I was always a little sister. For the first twelve long years of my childhood, I was my mom's last girl. It was only me and my big sister, Ashley. I thought it sucked being the younger one having no one to play with because after all, me and Ashley are seven years apart. Although I played by myself most of the time, I always enjoyed having someone to look up to and understood that the role of being a big sister was an important job. I had constantly desired to be a big sister myself. I already was technically a big sister to my half-brother (my father's son) who was also seven years younger than me, but I hardly saw my father growing up so I wasn't able to have the relationship that I should with him. So finally, after twelve and a half years of being the younger sibling, my mom blessed me with my beautiful little sister, Kaylee. The moment that I met her in the hospital, I knew my life would change tremendously. I was ready to take on the responsibility of being a big sister, a role model, and a second mother to my new little sister. So now that you know the background of the story, I'll list some of the many blessings of being a big sister.

You see yourself in her, you want what's best for her.

I always set high expectations for myself, so I expect her to follow the same. I help her with homework, make her understand what's right and wrong, and try to make her genuinely happy. I want her to have the things that I didn't have and better. It's always rewarding to see her succeed and be happy.

You get excellent practice for your future children.

Having a younger sibling has to be one of the best methods to learn how you want to raise your own children when you get older. Especially if you and your younger sibling are many years apart. I played a big role in helping raise my little sister throughout my teen years, so it helped me get a good grasp on how parenting really is.

You are a role model.

This is so true. Every young child has to have someone to look up to, just so happens it's you. That's right, so all the times that you "set a bad example" they see that and want to copy. Yes, it may seem like a bad thing, but ultimately it helps you out in the long run. If you consider yourself a role model, I find you'll be less likely to make bad decisions if you have a little one who is constantly with you and looking up to you. At the end of the day, it makes my heart feel complete when you hear "I wanna be just like sissy."

You get to experience all the stages of childhood from a different point of view.

When you were the younger sibling, it wasn't hard to go through life without paying attention to important milestones because you were the one achieving them. When you take a look at that beautiful newborn baby for the first time and zoom past six years later, you could only begin to imagine how sentimental and wonderful life really is. All of the precious moments you had the honor of being a part of such as their first birthday, first steps, potty training, or even the first day of a school play, a part in the true value of life.

There are many other blessings of being a big sister; however, my list would be never ending and I'd constantly come up with new things. My little sister has been one of the biggest blessings of my life. I remember for the longest time desperately wanting to be a big sister, and when I finally became one, it was such an honor. Now that I am in college, I love to pick her up during my free time and bring her to do new things. I can only imagine the love that my big sister, Ashley has for me. It's the little things in life that matter the most.