Summer of Birthdays

4 out of the 7 kids in my family have birthdays in the Summer months. The other 3 (including myself) have birthdays in the Winter. The most recent birthdays were Emily on June 25 and Jacob on July 10. I've tried to post pictures where it's just me and Emily and just me and Jacob, but with as many siblings as we have, there's always bound to be another kid thrown into the shot. But I found quite a few. I'm not always good at doing these birthday blogs and I'll probably quit doing them soon. It just seems like someone is always having a birthday.

Anyway, Emily and I are number 4 and 5. Growing up, we were either the best of friends or the worst. I'll try to focus on the times when we were friends. We both had sticker collections and one of my favorite things to do was to trade stickers with her. Sounds lame, but I loved it. We also both had American Dolls. I had Kirsten and she had Samantha, whom they don't make anymore. We use to have little tea parties with our doll's miniature porcelain. I don't know why, but hours and hours would pass when we played with those dolls, or so it seemed. We shared a room and had bunk beds; mine was the bottom. Sometimes Emily would come to bed after me, but I'd still be awake and I'd grab her legs while she was climbing up and ladder and scare the crap out of her. She was already scared of the sharks since we were convinced the bedroom floor turned into the ocean in the dark. Children's imaginations are so funny.

Now that we're older, we usually aren't even living together, let alone sharing a room. The last time we were under the same roof for an extended period of time was before she graduated from Med School and I moved home after I graduated from BYU. That only lasted 2 years though. Now she lives in LA and I just got a chance to visit her, as you can see from 2 recent posts I made. She just moved into a new apartment. It's more like a duplex because, although it's attached, it has two-stories and a garage. It even has a little backyard with grass! The best part is that the house is literally across the street from the temple. Now, every time she goes anywhere, she will pass the temple. Anyway, she's an amazing person with so much ambition and perseverance. I wouldn't last one week doing the things she's done. Obviously, she's quite accomplished. She has both and Bachelor's and Master's in Harp Performance and now she's a doctor! Emily, you truly inspire me and I'm proud to call you "sister." Happy birthday. I love you.

Me, Mary and Emily in our playroom in Vacaville. We had a lot of fun in the room.

Me, Emily and Jacob on our deck in Vacaville.

Me and Emily. I don't know where we are.

Me and Emily at the Sacramento Airport with matching dresses. I love Emily's sweater :)

Me, Emily and Kate. I'm not sure what year this is.

Me and Emily in Lisbon last Spring. We were in the castle going down this narrow spiral staircase crammed with a bunch of smelly Europeans.

Jacob is my closest sibling in age. We have always been really good friends and played endlessly together growing up. Most of my childhood memories with him are when we played in the backyard. We use to pull the trampoline under the swing set, then climb to the top and jump onto it. I loved doing that. I really need to go skydiving. We also put the trampoline underneath the basketball hoop so that we could dunk. My favorite was gathering up all the balls (we had about 20) and putting them on the trampoline and then jumping while trying not to get hit until all the balls were on the ground. We also loved to read scary stories when we slept out on the trampoline in the summers. Is this about my memories with Jacob or the trampoline?!

Jacob came to live with me in Provo the year before his mission. I wish I could go back to those days. I loved it. Now he's getting married next month and although I'm happy for him, I'm going to miss him. I know he's not dying, but our relationship will alter. He'll have someone he'll need to put before everyone else and I'll never live with him again. It's bittersweet. He's really done well since he's been home from his mission. I'm talking about an A in Organic Chemistry among other great grades! He's taking the DAT on Wednesday and I know he's going to do well. He's such a hard worker and really knows where he wants to go in life. He's not letting anything hold him back and I admire him for that. Jacob, good luck with your test. I'm so excited to see you home soon (he's been in Maryland since May) and I love you. Happy birthday!

Me and Jacob playing in the playhouse in Vacaville.

Me and Jacob on the boat in McCall, Idaho. I always thought it was funny that Jacob sucked his finger rather than his thumb.

Jacob got this Jeep for his birthday one year. We use to take turns driving it.

I thought this picture looked so funny. We're cruising down Cheyenne Drive in Vacaville.

First day of school. This is a signature face of Jacob's. To this day, you'll find him doing it in a lot of pictures.

Me and Jacob at the Salt Lake Airport in 2005. We were headed to Maryland to visit my Aunt Janet. Actually, that's exactly where Jacob is now.

Me and Jacob on Ellis Island.