I have seven siblings. Next thing I know, there's going to be a show on TLC about us. I'm joking, but that would be cool. I have three sisters and four brothers, all of whom bring their own spark of light to the family.

I am number four of seven kids. I have a half sister, two full-blood sisters, one full-blood brother, two stepbrothers and one adopted brother.

Being a child in a blended family has its pros and cons. Pros are, if I was mad at one or two or four of my siblings, I could easily turn to any of the other ones and still have a great time.

I don't think my family is very different than most. We have fights, arguments, meltdowns and stressful times, but that's life. We have good times along with the countless bad times. We can lean on each other and look to each other for company, for a friend, advice, encouragement, and for the truth. One thing I have learned is that when I'm feeling fashion-forward, I know I can count on my siblings to shoot down my crazy style and tell me I look like I closed my eyes and pulled something out of my closet.

One major difference between blended and traditional families is a division. I wish there wasn't. but there is just something my family can't get past, and that is unconditionally accepting each other as the closest family we have. I think the reason is, my dad and mom didn't raise my biological siblings and myself the same way my stepmom and her previous husband raised my stepbrothers.

Another difference I have noticed is I tend to categorize my family into different sections. When I tell people about my family in terms of daily life, I refer to my dad, my stepmom, my older sister (not oldest) and younger sister, my brother, my stepbrothers and my adopted brother because that's who I lived with. When I refer to my mom's family, I refer to my mom, my three sisters, and my younger brother, When I say my "real siblings" (maybe that's bad to say), I refer to my blood-related siblings, and when I talk about my whole family, I refer to the whole gang. N�o matter which of my siblings fits into which category, they're all my brothers and sisters.

From left to right, the people in the photo are me, Carli, Jesse, Kellie, and Whitley.

Sometimes, I like to think of us as a small gang or a really little mob. It's a really interesting way to look at it, and makes me feel a bit edgy. There are so many little memories I think of when I say the word "gang" when I'm talking about my siblings. My stepbrothers and I haven't always gotten along, but I remember one time my older stepbrother Austin really had my back.

We were in middle school, probably 6th or 7th grade, and I was talking to a few of the boys I knew. I had always been teased for having a boy's name and I struggled a lot with feeling I was "enough" because of it. Of course, I never told anyone I had a problem with it because I thought I was being a crybaby.

I was walking down the hall with a few boys after school and they were making fun of me because of my name, saying things like, "You're not even a girl, you just like to dress like one," and other stupid comments. I was an 11 or 12 year old girl and middle school sucked enough as it was. They walked away, these boys I thought were my friends, and I went into the bathroom and cried. I had to go home eventually, so I left and went on my way. I got home, still upset when I walked through the front door. Austin knew something was wrong and he asked. I told him it was nothing, just some stupid boys. He asked what had happened and which boys said those mean things to me. When I told him, he was surprised because these boys weren't usually like that.

He turned to me and asked, "Do you want me to beat them up for you?" I blubbered out, "no" and laughed. We sat there giggling for a little bit but I knew he was serious. If I had said yes he would have gone up to those three boys the next day of school and he would have told them to shut their mouths and stop being mean to me.

At that moment, I really grew to like him as a brother and not just some kid whose mom married my dad. I don't even think he remembers, but there have been a few nice moments where he's genuinely cared about my thoughts and feelings. Although it's rare, it's time like those I can look to and my faith in him can be redeemed, if only for a short amount of time. He's going to the Marines in a month and I couldn't be more proud.

My other stepbrother Jonah and I get along alright. But he used to be a really cool person to talk to, and sometimes still is, but we don't talk much and have drifted apart a lot in the past year. Jonah is the blond kid in the very front, followed by Sam on the right, my stepmom in the middle, Jesse in the yellow shirt and glasses, and me on the couch.

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I think little brothers are the second biggest blessing in the world for a girl, second to having sisters. Little brothers are annoying punks, but in my experience, are also very sweet. The way it turned out for my family is that when my dad married my stepmom. It was hard for my little brother Jesse to adjust to the new living situation because he was such a "Momma's boy", and living with a new mother figure was not easy for him. All he had to tie to our biological mom was me and my sisters, so we were like little mothers to him.

