First, I want to pay tribute to my two fathers:

First, to my dad, Keith. My dad was like a god to me when I was little. When he was around, I was in awe of him. I wanted everyone to know that he was MY dad!! When he talked to me or paid attention to me, I felt like the most important person in the world because he noticed me. When I was 10, he went on a Bike-a-Thon with me and we rode 12 miles all over New Orleans. (Neither one of us thought we could make more than a mile, but we did 12 pretty easily!) It was one of the best days of my life. I was a real pain in my elementary years, and I know I stressed him out a LOT, but he did his best and I know he still loved me, even so. I didn't see him much during my later growing-up years, but I've always held him in the highest honor. I love you, Dad!



Next, to my stepdad, Joe. Joe married my mom when I was 19, I think. He never had kids and was never around teenagers, so he was really nervous whenever he had to spend time with me (like in the car when it was just the two of us, for example), but he never complained in front of me and I didn't know he was so scared. lol He has always been good to me (and my mom) and though we don't really have a traditional father-daughter relationship, I do consider us to be friends and I dearly love spending time with him - you will never laugh as much around Joe as you will around anyone else! When I graduated from college, he and I drove a U-Haul from WA to TN, where I landed my first job. We spent 5 days together (by then he wasn't quite so scared of me!) and had a blast, yelling our guts out out the window at cows, doing a little sightseeing, and teasing each other constantly. What a fun trip!! Joe, I love you like a father and I'm so glad that you've been there for me for so many years! You've never complained when I've needed you time and again, and you've accepted my kids as your own grandkids. I love you, dude!!

My kids have a new father, as well. Mark and I married almost 2 years ago, and he accepted my kids 100% as his own. They look at him as their father, nothing less, and the "blend" has been incredibly smooth. For Father's Day this year, we went to a restaurant called "Fishlips" in Cape Canaveral as one of Mark's favorite exasperated expressions is "Fish lips!!!". We had a nice day. Thank you, God, for bringing Mark into my boys' lives.