope. It became a very natural thing for our family to have a baby going everywhere with us. As if that wasn’t dramatic enough….

Elisabeth was born nearly three years later. 2009 was a crazy one for our family. Lizzie was born in July, my husband and I were married in August, and my brother and his wife were married in October. Like I said, crazy! Fast forward two years and…

Another baby girl, Talitha! The girls outnumber the boys now in our family. Who would ever have thought that would happen? Three little sisters, all with very distinct personalities. None of us can imagine life without them now.

I love being their older sister – although I feel more like a second mom or an aunt sometimes! Still, I pray that I will be a blessing to my sisters as they grow older. They are surely a blessing to me!

From left to right: Rachel (me), Samuel (my husband), Tallie, Audrey (Mom), Jakin, Joshua, Anna-Hope, Keith (Dad), Lizzie, Simeon, and Kristen (Simeon’s wife)