Dear brother,

You're 14 months old now, and I have no way of saying all of these things I want to say to you. In a few more years, I hope you'll understand.

These first 14 months of your life have flown by, and they've been the best 14 months of my life. Once I found out my mom was pregnant, I was so excited. Even more so when I found out you were going to be a boy. I felt so lucky to have an awesome little sister, but getting the opportunity to have a little brother as well made me feel complete. My mom had always wanted a baby boy. She had your me and your sister pretty young, and so by the time she found out she was pregnant with you, she had been hoping for a baby boy for 16 years. She finally got lucky with you, and you're absolutely perfect.

I wish I could tell you is how proud I am of you. You are so advanced! You're above average in height, and ahead as far as baby milestones go. You're the smartest baby I've ever met. You're so eager to learn and grow, and you pick up on things so fast, whether its learning new little words, walking, or even dancing (yes, you dance ALL the time, to almost any music you hear). You're such an old soul, your presence feels so wise and understanding. You can tell when your sister, your mom, your dad or I are in a bad mood, and cheer us up with your silliness.

I would also like to thank you. Your sister and I are grown up. I'm off in college, and your sister will be going to college soon as well. If it weren't for you, mom would be pretty lonely. If there could be only one thing mom is good at, it's being a mom. I know that sound's obvious, but some moms do the job better than others. Not only is mom a great one, but she loves being a mom. Somehow, I think she loves it even more than I love being a sister. She tells us every day how much she loves you, and how amazed she is with you. Especially at your age now, she said she feels more like she's 'hanging out with' you, rather than taking care of you. That's how fun you are! I'm also so thankful that you've been able to show my little sister how amazing it is to be a big sister. She's doing a great job too.

18 and 16 years is a pretty large age gap, but I'm hopeful that you will be able to grow up feeling as connected as your sister and I with our 2 year age gap. We are both so eager to continue to watch you grow, and can't wait to take you on this journey of life with us.