Growing up, having an older brother seemed like the biggest pain in my ass. Always sitting in the backseat of the car, always being player 2 on whatever gaming system we had at the time, and always being known as “Joey’s little sister.” Now that we’ve grown up, and I’m not subjected to the “well...I would dance with you, but your brother will beat me up!” anymore, I have a few things I’d like to thank my older brother for.

1. Thank you for always letting me play.

Even if I did end up getting hit in the face with a snowball, or stuck in a tree crying, you never told me I wasn’t allowed to play. I could always count on you to be there when we got bored and needed something to do. You were my built in playmate.

2. Thank you for making mistakes.

Because of the mistakes I watched you make, I learned not to make the same ones.

3. Thank you for teaching me how to be tough.

I never would have made it through high school sports if I had never been through big brother boot camp, which included the occasional WWE wrestling match. You also never took it easy on me when it came to anything we did, whether it be playing basketball, football, soccer, or throwing around the baseball. There was no such thing as “letting up” just because I was a girl.

4. Thank you for being my safety net at family/friend functions.

How many times have I texted you and said “I’m only going if you’re going.” There’s no one I can count on more than you for being there to save me from awkward get togethers with people we barely know.

5. Thank you for always having my back.

I might have been the butt of all of your jokes (and actually still am), but I always knew and still know, that all I needed to do is call in the big guns (you) and my problems would be solved.

And finally…

6. Thank you for being there since day one.

I know you weren’t thrilled to have a little sister (there’s proof in that home video of my first Christmas when you were mad that the camera wasn’t focused on you so you went and hid in the Christmas tree and almost knocked it over), but you finally accepted that I wasn’t going anywhere and became the best big brother a girl could ask for. I’m sure it hasn’t been easy having me as your little sister, but I’m glad that you decided to take on the challenge. Thank you for being the hard working man that you are and for being a constant in my life. There’s no one else I would have rather annoyed for my entire 23 years of life thus far, and there are a million other things I could add to this list, but I know how much you like to read so I’ll just stop here. Thanks for all that you have done and continue to do for me, I love you!