A sisterly kind of birthday

The birthday girl, about 3

29 years ago today I asked for a baby brother. At least I am pretty sure I asked for a baby brother. I already had a sister so who needed another one?

Then again I was two.

What I got instead was another sister.

I don't think I was disappointed but then again I don't remember much about anything back then.  And if I was disappointed, it didn't last long because well eventually I saw all the great endless possibilities that came with having a sister.

Oh all the things we could do together, all the trouble we could get into together. Yes, it was going to be a blast. Of course not everything falls into place and goes exactly the way we think it will go. And it wasn't long before it was clear, this sister relationship wasn't going to be easy all the time.

First off, she was a blond cute adorable thing that quickly became the outgoing, not afraid of anything kind of gal, while I was your shy quiet brunette that would rather be left alone than stand out anywhere. And the fact that we were just about two and a half years apart meant that we would forever be in one an-others shadows.  We would share friends, clothes and bedrooms.  And being so, meant conflicts, fights and yes good times. Despite everything that we did to one another.

We quickly learned how to get on one anothers nerves. I learned my best defense was tattling on her, yes I admit it I did it at times just to piss her off. But she deserved it I swear!! She on the other hand would do the most outrageous things to me, I mean I am pretty sure you will be hard pressed to find a sister that did the following:

• locked the other in a suitcase.-yes she did.
• decide to duct tape the others entire face-yes she did.
• when a new boyfriend came into the picture, decide it was ok to give him the 'kick test' to see if he could stand it-yes she did though thankfully I never had boyfriends so the victims were our older sisters boyfriends often. 

There are other things, though those three have always stuck with me to this day. I think we went through a period that my parents thought we would never get along. Hillary was always finding ways to get in trouble, even without my tattling ways and I in her eyes I am sure was the perfect one. We fought, like any sister would fight. Over stupid shit that I don't even remember. We would get sent to our rooms. Well one would get put in ours, the other in our older sister Burgandy's room. While we thought it was done in secret I am pretty sure my parents knew that while we weren't supposed to talk, it didn't mean we couldn't write. And so we would eventually make stupid little airplanes and write messages with things like 'Im sorry. And I love you.  And soon we wouldn't really care why we got in trouble, or for what and we found ourselves talking through the doors and making up.

Burg (older sis) and I..about 7

But lets not forget some of the things we did do. The times that we laughed together and had a great time. We tend to forget these moments. But despite our differences, there were some amazing times.

• Our fartbusters theme song. Which  totally rocked anyways but considering it was sung to my mom on Mothers day, made it that much more awesome. We even completed the serenade with costumes.
• The time when she was coming down from the cubby hole, that we made after seeing a neighbor do it, and as she was coming down she sat on her uni-cycling award and gashed her upper butt thigh. Pretty sure she still has the scar.
• Despite everything, we were always there for one another, and had some great plays, and outings together.
• The 'that song is on' go to your playrooms now!!! song. Why my dad couldn't just turn the tv off is still up for debate but to this day I can't help but listen to it and laugh...and no you will not get what 'that song' is...after all we would be sent to our rooms..

As we got older, it was clear who was the popular one and who was the nerd. Even when I was in high school and she in the tail end of elementary school and  middle I heard how beautiful she was. Guys wanted to date her, and girls seemed to want to be her. She was the trend setting, Gwen Stefani look alike. I was the nerd, who guys seemed to run from, and girls could have cared less about.  It only seemed to get worse by the time we were both in high school. In my Senior year of high school, she began her freshman. Sometimes I wonder who had it worse, I heard it from the guys who constantly asked for her number, half of them would talk of her in class having no clue she was my sister-after all she was drop dead gorgeous and a cheerleader. And well look at me-(yes some guy did tell me this) But she heard it from the teachers who I had had previously. I was a great student, a smart one, I look back now and think that couldn't have been easy on her either. We grew apart in a lot of ways those years, not exactly close we were just kind of there. Her friends where hers and my friends were mine. During those years we couldn't like the same thing the other one liked do the same thing the other one did. Etc.

And she turned into this girl I didn't really know or want to associate myself with for awhile. She did things I didn't agree with, and got involved often in the wrong crowds. We were just both sort of there when it came to one another. And yet, she still stuck up for me when I needed her. I suppose that is what sisters are for really.

Hillary and I, this October. 31 & 29

To this day I wouldn't say our relationship is all flowers and roses all the time. There are moments when we are like strangers and times when we are friends. We don't talk as often as we should, and we don't see each other as often as we should.

Looking back at these past 29 years, on this her 29th birthday and I think of everything we have been through. The good, the bad and yes the ugly at times. And I think about how things would have been so different had my wish for a baby brother actually come true. Granted I could have probably gotten a boyfriend or two out of them. And I wouldn't have had to share the room with him for years. But at the same time, I am pretty sure life probably wouldn't nearly have been as fun with him.