When I was 16, my world was turned upside down when I lost my dad. Never in my life did I ever consider I would have to know a world without my dad, until I was much older at least, and nothing felt like it would ever be the same. Time passed and although we would never be completely okay again, the world stops for no one and my family and I were forced to learn a new normal. One of the things that I remember being concerned about was if my mom was ever going to date again. I didn't want her to be lonely or sad, and as much as I struggled with the idea at first of having a stepdad all I wanted was for her to be happy because she deserved that more than anyone in the world. When my stepdad came into the picture, I knew immediately that he not only was going to be great for my mom and make her extremely happy but also that he was going to be a great addition to our family. I have many reasons to say thank you, but here are just a few:

Thank you for making me apart of your family.

I knew that when you married my mom you would become apart of our family, but I never thought about the fact that we would also become apart of yours. My family didn't just grow from 3 to 4, it also grew to add new step brothers, cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles who all welcomed the three of us with open arms as if we had always been family. Never once have I felt uncomfortable, excluded, or out of place at any sort of gathering because you and your family have been so loving, supportive and including and I am extremely thankful for that.

Thank you for loving me as if I was your own.

Even though you came into my life when I was practically an adult, you never treated me as anything less than your own. You always respected me and gave me the space and time I needed to adjust to having you in our lives, but you also were sure to be at any big event I had, offer your support and listen to me as I vented to my mom about whatever issue it was that I was going through at the moment. Whether it's offering your advice on how I should handle a situation or telling me that leaving at 10 p.m. for a 5 hour road trip may not be the best idea-thank you for loving me, supporting me and offering your help and guidance.

Thank you for getting to know me.

One of the things I was most concerned about when it came to the idea of a stepdad was that my mom would be married to someone who felt like a stranger to me. My first real memory of having a one-on-one conversation with you was when I was sitting in the living room watching a video of my dance show from the year before. You walked into the room and sat down on the couch and started asking me questions about my dancing and it meant the world to me because it was the first of many times where you would show me that you genuinely wanted to know me. Thank you for taking the time to truly get to know me-although I'm sure I've overwhelmed you at times.

Thank you for never trying to fill a position.

This one may sound weird, but it's something extremely important to me. Coming into the situation and meeting us for the first time couldn't have been easy knowing we had lost our dad. Another huge fear I had was that I would have a stepdad come into the picture who would try to act like a dad to us, and at the time that wasn't something I was ready for. From day one, you made it clear that you would never try to replace what he had left. The fact that you allowed us to adjust and take the time we needed to develop a relationship with you is one of the things that I am most thankful for because it allowed me to learn that loving and accepting you into my life as my step dad didn't mean I was replacing my dad or loving him any less-and that was extremely important to me.

Thank you for loving my mom and bringing her happiness.

Last but far from least, thank you for loving my mom and making her happy. After losing my dad, I developed a whole new level of understanding about how important your loved ones are. My mom is the most incredibly amazing person I will ever know, and seeing her carry our family through one of the most terrible things anyone can experience only made this even clearer to me. Thank you for coming into her life and loving her and making her happy-this is all I could have ever hoped for.