Many people these days have step-parents, whether it is just one or two, but step-parents do not always get the thank you they deserve. My step-parents are examples of those parents which do not get thanked enough.

Many years ago, when I was about 2, my parents got a divorce after a brief marriage. I was too young to even remember my parents being together, but I do remember traveling back and forth to their houses for visitation. About a year and a half later, my mom decided to get remarried. Her new husband, Lou, had not been a stranger to me -- he had been friends with both of my parents prior to my birth. He even had been at their wedding.

Eventually, they got an apartment together and that is where I lived for most of my life. Lou brought me my two youngest brothers, Dale and Mason, and he brought me into a strong family that has accepted me as one of their own. He was the person who took me to the halfway point for my dad's weekend with me. He was the first person to teach me how to throw a softball, and he was there for me when my biological dad could not be. He has always treated me as one of his own kids.

My father had a few girlfriends after my mom, but none of them were around for very long until I met Chris. I was five-years-old when my dad took me to meet her. I remember my grandma dropping me off with my dad, then us driving out to Chris's house. At that point, he lived with her and her three children. My dad and Chris were married about a year later, and from the first day I met my new family, I knew that I would be loved. From day one, my dad's wife has always treated me the same as her children. She had been a licensed cosmetologist, so my hair has always been cut by her, and she was my personal hairstylist for all occasions. Both she and my mother taught me how to put makeup on, and she has just done so much for me in my life.

My step-parents have been in my life since I was very little. They helped raise me to be the person I am today. I never thank them for all of the adventures, lessons laughs, tears, hugs, and kisses I have gotten from them. I'm sure I have been a handful to them, from making them both watch the same movies over and over to all the sass that I have thrown their way, but I am so grateful to them. Lou and Chris, thank you for the love you have given me. Thank you for raising me like I was your own. I love you both!