Saturday, March 26, 2011

"what do you have to write about? you're not oppressed..."

it's somebody's 29th beeday!


no, not that guy's.
but it is hers:

therefore,

29 reasons why i love my mandysister...

1. she is really really funny
2. she's my best texting friend. much evidence here.
3. she always does great things with her hair
4. she's an amazing mother & i have much to learn from her
5. she's a very, very talented writer
6. she can sing like nobody's business
7. that one time she spat water at the dentist
8. the fact that i know the word "spat" just made her think of the word "shat" (sorry, um, censor...)
9. she ALWAYS remembers inside jokes & movie quotes ("YOUR SIZE")
10. she was the sole witness to that one time i got stuck in a laundry hamper
11. she rescued me from said laundry hamper
12. she always thinks my jokes are funny.
13. she's braver than she thinks
14. she loves her hubby very much & is always serving him
15. she always remembers my important events & asks me about them
16. she'll always read my really long emails about boys/life without skimming
17. she always sends me long, thought-out responses to said emails
18. she understands about the boot fever and overstock.com
19. that one time she slapped a boy for tickling her
20. she lets me practice my child skills on her ninos
21. she names things after celebrities with me
22. that one time in the hotel room with Heavyweights on the TV
23. she's always striving to set goals & be better
24. she sees purpose and reason in everything
25. she understands about being tender and crying easily
26. case in point, she's maybe crying right now
27. she's my go-to adviser on all things healthy and hippie-related
28. that one time she lied to a guy about her ability to break dance
29. she always gives me the most thoughtful gifts, like this and (most recently) this

and there you have it. it was incredibly easy to compile that list, no lie.
and i didn't even get around to mentioning her polynesian dancing...

in any case, happy you-day, eldest sister! here's to your last year in the land of 20s!

3 comments:

Myke said...

"Three people in the history of literature!"

The Ballard Family said...

Oh my, I have no idea where to start to comment on this...I will try to keep it brief but no promises...
First, best post ever.
Thank you thank you thank you. So cute.
You used words like amazing, very very, and really...and those words describing anybody in a remotely kind fashion always feel very very amazing...really. :)
And, okay, when I read this, I was actually having it read to me because we were up in Sedona and my phone wasn't able to pull it up but JC's was. So, he is reading it to me...he read the 'spat' one and I told him the story. Then I couldn't stop laughing. He was quiet for a minute and then said, "What does the word spat make you think of...?" And I went into even more uncontrollable fits of laughter because...really...that OTHER word is so funny and really...how can you not think of it once you hear 'spat'? So I, without saying the actual word, tried to tell him what it made me think of...and then HE went into fits of laughter because you were RIGHT.
One of the best moments of my life. I felt so validated in that moment...hahaha
The brave comment made me feel special. And made me think of Sarah on The Land Before Time..."I AM brave."
I love your long emails.
And I was totally crying when you said I would be crying. Which made JC laugh again. And me.
Being called a hippie feels just as awesome as being called brave.
"That's all."
No, really, I could really comment on every one of the things you said because this list was the nicest thing ever. It made me realize just how nice it can feel to have someone point out things about yourself that maybe you didn't know or maybe you had forgotten. (like how many fantastically funny things we have done together...not that I could ever forget that...come on, who falls in a laundry basket?)
Anyway, thanks so much. It was the best birthday present. :)

The Ballard Family said...

And oh my gosh, can't believe I forgot to comment on the Orange County references...particularly the picture. BEST.