Maybe we babied him too much, but I couldn't imagine not being there to protect him every single day. He's 14 years old now and can mostly handle his own battles, but when he was six, I felt responsible for him. We grew really close, as did my other sisters and him, and sometimes I still feel like a little mother

This past year, I got home from school around the time he did and he came up to me and gave me a little box of cereal he got for breakfast at school that morning. A few weeks prior, he was eating cocoa puffs and I was jealous because that's my favorite cereal. So, he brought a little box of it to me this certain day after school. Even though it's a cheap single-serve box of cereal�, it was the most precious moment. He continued to do little acts of kindness for me and my younger sister. He shared his V�alentine's candy with us and his "end-of-the-year" candy with us. He has the biggest heart is the sweetest, most thoughtful little brother.

My youngest brother, Sam, has only been a part of out family for a couple years now since he was adopted, but it feels like he has always been there. In a way, our family felt kind of empty without him. I know that sounds strange and you're probably thinking, "This girl is crazy! She had six siblings and she still felt like her family wasn't full?" Well, yes. Maybe I am crazy, but ever since he's been in our lives, it's been full in the best way.

He came with his own problems, but it has opened my heart to children with major and minor disabilities, showing me they are the same and need a good home and a loving family. When my parents were fostering him, he couldn't speak very well, so we would shorten our names of give ourselves nicknames so he could call out to us easier. Carli was Coco, Kellie was Kell Bell, and I was Ti-Dye. It took a long time for him to learn our real names from our nicknames, and our nicknames faded �because it was too much information for him - or so we thought. Sometimes, even now, Sam will come up to me and say, "Do you remember when I used to call you Ti-Dye?" and he laughs and has the cutest smile of anyone I've ever seen, and I laugh and say, "Yes!"

He is intelligent. He has a great memory and it blows my mind. He will bring up things from his old foster home out of the blue and it's interesting to observe him remember things like they happened only the day before. Samuel is probably one of the cutest kids I've ever seen and has such an innocent heart and a lively spirit.

Enough about boys, sisters are the true best friend for any girl. My oldest sister, my half-sister, Whitley is a free spirit. She is a hippie at heart and always has wise (but weird) advice to give. She was like our mom when my mom was working - which was all the time. She had major "first-kid" syndrome, so she was rebellious and sassy, but it made for an adventurous home.

Next is my "twin" Kellie. We say we're twins because we are only 13 months and 13 days apart and look almost identical (or so we're told). We almost switched classes in school one day but decided against it because our personalities are so different. She is another "first-child" because when my dad and stepmom got together, she was the oldest kid in the house. She set the rules for everyone else, although they have gotten a bit loose now that the crazy kids are out of the house. She is a people-person, she loves her cats (she might have been a cat lady if nobody was there to stop her), and she has an electric personality. People are drawn to her because she really has an inviting demeanor, but she packs a major punch. She brought life to the tri-sisterhood of Carli, herself and me. Here is a picture of us three, plus Grandma. From left to right, it goes me, Carli, Kellie, and Grandma.

Next is my best friend and baby sister, Carli. We grew extremely close when Kellie moved out. Although Kellie was a fun sister, she made us be really mean to each other (sorry if you're reading this, Kell). By the end of the summer, right before I moved to college, Carli and are were almost telepathically connected. Kellie and I definitely were, but Carli and I were connected in more of an emotional way. Carli is pretty emotional and needs someone to connect with in order to process her emotions rationally. However, she is also very spunky and light-spirited. She cares so much for animals and people's feelings and she makes for the best friend.

Being in a blended family, as I said previously, is not much different than being a part of any other family. There are the same type of arguments and fights, but also the same great memory-making moments. Maybe not the same, but the same love and annoying sibling drama.

The big difference I've noticed about having seven siblings versus having two or three is the diversity. Yes, some families can have two totally different kids, but with a family of eight kids, there are eight different, but equally valued personalities.

I have a lot of siblings and a lot of patience, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Having a blended family is hard, but so is having a family. I don't think I could have been content with anything smaller. Even though each sibling makes my heart full, all of them together make my heart overflow with love and joy and laughter. A big family isn't for everybody, but it is perfect for me.