Happy Birthday to the BEST sister EVER!!
Today is the birthday of my FAVORITE sister (okay, she is my only sister!!) For the past couple of years, Brooke has written a blog post on her blog for my birthday and I have just loved it. This year, my brothers got upset and so she blogged for their birthdays and I love it. So, in honor of Brooke, I am dedicating my blog to her!!!
What to say about Brooke? I could probably write a whole novel. She and I didn't have a whole lot to do with each other until I was in college--before college, I just thought of her as my annoying little sister. However, after a year and a half of being at BYU, I decided to go to nursing school and moved home; Brooke was just starting high school. I lived at home for the next four years and she and I had some of the best times.
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| Serious concentration! |
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| Dude, check out that bod--I am seriously jealous right now!! You work it girl!! |
Brooke is so hardcore and athletic--I love it. She is always running a race or tackling some crazy athletic thing. I love calling her just to see what fun thing she is into now. I remember when she came and lived with us in Japan for 3 months, I was in the middle of training for an 18 mile race and so she became my running partner. Four days a week we would run and then on Saturday was our long run day. I had just had a baby and was in HORRIBLE shape, so some of those long runs were pretty painful at the beginning. However, no matter how much I complained, Brooke just cheered me on and would sing to me--I especially remember all of her Brittney Spears renditions where not only would she break out into song, but into dance--you should have seen the looks on some of the japanese people's faces when we passed and Brooke was belting Brittney at the top of her lungs!! There is no way I could have run as far as I did without her! She is such a great motivator and always so encouragine!
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| At the top of the world--actually at the top of Mt. Fuji in a shirt that looks very familiar, because it is mine!! |
Another thing that I like for Brooke is she loves to travel and loves adventure. We have been on our share of trips together. When my husband and I were dating, Brooke was always our chaperone when we would go out of town together--no wonder she loves us so much. One of the best trips I took with Brooke was right after she graduated from high school. She was moving out to Utah to go to school and Eric and I were moving out to Utah for a couple of months so he could take the bar exam. Eric was already in Utah with our stuff, so Brooke and I packed up my car with her stuff and headed out on the road trip of a lifetime. We had a blast--made the pilgrimage to corn heaven--the corn palace, hit Mt. Rushmore--the whole 3 days of driving we spent rocking out to our music at the top of our lungs!! Fun times!
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| Brooke is so awesome she can kneel at a tiny japanese table, with a baby strapped to her and still eat!! |
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| Showing Ethan the mother of all tents--a CAMO tent!! What an awesome aunt! |
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| Teaching Kailey how to slack line--except I think you are supposed to use your feet, not your bum! |
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| Rockin' the hoodies! |
Another thing I love about Brooke is that she is the BEST aunt ever. My kids love her and talk about her all the time. Everytime we see her, which I wish was a lot more--BROOKE, COME LIVE WITH ME IN SPAIN--she spends the whole time playing with the kids and having so much fun. Brooke was living with us when I had Kailey and I remember putting Kailey down for naps in her crib and coming back and she was gone. I would always find Brooke holding her and never wanting to put her down. I also remember always finding her wearing my maternity shorts--actually that has happened a couple of times, where I find her wearing my maternity clothes--according to her they are so comfy!!! Anyways, she is a natural with kids and someday is going to make a FANTASTIC and FUN Mom!!
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| B Money's Honey |
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| One year at Christmas while we were putting up christmas lights, the boys decided to hog tie Brooke like a pig--HILARIOUS!!! |
Being the youngest of 5 kids, Brooke has taken a LOT of teasing, however, she never gets mad about it. Brooke is such a fun, cheerful person, that I love being around her--she hardly ever gets upset, is so easy-going, she is GREAT!!! She has such a wonderful sense of humor.
So, obviously I am not good with words, but hope to convey how grateful I am to have such an awesome sister. Even though we live on different continents and don't talk as often as I would like, I know she is always there for me. There are so many qualities that I admire about her--she is so spiritual, so thoughtful of others, so willing to serve and put the needs of others before her own, just to name a few. And even though she is my little sister, (only in age, not size) I look up to her and she is such a great example to me. I wish the best for her in everything she does and am so proud of her and love her so much. Happy Birthday Brooke--hope this is your best year yet!
