My Boy is Growing Up

Meet Titus, my oldest younger brother. Today is his 21st birthday. He has been living with Joseph and I since February of 2008. I'd like to tell you a little bit about him so you know who I'm talking about when I mention "Titus".

Nicknames: Teetus Mater; Mater Potater; Mater; Potater; Tite
- Origination: My siblings and I were home schooled. One day Nathanael, my older brother, decided that we all needed family nicknames. Titus' ended up being Teetus Mater. Naturally, the Mater stuck and the other nicknames were born. Tite is just short for Titus.

Birth Order: Second son, Fifth child

Character Traits: great listener; obsessed with honor (his tattoo is Death before Dishonor in Latin); loud; truthful to the point of brashness; blunt; hard worker (you'll not find another like him); stubborn; friendly; mischievous

Like all boys, Titus likes to look good physically and when he tries he dresses pretty well too.

This boy is admittedly my favorite brother. I can talk to him about anything. Of course, if I DO talk to him about anything, I have to be willing to take as good as I gave. In other words, if I'm complaining about someone else to him, I know to expect the truth of how I'm acting from him. If I'm being a baby about a situation, he's the first to let me know. If I lose track of what I'm doing I can go to him and he'll always set me back straight. If any of my siblings would have been my twin, Titus would be it. We're extremely similar. Now, this doesn't mean that we are identical or that I agree with everything he believes or vice versa, but I think we just know each other so well because we ARE so similar. This can be good and bad. When we fight with each other it gets really ugly, but we we're in the mood for fun together, he's the best partner for driving Joseph crazy. (I know I shouldn't admit that. No good wife should. But it is true. :-P)

Since Titus moved in with Joseph and I, it sometimes feels like we're the parents instead of the siblings, but even then I feel like I'm learning how to deal with life. Having Titus here helps me to be more aware of how I treat my husband. And, though it hasn't been as often as I'd like, having Titus here helps me to pay more attention to Joseph than I would have if it were just Joseph and I alone in this house.

Titus is my confidant, my helper, my partner in crime, my brother. He's there when I need a shoulder to cry on after I've already soaked through Joseph's shirt with my tears. He's there when I need to hear that I need to grow up and get over it. He's there when I don't want to go to the grocery store alone when Joseph's busy.

I find it hard to grasp the fact that Titus WILL one day move away from my house, but today it kinda seems more real. I mean, he is now 21 years old and he's not getting any younger. But, for now, I'm not going to think about him getting older and moving away. Instead, I'm going to take him to dinner at Red Robin where I assure you, Titus and I will drive Joseph absolutely crazy over something.

So, dear brother, Happy Birthday and here's to another 21 years of fun as siblings. What kind of trouble can we get into during these next two decades?