Not a mom blog post.

The other day I complained about wanting a cat to my dad and he promptly responded, completely serious " you have a baby sister, she's cute, just pretend she's a cat". Thanks dad, very helpful.

I am twenty years old, I have six brothers and one sister. I live with my parents, my grandmother and my four younger brothers and sister. This, I will admit, is a little unusual nowadays. I have never not lived at home, and went straight to university from high school. Having a lot of siblings never bothered me, I was at least seven years older than my younger brothers and until last year, I was the only girl.

Living with a bunch of kids has its ups and downs. I've got a mad defensive eating habit and I step on at least one Lego a day. By default, I am the house babysitter. This job can be hard, I once had to listen to one of my brothers sing "Nine in the Afternoon"  by Panic! At the Disco, on Rock Band repeatedly for almost two hours. Any friend I invite over gets to go through almost eight introductions, and will possibly be asked to play Nintendo Wii at any given time. The bathroom is  almost never free, and once a week, I hunt down and reprimand whoever pooped and didn't flush. 
In the early winter of 2014, my step mum announced that she was pregnant again, all I thought was omg plz no more children, no more brothers. That year turned out to be a pretty rough one emotionally for my family, Elaine's mother passed away in March and Daisy was born prematurely that June, something like a month and a half early. Daisy's birth also revealed that my step mother had a cancerous cyst that had to be, and was later removed. It was all fairly bittersweet.

Sad story aside, This was BIG. I had a sister. Elaine had a daughter. But also, I had a SISTER.

The above is a selfie I decided to take because I liked my makeup that day and I wanted to show my friends the tiny baby I was holding. 

When you wait almost thirteen years and four brothers being born, you begin to think that there is no possibility of having a sister. My youngest brother was six years old, none of us even expected a new sibling. But last June, I held the tiny four pound newborn that would soon grow into a human, with a personality and feelings.

Shout out to modern technology at the NICU for incubating Daisy until she was less icky newborn and prevented her turning yellow from jaundice. 
After Daisy was born, I realized that this time, it was different than when I was in grade seven and had a new younger brother. I babysit for my step mum now way more than I ever did for my brothers. Most noticeably, when I take Daisy outside, most passerbys assume that I am her mother. This is weird and a little bit awkward. I've been asked numerous times, "She's so cute, how many months is she??!" and when I don't know the answer, they look at me a little funny. It's not that I mind these strangers assumptions, but I do go out of my way to call her "lil sis"  in public as often as I can. I have nothing but admiration for the mothers my age and what they do. I could not do it, I pass Daisy off to my step mum every time she needs her diaper changed or starts scream crying.

Another thing i've realized is that I feel more connected to Daisy than my brothers. I blame this on the age gap, I notice a lot more of Daisy's milestones and accomplishments. My step mum sends me photos almost every time something new happens and I am not home to see. My brothers are very protective over Daisy, its incredibly noticeable when they mention they have a sister. Its also adorable.

Growing up a girl, there are things I know she'll experience that her brothers are unlikely to. I am almost twenty years older than her, I wont be there to support her like a close in age sister would. I can only hope that she decides to feel comfortable enough to confide in me when she's older. I want her to know that she'll be okay and sometimes she wont be. She will always have someone she can talk to about things she might not want to talk about to our parents.

Right now, she's around one year old or X many months or weeks or whatever parents say. I am not a mom, but I watched this lil premature baby quickly grow into a messy teacup human who steals your food anytime you eat in the same room as her. This is one of my unique experiences and I am going to be as sappy as I can about it. I finally got my little sister and we are best friends. I'm not allowed to have a cat, but my dad did have a point.

I would like to end this post with a quote,

"Sisters by blood, friends by choice" - Unknown