You never expected to have more than one kid, but God thought it was funny to give you two, just so we're never alone. You also never thought to be raising us by yourself and having to work twice as hard to give us a good life. But you've been a rockstar from day one. Life isn't easy and lavish, I have learned that from experience. I've also watched you suffer in silence so we don't have to worry. We can never thank you enough for providing for us what normally two parents do.

You've always been the one that stays up late if we're not home yet and give us that mini heart attack when we walk in the door and hear our full name used.

You've been the one that calls the dumb boy that broke my heart and let him know how stupid he was to lose me and that hurting your baby girl was not a good move.

You're always the one that wakes up when we call at 2 am in a jam and need help.

You're the one we go to when we have relationship problems and can't figure them out on our own.

You're the one that holds our hand and wipes away the tears while we're getting a broken bone casted.

You're the first band mom to volunteer to make food for all 150 crazy kids.

You always tell us to look up and let people see you smile because they don't deserve to see you sad.

That list can go on and on, but there's not enough time in the day to write about all the things you do for us on a daily basis just to keep us happy and healthy. You always push us to be kind and openminded so we're not the people others look down upon. You want the best for us and provided the tools and love we needed to get where we are.

Although you never got to reach all your dreams, you help us reach ours just so you can see us smile. Your heart hurts when ours does and your smile grows when you see us achieve. We are part of your being and you want nothing but the best for us. Even when times are rough, you make sure we can thrive and grow so we don't fall behind in life.

Raising two kids isn't cheap, but somehow you've always been able to hand us things we needed and wanted. It might not have been right away when we asked, but you still surprised us by doing the impossible and getting us things we wished. You always played that sly game of showing us something online and asking if we liked it and wanted it for Christmas, only to find out it was really for our birthday in a couple of weeks.

You set out to make a life for us that seemed impossible, but look where we are. We're happy, healthy, and still pushing the limits. Your life advice and experience has shaped the way we see things and given us a better outlook on life. It seemed impossible for you to be as strong as you are when raising kids alone, but you've done it. You have raised some pretty great kids that are forever grateful for the love and comfort you've given over the years. No one can replace you in our lives and for that, we are eternally grateful.