Life & Love in Ohio: 30 Day Challenge...Day 4

Your Parents

My parents have been married 16 years. Yes, that's my real mom to my real dad- I was 8 years old when they got married and proudly held the title of "junior bridesmaid" at their wedding. They have helped me become who I am today; and for that I cannot be more grateful.

I am not daddy's little princess (that's my sister) and we have not always had the best relationship. My dad was 19 on the day I was born and that complicates things. My dad didn't live with me for the first part of my life, but I do remember spending weekends with him. And he even bought me a powerwheels corvette! (It was not a barbie car) When I was 6 my dad became a bigger part of my life...my mom and him were getting closer and I would see him quite frequently. One night he brought me a puppy surprise....I was so excited, it wasn't even my birthday. In the spring of '92 my dad's apartment burned down and we moved into his new apartment. For two years I was daddy's girl...I would go to work with him, go fishing with him and go for runs with him. On my 8th birthday my dad never said "Happy Birthday" to me and I cried myself to sleep until he came into my room. Something in my heart broke that day and I still don't think it's fixed. Don't get me wrong- I love my father and I wouldn't replace him for anything in the world- I just wish we could have had a closer relationship when I was growing up. Middle school and high school didn't do well for us...I was emotional and dramatic and he just didn't know how to communicate with me. By the time college came I felt like there was no hope because now I wasn't even home. Since I've moved out on my own my dad and I have had a better relationship, we make small talk when I'm home for visits and he takes my husband golfing. He walked me down the aisle in July and that is a moment that I will forever treasure...no matter what our past or future holds!

Daddy & Me (1986)

Dad and me at our wedding (2010)

I am a momma's girl, I always have been a momma's girl and I will forever be a momma's girl! My mom was 18 the day I was born and I can't imagine how difficult that was for her, how hard she worked to provide for me in the first few years of my life, or how much she sacrificed to be the best mom in the world. I have tons of wonderful memories of me and my mom ranging from something as simple as listening to "I'll be there for you" as she drove me to my babysitters or entering a Mother-Daughter Look-a-Like contest to her recording the Country Music Awards in 1992 on a cassette so that I could hear all of the music...the show was on after 8 and I had a bedtime!! One time my mom and I went to a reservoir near where we lived and she carved my initials (CLT) into a tree...backwards and told me that it stood for Tender Loving Care. (This is why I struggled so much to change my last name after hubs and I got married.) My mom worked full-time until I was 9 or 10 and then she worked part-time off and on until I was in high school. She always told me that she wasn't my friend, she was my mom- but through it all she's one of the best friends that I've ever had. I can only hope that I work half as hard as she did to provide my (someday) children with the love and care that she provided me. A million thank yous could never be enough....my mom is an incredible woman and I wouldn't be the successful, married, homeowner with a college degree that I am today if it wasn't for her.

Mommy & Me (1986)