HAPPIEST 18th BIRTHDAY, LANDY!

I'll never forget how happy -- or how skeptical -- I was when I found out I was going to have a brother.

My three sisters and I weren't sure we were ready for this guy to come in and cramp our style. See, before Landon, it was girl world. Full fledge barbie-lovin', 90s-fashion, tea-parties-every-birthday kinda world. Psh, who am I kidding, even after Landon arrived it was STILL girl world. But sweet, loving Landon jumped right in, ready to charm his sisters! He always wanted to be with us whether it was chatting on the floor in our bedrooms, or playing dress-up, or watching Lizzie Maguire, or crashing our sleepovers; if his girls were there, so was he. Sure, at times we thought him pesky, especially as we hit the teenage, hormonal years when everything, everywhere was absolutely embarrassing and a cute brother who followed you around was no exception, but his love for us was always from the heart. And the enjoyment he found in us was actually genuine.

At 18, Landon still loves chick-flicks (Downton Abbey is his life), and he'd rather sit on the couch, watch us drink coffee (he can't get himself to like it), and talk about our days into the night before he'd ever consider picking up a video game controller. He bakes us chocolate chip cookies for no special reason, compliments us even on our most rough days, and knows the measure of a good hug! He makes sure we're home at a decent hour of night, saying he can't sleep unless "all my chicks are in the nest." And when I wear a new outfit he always says the same thing just to make me smile: "oh, Dest, that outfit....it's so vintage!" But he emphasizes and elongates the word so it's more like: "vintaaaaage" (even though I know he has no idea what that means).

We love our Landon. He started out as "that baby boy" who interrupted our glamorous life of overnight hair rollers and matching outfits, but he became our "little big bro." We came to call him that because he towers over us with his 6"1 frame, but also because he leads and loves us with such wisdom, maturity, and confidence. I think it's very appropriate that Landon shares his birthday with George Washington -- our nation's first leader. I know the Lord is paving a path of greatness for Landon, and He couldn't find a more willing heart.

Us at Christmas Town, 2012