For those of you that don't know my sister, you are missing out. Jade has been my role model since I was able to understand what a big sister (and a role model, I suppose) was. Although she is 3 years older than me, she would still play with me up until I turned about 12. Haha. We spent countless summers playing Barbies in her walk-in closet, creating Barbie habitats in the basement (much to my parent's dismay), washing them in the sink, the tub, and the washing machine (until it took Ken's leg. Poor Ken). Jade was so cool to all of us cousins because she had a video camera which we used to make movies. I really hope she still has all of them. Even when she was almost too cool to play with her little sister (around 15), she still spent hours with me recording Barbie "Lord of the Rings" auditions. We were just that original. One of my favorite memories with Jade is sitting on her giant, blue, blow up armchair and playing synchronized Pokemon Yellow version on our Gameboy Colors.
My sister is beautiful. Allll growing up, I wanted to look just like her. In my mind, she was perfect. I loved being at home when she went to dances, because I loved seeing her dressed up like a princess waiting for Prince Charming (sometimes...not so charming...haha) to come pick her up. On her wedding day, I remember thinking that if I could be half as pretty as Jade on my wedding day, I would be so happy. I have never seen a more beautiful bride.
But my sister isn't just looks. She is legitimately the funniest person I know. I always, always laugh hardest with her. She is someone that perfectly understands my sense of humor. Most of our texting communication is texting memes back and forth because we know we can crack each other up. She is spontaneous. Last year for Easter, we made the mistake of going to a pet store, where there was a sale on baby chicks. Somehow between the two of us, we ended up with 3 baby chickens to give to Cord for Easter. We had to take them inside of a car dealership while Jade had her car serviced, and got several strange looks from the gentleman next to us who couldn't figure out why we had chirping boxes on our laps. She is one of the funnest people to go grocery shopping with, because she'll buy weird foreign fruits to try with me. Kumquats are good, people.
As we've grown older, I've come to treasure my relationship with my sister so much more. When I broke up with my boyfriend of almost 2 years after my freshman year of college, my sister held me for half an hour when she came in my room and found me sobbing underneath my covers. She has been there for me through my hardest trials when no one else was and there was no one else I trusted. She has always had time for me when I've needed her, no matter how small my problem.
I love spending time with Jade, especially in somewhere related to Disney. Last August, even though she's 23 (24 now) and was nearly 20, both of us left Disneyland with pillow pets, namely Stitch and Simba. She used to purchase the Birnbaum Guide to Disney World nearly every year, just to read it. I love sitting next to her on rides because she is such a Disney freak with me-maybe even more so. She doesn't take pictures of her family at Disneyland, just the Disney characters in the parades. We'll work on that.
I love my big sister! I don't know what I would do without her in my life. As we've gotten older and she's gotten married and moved away from home, I have come to appreciate what she means to me even more, both as a friend and a sibling. I am so grateful that my family is forever, and that I will always get to have Jade as my sister.
Happy 24th Birthday Jadey!
