Little brothers (or in my case, not so little – they're six feet tall and fully bearded) can have plenty of downsides. They're annoying, they smell funky at all times, and they're constantly eavesdropping on any and all conversations. They'll accidentally "jokingly" punch you with the strength of John Cena, and will no doubt eat everything you love in the kitchen, especially those Butterscotch Krimpets you were PURPOSELY hiding. It can be said, however, that little bros do have plenty of upsides, and here are some of them.

1. They're strong enough to carry all your bags

Having massive little children at your disposal comes in handy when moving to and from college, especially with groceries, duffel bags, and seventy-five pairs of shoes weighing down your mini-van.

2. They're somewhat easy to bully into doing you favors

I actually just forced my one little bro into making me coffee, just because he's younger and supposed to love and cherish me.

3. They're on your side when it comes to the parental units

One of the best parts of having little sibs is bonding over how clinically insane your parents can be, and laughing behind their back after an especially funny nervous breakdown.

4. They're younger, so you get all the best stuff first

My brothers are twins, huge, and share a room, yet I STILL got the biggest room. It's honestly massive compared to theirs, and I don't even live in it for most of the year. But I'm the oldest, and therefore the huge bedroom with a futon is woefully mine and mine alone.

5. They won't steal your stuff like sisters – but you can steal theirs

They won't be snagging any of my makeup or clothes, but you can bet I'm going to be swiping all heir over-sized sweatshirts behind their back.

6. Everyone will blame rowdy little bros for messes you made

I could blow up the house and be caught w a stick of dynamite in my sweaty palm and my mom would still blame the children first.

7. They look up to you

For some reason, my brothers think I'm cool. They come to me for girl advice, life advice, school advice (desperately needed fashion advice). Just the fact that they think I'm cool enough to be trusted with such important issues as ~ dating ~ makes me feel both relevant and wise, as if I'm some elderly guru with genius sage tokens of wisdom. They keep me young and boost my confidence into believing I'm actually a cool human being.

8. They'll always be there for you

I say all the time my brothers are my best friends. Every single time I've been down I've had one of my enormously over-sized buddies to pick me up (both literally and figuratively) and make me feel on top of the world again. I know I have two best friends for the rest of my life, to both bully and be bullied by, to love and to rely on. I'm the luckiest big sister to have two huge man-children always in my corner.