40 Diamonds for 40: Kelli's Kontribution

It's always a moment of mixed emotions when the first of your siblings gets married. There's the utter incomprehension that some other person wants anything romantic to do with your little baby brother. The thought of someone marrying the boy who was your bathmate, your playmate, your teenage torturer, sometime protector, and comrade in high school hi-jinx, rattles your brain. Then there's the wondering how a new dynamic will impact the pentagon of personalities that has been your core group. And, although you always wanted a sister, you have to wonder if someone who already has sisters of her own will want another one.

Due to circumstances of finances, work commitments, and travel schedules, I met Kelli after the wedding, the eventful Western reception, and after her Cape Cod honeymoon. The "kids" drove back to the CT house from the Cape about an hour before the backyard reception for the neighborhood and church friends. I knew it had to be overwhelming for her ... new husband, new family, traveling across country, meeting the rest of the family, and then all these crazy CT folks in the backyard. You couldn't tell from the photo on the left though. Cool, calm, and gracious.

Time has passed, trials and tribulations have followed, with travel making us traverse the country in both directions ... all helping make "the ties that bind" help to bring us closer. I am so fortunate in my sisters-in-law, now my sisters-in-spirit. Thanks for everything Kelli. I love you too.

Dear [Auntie Nettie]:

I can’t quite say that I actually remember the first time we met. I was a wide-eyed, 20 year old, country girl recently married to your brother, and spending my honeymoon meeting and getting to know the in-laws. I think I was just a tad bit overwhelmed! But I do remember feeling an immediate bond and friendship with you, even though I was keenly aware that you and I could not be more different.

As I have gotten to know you better over the years during my visits I spent back East and your visits out West, I discovered that we did have many things in common, such as our aversion to swimwear, love of baked goods, Broadway, Jane Austen and photography, to name a few. I would have to say the most important and binding of all……..our love for Mr. Darcy. Now most women would not be able to remain friends through this, but we have managed to find a way!

I have always found that I can be my true self with you. Like the time we went to lunch with your mom while on Cape Cod and I ordered chicken! Now who does that anyway?? Even when you gave me a bite of your scallops and I wanted to spit it across the room, you didn’t judge me!

In the 15 years that I have known you, you have been many things to me, just to name a few:

You have been my tour guide to many amazing places.

You have kept me from getting run over by NYC cab drivers.

You have tried to teach me how NOT to look like a tourist (and failed miserable, SORRY!)

You have been my Pride and Prejudice marathon-watching partner.

Thank you for being someone I can talk to, someone I can lean on, and someone that understands me. You are more than a sister-in-law; you are my own sister and friend. Thank you for loving my son as your own. Thank you for the memories we have made and the ones we have yet to make.

I hope your birthday will be one of joy and that you will come to know how much you are loved and appreciated.

Love Always,

Kelli