I Wanted a Sister.

Growing up, I always wanted a little sister. One who I could boss around teach my ways and who would let me endlessly do her hair and choose her outfits. Instead, I got two little brothers. Instead of an adorable, sweet, sassy little sister, I got TWO sports-loving, loud, rambunctious little brothers — and it’s awesome. Don’t get me wrong, if you had asked 12-year-old Hannah to describe her role as Big Sister to those two crazy boys, I guarantee “awesome” would not have been a word she would have used. Now though (blame it on maturity or distance making the heart grow fonder), Big Sister is one of my favorite titles to claim. And because today is my littlest little brother’s 16th birthday, I’m sharing 10 of the best things about being a Big Sister to little brothers.

1) Being the oldest means I get to remember my brothers like this. Curtis will always be this little in my mind, even though he’s a teenager now.

2) It also meant I had the upper hand for approximately five minutes and was able to do things like this:

3) Fashion advice. Little brothers don’t hold anything back, so although boyfriend jeans may be in style, it won’t stop you from hearing, “Those make you look like you lost 50 lbs. and are still wearing your fat pants,” every time you wear them.

4) Sports knowledge. Like last week when I got roped into a fantasy football league and was completely clueless about everything. Little brothers know things and are willing to spend two hours on Facetime with you to help make your picks.

5) We share all the same childhood memories, and can now laugh at the ones that seemed so dramatic when we were little. Like when I almost caused Drew to lose two fingers in a rollerblading incident. Whoops.

6) Having two brothers keeps things exciting. There was never a dull moment growing up, and there’s still something going on even though we all live in different places now. Whether it’s hearing about weekends at college or helping brainstorm ways to ask a girl to homecoming, having brothers makes life exciting.

7) Boy humor. Constantly laughing at the things my brothers said/did set the bar high for my future husband. Luckily I found one that has a similar sense of humor.

8) It made me physically stronger. I was recently asked in a job interview whether I’d ever been in a fistfight. While I don’t think things ever came to closed fists, I did have to attempt to hold my own when we got in a knock down drag out brawl disagreement over who was going to tell mom about this or that. We’re all still here so it must not have ever been that bad 😉

9) And mentally stronger. Even though I’m oldest, that doesn’t stop little brothers from teasing about any little thing I did. It’s all in good fun though, and I truly believe it has made me stronger. And Drew, now that I have a blog, I suppose I can stop denying that I write essays for fun. You win that one.

10) It made me take pride in something. Being the oldest gives me the right to be proud of (almost) everything my little brothers do. Whether it was an achievement in baseball or basketball, or an A+ on an assignment in school, I have always been your biggest fan and loudest cheerleader. What I’m trying to say is, I’m glad Mom and Dad didn’t listen to me when I asked the if they were taking you back a week after you were born, Drew.

Love,

Your Big Sister