Day 4: My Parents

So, I'm back. This should really be day 5, but I took the day off yesterday. Lily is teething and it's torture for her, so by proxy, it's torture for me, too. Sheer exhaustion prevented me from writing yesterday. It threatened today, but right now, she is calm, watching Ni Hao, KaiLan (after a healthy dose of motrin and orajel), and I was already on the computer super couponing (another blog entirely), so I thought now was the time.

Thirty minutes and not one, but THREE password resets later (have I mentioned I'm exhausted?), I bring you to this blog, about my mom and dad.

I don't really know, nor care to know, my real dad. The only thing he ever did worth mentioning was providing half of the chromosomes needed to form me. After that point, to say he was a dead beat is being nice. Luckily...Thankfully...God sent my mother a truly wonderful man, who was not afraid to date and consequently marry, a woman with a toddler. In fact, she brought me with her on their first date (he snuck me chocolate...I knew he was a keeper). They married when I was 3, and he legally adopted me practically the second my real dad signed away his parental rights (which I guess, is the only OTHER thing he did that is worth mentioning). As far as I'm concerned, the second he married my mom was when he became my dad.

My mom and dad were married in 1986, so I was adopted by him in 1987. In 1992, we left Baltimore, MD and moved to Lebanon, TN. Most of my dad's family was here, then, and for my mom and I, it was the first time to meet some of them. They moved here for the good of our family, which was me, the two of them, my dog Lacey and a turtle that I found about a week before we moved.

One thing you need to know about my mom and dad is that they are complete opposites. They always have been, and watching them interact is hilarious. There are a lot of "yes dears" coming from my dad. My mom and dad always worked hard, and sometimes we didn't have much, but they always loved me and gave me everything they possibly could.

My dad was always the stern, strict one in the house. The one who took away my favorite toys when I was bad, or made me sit at the dinner table until I cleaned my plate. My mom was always the one with the temper but no follow through. I told you they were opposites. As a result, growing up, I always talked to my mom more. About 5 years ago, my dad gave his life over to Christ, and really transformed into someone I would've loved to have met sooner. We are closer than ever, and I've learned a lot from just hanging out talking to him.

I am 27 years old, and am now as much of a Daddy's girl as I was when I was 4.

My parents are awesome, and have helped JP and I out so much. My mom watches Lily every day, and if she goes more than a day or two without seeing her, she'll stop by our house. I have never seen my dad more in love with anyone than he is with his granddaughter. He'd buy her the whole world if he could. She had her own room at their house, exploding with toys, before she was even born. Both of my parents would do anything for my family, and they're a phone call away for anything all the time, which is an amazing blessing. Not everyone has parents that they get along with, or even two parents to look up to, but I'm thankful to say that I have both of those things!