The Greatest Birthday Gift Ever.

My little sister, Emma, surprised me last week with a text message birthday present. Her idea to share thirty reasons why she loves me was so incredibly touching I decided to share it. I love this list because it shows how something as simple as telling people what they mean to you can have such powerful results.

My sister’s list documents so many moments in our lives, from our childhoods to our present. This list is as much a birthday present as it is a story of sisters.

So here it goes…I’m handing this post over to my sister and hope you’ll be able to find something special in here that rings true for someone you love.

Since I can’t be with you today…get ready for 30 randomly spaced out reasons why I love you 😉

Here’s the first one:
1. I love you because when I poke your nose button you say, “Kermit the Frog here!”

2. I love you because you’re the wisest person I have ever met.

3. I love you because you always help me improve my artwork by teaching me new techniques and challenging me.

4. I love you because you inspire me to live my dreams….which is corny but it’s true. I mean really, you’ve done so much more than most people have done in their whole lives and you’re only 30.

5. I love you because we always have so much fun together…even when we’re on our hands and knees scrubbing tiny bathroom tiles with toothbrushes (and later realizing that a washcloth was the way to go).

6. Omitted. This one was just a little too personal…

7. I love you because you make me laugh even when all I want to do is cry.

8. I love you because you always have some weird tip that changes my whole way of living (examples: shaving with conditioner, Moroccan oil in my hair, gluten?).

9. I love you because you always look fondly at your food like you’re trying to plan out your next bite.

10. I love you because you are an optimistic realist and I need that balance in my life.

11. I love you because you tell me when there is a problem but you also help me fix it (example: remember that time in elementary school when I was fat and you walked me? Remember that time in college when I gained a whomping freshman 23 and you helped me eat healthy over Christmas break and coached me over the phone when I went back to school?).

12. I love you because you (and mom) taught me how to read….and actually understand what I read. And then you taught me how to enjoy reading.

13. I love you because you didn’t let me roll around in my own filth when I was a baby (thank you again!).

14. I love you because you got married and showed me what a quality relationship is.

15. Halfway mark! I have to make this one good…I love you because you’re the other Oreo cookie…Which is now gluten free and tastes just fine.

16. I love you because you help me see things from different perspectives.

17. I love you because when you’re proud of me you say “Oh Emma!” and it’s the greatest sound in the world.

18. I love you because you make up the greatest dance moves ever…And you may be responsible for a lot of my weirdness. (Remember when we used to make up songs all the time about everything and dance to them in the kitchen?).

19. I love you because you’re almost always willing to cuddle with me…Unless it’s too hot…Or you’re holding a lot of things and it’s not the right time…But I’ve gotten better with that 😛

20. I love you because you try things because you know I like them or think they’re important (examples: how I met your mother, talking to my boyfriends I bring home, sports night, raspberry cake, dots…).

21. I love you because you taught me everything I needed to know about earth science two weeks before the regents and I passed.

22. I love you because no matter how old we get, we still do arts and crafts together and turn doors into snowmen.

23. I love you because you make up the best analogies to help me understand things.

24. I love you because you give some of the greatest advice in the world.

25. I love you because you taught me how to be organized.

26. I love you because we’re pretty much always on the same page.

27. I love you because every time I see you, you teach me something new.

28. I love you because you have a real nice smell. I’m not saying this because I’m running out of things to say…I really do believe this. You have a very lovely Kristin smell.

29. You have helped me grow into the person I am today and I love you and am forever grateful for that.

30. This is the last one on this list but absolutely not the last reason why I love you. I love you because this was the easiest list of reasons I have ever written. I love you because I cannot picture what my life would be like without you and don’t want to try. I love you because you never forget what it means to be a sister. I love you because you have loved me my whole life and never let me forget it. Happy birthday Kristin! Thank you for being born.