All that aside - no bitterness, though i didn't really know my dad well growing up. He was "Disneyland Dad" who came down once a year to pick up my sister Darla and I and we would get to stay in a hotel, go to restaurants and then places like Disneyland or Knotts Berry Farm. I stayed with him and his wonderful wife Pattye one summer on their ranch in Canada. That is where my love of horses started. My dad is sarcastic, and shows his love by making fun of people. As a young girl i never really had a relationship with him - and quite honestly thought he was "mean" because of all the teasing. Maybe i was overly sensitive. He never had any more children, and has come right out and said he doesn't like kids. As a young woman i saw him a few times a year since he had moved back to the states and to a small rural area in California. In my teens and 20's as i could drive there so i did. We have never been "close" (though i adore his wife) but he (i mean his wife, Pattye) always sends me Birthday and Christmas Cards each year my entire life and nice updates with what is going on with them. I called to share the great news when i was pregnant with my daughter (after cervical cancer and not thinking i would ever be able to have another child...i was over the moon excited) and he asked me if i knew how to prevent pregnancy (in a joke form) so i was not overly happy nor have i since found sharing any BIG life moments with him worthwhile. It was a worse comment when i called with the news of my son - though i doubt he would even know he hurt me with his words - so i have not been overly excited to visit with his grandkids since he doesn't like kids anyway right?! I have not seen him in almost 10 years i guess, mainly due to the distance and their busy schedule. He loves all things Motorcycle, has interesting facial hair, and thank the good Lord i was the one that inherited his good genes as far as body size goes.
My mom remarried when i was young and i was raised as a small child by a wonderful step-father Ron - who was "Daddy" to me. We were the typical American family and i fondly remember camping trips, Dodger games, beach and park trips and everything else. I don't think i have even one picture with my "daddy" where i am not grinning ear to ear! He was my rock until about 4th grade. At that point, my youngest sister died in an accident at the babysitters and my "parents" (the only ones i ever knew) never recovered. My Step-dad turned to drinking, and my mom turned inward and they divorced. She then raised me and my 4 sisters as a single mom and did a great job. We lived in a nice middle-class home and though i know she struggled to support all of us you would have never known it. We had extended family in my moms best friend that lived 2 houses down and her 6 kids so we were like one big happy extended clan that did everything together. My mom has always loved me and tried her best with me but i was a middle-child with no daddy and acted out alot in my tween/teen years. She was forced to kick me out of the house when i was 16 to keep her sanity i suppose and not long after my graduation from High School she moved with my 2 youngest sisters back to her hometown in Pismo Beach to raise them. After i straightened up and became responsible we mended "broken fences" and are close today. We share the gene of shopaholics and do that very well together and apart. She loved me through all of my failings and loves my babies (even the obnoxious younger ones) and it's a lovely place to visit when we need a vacation. We visit at least twice a year and I talk to her generally weekly -sometimes more often. If i need her, she is always there to listen. She is very ill right now with a myriad of problems including the failing of her Liver (though she has never been a big drinker) and the distance just makes my heart hurt. I wish i could be there (or closer) all the time. We had an entire month there in May and though i am sure she is happy the noise level has died down since we left...i would do it again and again.
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