My littlest sister Danali is the gem of all gems. She’s kind, considerate, loving, and ridiculously silly. The other day, Copper kept trying to jump on her and bite her (in the innocent way that puppies do – only his teeth are sharp!), and Danali would run away for a second before slowly coming back to pet him. It happened over and over again. She’s forgiving like that.

One of my favorite memories (well, I guess it was more like a season) is the time when Danali had a huge crush on Justin Bieber. Every time I mentioned his name, she would start giggling uncontrollably and hide her face. Once while I was teasing her about her crush, she pointed her finger at me and said, “You CAN’T tell anyone, okay? Except for Sara. And Stephanie. And all of your other friends.”

Danali used to be a sassy and mischievous tomboy. Then one day, she started wearing pink and hugging everyone all the time. For the past couple of years she’s been counting the hugs she gives me, and we’re always at 30,000 something. Just an estimate. :)

Today, Danali is eight. I’m so lucky to have her as one of my sisters. She is a cuddly little girl with wild lion hair that she embraces. She is also super tech savvy, so who knows, she could be reading this.

Happy Birthday, dear Danali!! Love you. :)