I grew up in a family where I was the only daughter. I have an older brother and a twin brother. Being surrounded by these wonderfully crazy boys taught me a lot about life and love. I wouldn’t have wanted to have anything different.

First of all, as cliché as it might sound, growing up with only brothers made me tough. Wrestling on the carpet with boys twice as big and twice as strong as me made me a little rough around the edges. I got to be strong and learned a few moves to take them down along the way too.

But, I also learned to be protective. Nobody will ever love my brothers the way I do or take care of them the way I want to. I have given many girls the stink eye from across the dinner table that tried to treat my brothers wrong. And many tears have been shed because when you love someone that much, their pain becomes yours.

I also always felt protected. One of the best conversations I ever had with my older brother was him telling me I shouldn’t deal with any garbage from dirty boys. And he did this from a million miles away over skype. No matter what was going on, I always felt supported by my brothers and like I always had someone backing me up.

Growing up with two brothers gave me two best friends right from the start. I had years of laughs, love, and bonding over driving our parents crazy.

Nobody in this world is more capable of brightening my day or ruining it as are these two terribly perfect boys. As I have grown up, I appreciate more and more the way I got to grow up thanks to them. And though I don’t say it every day, they should know just how much I love them. Unconditionally.