Even though it's taken me a little over 20 years to realize this, I have the best parents a girl could ask for, so don't @ me. There are so many things I could thank them for, but that would be a very, very long list. So, for now, mama and daddy, thank you for...
1. For never letting me give up on my dreams.
2. For teaching me the joy of a deep, belly laugh.
3. For always having my back...
4. ...But not being afraid to call me out.
5. For teaching me what it means to be raised in the South.
6. For showing me how to mind my P's and Q's.
7. For teaching me how to love others, even if they are different than me.
8. For always making sure I have everything I would ever want or need.
9. For coming home after a long day of work and still cooking dinner and helping me with homework.
10. For financially supporting me, even at 20 years old...
11. ...But also teaching me how to spend my money wisely.
12. For taking my brother and I all over the world on vacations.
13. For teaching me FOX News is the best (and only!) news resource.
14. For showing me the power of hard work and getting what you want.
15. For listening to me complain about how stressed I am at college.
16. For telling me how it is, and not sugar-coating anything.
17. For not judging me for all the bad decisions I've made.
18. For teaching me my education is my only responsibility at this point in my life.
19. For showing me unconditional love, even when I don't show it back.
20. For teaching me how to insult others with a smile and saying "Bless your heart."
21. For always wanting the best for me, even when we don't see eye to eye.
22. For showing me what a happy and healthy marriage looks like...
23. ...And that sometimes, you're going to have to forgive, even if you don't want too.
24. For paying for the entirety of my college education.
25. For buying me a new car when my old one was totaled by a hurricane.
26. For shaping me into the semi-responsible person I am today.
27. For leading me towards the cross, with Jesus as the center.
If I had to choose my mama and daddy, I'd choose y'all.