my sidekick is 19 today

My parents' told us they had a surprise for us.

We thought we were getting a pool.

Instead, we got a baby brother.

I was ten years old when he arrived.

We called him our little turtle.

He was so cute.

When he was a little boy, he was my sidekick.

He used to follow me everywhere.

When he was scared, he would snuggle next to me in bed.

I took him to baseball practice.

He would sit with me and hang out while I did my hair and make-up in preparation for my Saturday night date.

I took him to the movies.

{He will tell you I was on my cell phone the whole time until the movie started and people shooshed me.}

{I was a teenager.}

{Enough said.}

I took him out on my dates with me.

I used the money from my first job to proudly buy him his first fancy watch.

Then, he grew up.

And I got married.

We always picked him up and he would spend the day with us.

He became best friends with my hubby.

{They seriously call each other 'brother bear.'}

I used to tutor him in math.

Then, he moved onto Calculus.

I used to pick him up from baseball practice.

Sometimes, we would spend a Saturday at one of his games.

I wish I went to more of his games.

He's very athletic.

He's an awesome baseball player.

He finally got his driver's license.

Then, he started driving me around and driving himself over to hang out.

In my opinion, he's a little speed demon.

{Don't tell our mom.}

He became an uncle.

My children adore him.

He graduated high school and went away to college.

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss him.

We talk almost everyday.

We talk about everything and nothing.

We count down the time until he comes home.

He is the one person who truly enjoys my cooking.

{He eats us out of house and home.}

He has the most gentle spirit and kind heart.

He treats my kids like super stars.

He is a struggling college kid, and he still mailed home treats for my kiddos this past Halloween.

He spent an entire summer watching my son, so that I could finish my on-line courses.

He always has a smile on his face.

He is respectful and generous.

He always laughs at my jokes.

He has always been the most helpful and caring person.

He means the world to me.

He is my brother.

This is the first year in nineteen years that we can not celebrate his birthday with him.

He is sailing through South East Asia on a 'semester at sea.'

I hope he is having the time of his life.

I wish him blue skies and green lights forever.

Happy 19th Birthday, little brother.

I love you.