Defining parenthood

This is a warning...I am going to rant a little. This was originally going to be a Facebook status but it got a little wordy. However, I needed to get it out of my head and I needed to share it with someone. There is something that has been heavy on my heart lately, maybe you can relate to it.

As my step son grows older into the mid and latter part of his teens years I notice more and more people shocked on the notion that I am his step mom, since he is beginning to look more like a man than a child these days. Sometimes the shock on people's faces is funny and sometimes it is annoying especially when a lady comments "well, you must have married older", oh geeze! Must I remind you that age should not matter. 

I consider my step son my child plan and simple; I take him to the dentist and sit with him in the exam room because he fears that dentist chair, I take him to buy clothes when he outgrows old ones, I celebrate him when he gets good grades and talk with him when he doesn't. I've created birthday traditions, helped with science projects and math homework. I listen to him go on and on about video games that I don't understand. I've shared many memories of uncontrollable laughter and have comforted him when he has cried because sometimes this cruel world is just too much for even a teenage boy to handle. I have secretly pureed veggies into his spaghetti sauce so that he can get the nutrients without the complaints. I've volunteered to help with his soccer teams and talked with teachers at school conferences. I have watched him experience new things during family vacations and participated in dance parties with him during road trips.

 I am 11 years older than him, almost to the day and I am proud to be his parent. I don't need a thank you or a pat on the back. He is my child and I would literally move mountains for him with absolutely nothing in return. As corny as it sounds watching him grow into a polite, funny, charming, and handsome young man is enough for me. However, I must ask that you respect the term "family" and "parent". Those two words know no age or care about blood relation. Just because it is not normal to you does not mean it isn't a norm for someone else. Almost 6 years ago I met an incredibly good looking man who happened to be a single father with a 9 year old son. I married that man and together the three of us are a family. I am beyond blessed and wouldn't change our life for the world. 

xoxo

Kaili