Clearly I Needed A Blog: The One Where You Learn My Sister Tricked Me With Cookies When We Were Little

So, raise your hand if you have a sister. This can be a blood sister, someone you are so close to they may as well be your sister, sorority sisters, your "sole" sister (ahem... Shelly), any sister in general. I bet most of us have someone in our lives we consider beyond a friend to that sister level. I am lucky enough to have a whole pile of sorority sisters in addition to my real-life sister, Laura.

(Some of) my Kappa sisters - my pledge class on the night of pick up. We look like babies.

My blood sister, getting friendly with Captain Morgan.

So, since it's National Sibling Day (thanks Facebook for informing me!) I think it's time you learn a little more about the woman who has known me since the minute I was born. Now, Laura and I have never been joined-at-the-hip, tell each other EVERYthing, fight, cry, laugh it out, BFFAAUTET (Best Friends Forever And Always Until The End of Time) type sisters. That just wasn't our style growing up. We've always been really different. Not just physically, but we've both just kind of done our own thing and left the door open for the other to join, but didn't necessarily encourage the other to actually come through the door. I'm sure part of this is due to the fact that we're 4 years apart and Laura didn't want her little sister hanging around all the time. True story: when we were really little (like when I was 4 and she was 8), she would tell me she could hear mom calling me, saying she had cookies for me, and when I ran off to investigate, she would sneak away to go do whatever fun thing she had planned. Double true story: this tactic worked on me EVERY SINGLE TIME. I just always held out hope that one day, there our mother would be with the cookies! She also made me pull her up the hill to the store to get ice cream in our little red wagon, again when I was 4 and she was 8. True love, for sure!

So, anyway, our relationship kind of just was until Laura graduated high school and moved out of our parent's house and from that point until she had her daughter (almost SIX YEARS AGO OMG), it was kind of just like "yeah, that's my sister." (Laura, sorry if this is news to you, but this can't be a surprise, looking back on our relationship at that time!) Then when she had Cheyenne, things just changed. For both of us. I think bringing a new life into the world changes a woman in a way that you just can't understand until you're there. I saw (and continue to see) so many changes in Laura. She's a much stronger, more independent, inspiring woman. She is definitely happier. I told her recently her smile looks much more genuine in pictures than it did a few years ago. For the two of us specifically, I've seen her desire to reach out to me and keep me involved in her life grow a lot. And I know for me, I began to realize how important my family, and maintaining my relationships therein, is. Thank you, Dad. :-) So we've been growing steadily closer over the past few years and let me tell you... I couldn't have asked for a funnier sister who is a better listener. That is the one thing about Laura that I would pick as her best quality. When we talk on the phone these days, she REALLY listens to me. Plus, she's always down to drink a margarita and watch Troop Beverly Hills, two must-have qualities for ANY friend of mine!! And she may love Beyonce the Giant Metal Chicken more than I do, which makes me happy!

Anyway, the point of this post is to 1) invite you to share stories about your sisters, 2) tell you that just because you aren't super close right now doesn't mean you won't be (this applies to any relationship in your life), and 3) show you some pics of Laura and me that will make you grateful you didn't have to go through puberty at 5'9" with glasses and braces.