Guest blog: my oldest brother, Stephen

26 1/2 years ago I was born into a family with three boys: 6 year old Adam, 8 year old David, and 11 year old Stephen. I grew up knowing what it was like to be the youngest, spoiled, only princess girl in the family, yet also felt like I was an only child at times because of the age and gender difference between my siblings and me. However, the age difference did provide a great advantage in the relationship-building aspect with my eldest bro. I don't remember day 1, but I'm pretty sure I had Stephen wrapped around my finger from that day. All I have are wonderful memories of him coming to my rescue, making me feel special, calling me 'pookey', and whistling my little sister call to get me to come downstairs. As a little girl, I never knew I could love another man as much as I loved him!
Fast forward about 23 years to my wedding day and the toast he gave that made me laugh and cry. Stephen has been a father, best friend, and a God given gift to me as a brother. My greatest hope is that our relationship continues to grow and we can find time for each other, and that his son Ethan can give even an ounce of the 'brotherly' love to our sweet Mylin as she grows. I love you so much, Stephen!

(Stephen and Mylin when she was only a few days old)

after the long sappy intro...sniff, sniff...get a glimpse into his life via this guest post!!!

So, this is what it's like to write a "guest blog"...I'm curious to see the introduction I get from my baby-sister-who's-a-mom-now.
Oh, and I'm genetically cynical, so if you aren't into smirking then I've already lost you...plus I love the ellipsis punctuation...see...it's fun.
Really, she's been asking for this message for a while...she can be pleasantly persistent.
The pressure is greater than you can imagine, and nothing I can say will up to her expectations...
I don't cook, plain and simple. Honestly, I take great pride and joy in making a PB&J.
I use a 100% Whole Wheat bread that is more expensive than it should be.
It is grainier and wider than your average store-brand bread, but it is worth the extra dollar or two. Creamy PB on one side - don't skimp!
On the other side I mix it up - half generic grape jelly (because I put the $ where it's worth) & half Mom's strawberry jam - da bomb.
Trust me, this sandwich is killer...especially when you've been drinking coffee for a couple hours and suddenly realize your body needs food - or when you just really crave a hearty snack before a meal...throw in some Ruffles potato chips, and you've got yourself a party!
The jelly/jam mixture tends to ooze out of the bottom, so I have to scoop with the remaining sandwich...or my fingers.

So, I was in Muncie today for an in-service for teachers. I started the day at Southside HS (where I don't teach, but near where we used to live), then went to lunch and back to Central HS (where I do teach). Despite five years of time passing AND snowy/icy roads, I was amazed at how easily I remembered all of the back roads and shortcuts for driving from the south side of town to the north side. Memory is an interesting animal. I avoided stoplights, lunch hour traffic, and watched a van almost get T-boned in an intersection. The meetings were inconsequential, but it was nice to get out of the house for an extended period of time. Snow days are fun, but ice weeks are not.

My son and my niece, Mylin - AKA "The Show", are the ages that Adam and Rachel were when I was twelve.
Mylin "survived" her first major winter storm this week...she was the same age as Ethan was during the Ice Storm of 2005.
Mylin was born extremely close to my due date, but I was two weeks later than expected. However, she is in good company for that mid-year birthday party with my son, my other brother, and myself. There ain't no party like an early July party! Holla!

I'm thinking that a peanut butter and jelly cake sounds intriguing...