It takes a special kind of person to take on the responsibilities that stepfathers do. To love a child as their own and to fill the void left by someone who was too selfish to care about who they were leaving behind. Officially, the "step" in stepfather is just an acronym to differentiate between a child's biological parents and the spouse of one biological parent. To me, it stands for all of the times they have stepped up to the plate.

For the times when I needed to go to ballet practice, but my mom was at work. The amount of effort that went into that first attempt on a "ballerina bun" showed me more love in a ten minute span than my "real dad" ever could in an entire decade.

I remember when I was terrified to ride a bike for the first time. You never let go until I was ready. My "real dad" had let me go a long time ago.

Until I got my license, there wasn't a single morning that you didn't drive me to school. I'm not sure how many times that was, but I do know that my "real dad" never took me, not even once.

The amount of love you can put into a cooking breakfast is unmatchable. Your pancakes should be famous. Thank you for the early hours you spent in the kitchen while I was still sound asleep.

Thank you for being patient with me when I was too young to understand.

Thank you for letting me lean my head on your shoulder.

Thank you for still showing me unconditional love when it wasn't your responsibility to do so.

Thank you for stepping up to the plate when I had no idea how much I would need you.

Thank you, thank you, a million times thank you to all of the stepdads who have made a difference in so many lives.