Happy Birthday, Amanda!

Today is my "little" sister Amanda's 28th birthday. It's hard to believe that Amanda was actually my little sister. I think she's always been bigger than me. Other than throwing a sharp elbow in the back, I honestly cannot remember the last time I was able to physically hurt my sister. Sure, I could play mind games and make her eat bug tacos, but I was not good at causing physical pain.

Despite her size advantage, Amanda played the younger, weaker sister card for as long as possible. This is how the conversation would go in our house growing up:

Amanda yells: "Deborah, stop it!"
Mom's response: "Deborah, stop it. Right now."

Deborah yells: "Amanda, stop it!"
Mom's response: "Deborah, stop it. Right now."

Why was it always my fault? Yes, I cut Amanda's hair and lied about it. Yes, I pinned her between the bed and the wall and drooled all over her. But no, I did not make Amanda be the dog when we played House. Amanda wanted to be the dog. I'm still not sure why.

Our parents always told us that we had to get along whether we liked it or not. Luckily, now we like it.

Happy Birthday, Amanda! I miss you.