My brother is a teenager!

Happy Birthday to you…
I can’t quite believe it is possible. I remember that day, 13 years ago. It was snowing and we were driving up to the hospital. Tiny snowflakes fell on our head as we walked up to the automatic doors. I even remember climbing up the stairs instead of taking the lift.
I wondered what he would be like. Babies are always so tiny. And suddenly we were meeting for the first time. A tiny screaming baby boy. I held him in my arms as if he was a precious object that could break at any moment. Tears flowed down my cheeks. I loved him instantly.
I remember his first few days on earth. He cried a lot. He slept a lot. My friends came over and they were too scared to hold him. You had to hold up his head carefully, as he hadn’t yet formed those muscles himself. He was adorable and as he grew, he became even cuter.
As I was constantly travelling and living abroad I missed out on large parts of him growing up. I remember coming back from Japan once and he didn’t recognise me at all. It had been half a year and he had learnt to crawl. We went on a trip to Spain and slowly became friends all over again. I taught him how to play hide and seek under a blanket. Then whenever he pointed his index finger towards me, I would retaliate by tapping my finger onto his. We called it ET. We spent hours and hours repeating this again and again and again. Occasionally we still do it now.
I love the freckles on his face and am always trying to steal them for myself. Tickling him is one of life’s pleasures. Then, when another little brother came along, with his long eyelashes and beautiful blue eyes, I fell in love all over again. They are going to be heart-breakers!
And now one is a teenager. It’s strange how I feel like time flies but at the same time it’s hard to get a sense of time passing. However, when I look at my little brothers, I know time is going by quickly and it’s hard to believe that the tiny little bundle I held all those years ago is now a teenager. Soon to be an adult. Wow! Happy birthday little man – I hope it is the best one yet!