My parents

At the age of 4, my mom introduced me to her boyfriend. I was not interested in knowing that man at all, and I was sure that he knew it. Now, 20 years later, I could not be more happy that my mom met Bob. When I was 6, Bob became my "step-dad," but he's been my dad way more than my father has. He's been in my life every single day since they've been married, and it know that I can count on him no matter what.

My mother is my role model. Anyone who's ever met her will say how nice she is and how pretty she is. I've always wanted to be like her, but I fall short daily. I'm louder, more harsh, and not even close to as nice as she is. My mom has worked her butt off to make sure that my brother and I had everything we needed and wanted, and now she and Bob are doing that for Bailee.

Today was that first time I have spent a few hours out-and-about with my parents, daughter, and nephew. Normally, we hang out around the house or do separate things, but today we picked Maliq (my nephew) up from school, and we all went to walmart to let them get a toy and then to McDonald's for happy meals. 

I watched the joy on my daughter's face as Bob carried her through the store. I watched her face light up as my parents paid attention to her just like my grandparents did with me. You learn to love your parents on a whole new level when you become one. As we sat at McDonald's and I watched my mom "feed" Bailee's new Barbie doll and watched Bob play walkie-talkies with Maliq sitting right beside him, I was overwhelmed with respect and love for them. 

My parents will never understand how much it means to me to see them with my daughter, and with baby number 2 in a few months! They are the best parents and grandparents in the world. I thank God for giving them to me.