On July 28, 2013 I stood beside an alter, crying. I was a bridesmaid for my older brother's wedding and I promised myself I wouldn't cry. But there I stood. A living, breathing waterfall. Because true love is so freaking adorable and I had never believed in true love... until that moment. That moment when my now sister-in-law walked down the aisle and I looked at my brother to see the biggest smile on his face. Before then I had seen unhappy marriages and people changing and falling out of love. I had seen movies where the guy always gets the girl and I wondered if the girl was actually happy with him and I felt discouraged. Until Brandon told me he was getting married, until Nicole asked me to be a bridesmaid. Until I visited them and helped with wedding invitations. Until I stood beside Nicole, her maid of honor and the other bridesmaids. As I mentioned in a previous article, I'm thankful to have such an amazing sister-in-law for many reasons, but here are the top 9.

1. She's my best friend

I talk to my sister-in-law basically every day. We talk about a lot, from my grad school applications to her coworkers and her work, to Pokemon and our family. We talk a lot, and it's pretty fun tbh.

2. She gives the best advice

"What should I do?" "How do I write a personal statement?" "Should I get a tattoo?" "Should I dye my hair like a rainbow" She has advice for everything. Most of it is, "No, think before you do things, Kaitlynn."

3. She's been through it all

She honestly has been to hell and back. She has been through school, accidents, weird jobs, and she has been through dealing with my brother on a daily basis so... yeah. She has been through it all.

4. She's a huge nerd

REAL IMAGE OF NICOLE WITH PIKACHU! She really likes Pokemon, reading, knitting, and talking about nerd stuff like math and chemistry. She's an epidemiologist. That screams nerd and it's absolutely amazing.

5. She understands

Whenever I have any problems, she understands. If she doesn't, she tries her best to. Honestly, she's amazing because she just gets it. I could come to her and say, "I can't believe it, I shot down a UFO and I'm currently housing three aliens, what should I feed them?" She'd be like, "Oh my gosh, that happened to me when I was in my undergrad! You feed them toast with jam! Good luck!"

She's just that amazing.

6. She's a great person

SHES SO SWEET LIKE WHAT THE HELL? I don't know how my brother found her but I'm so happy for them. They're both so great and so amazing for each other. It's quite cute.

7. She'll make a great mother

When she and my brother decide to have kids, she's going to make a great mother. She's educated and is caring and nurturing. She has been through a lot, like I mentioned before, which means that when her kid is a preteen she'll be able to help with anything and everything.

8. She's passionate

She cares about a lot of things (vaccinations, education, Pokemon, other things), and it's really admirable. She educates others about her passions and it's great.

9. She's the best sister-in-law I could ask for

I'm so thankful to have her in my life and I'm so lucky to have her. She's so great, and I love her! All I ever want is for her to be happy and healthy.

Love you, Nicole!