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| _ )(_)| | | |  ((_)_  _(_/(   _| |  | \| |(_)) | |    | __| /  (_) \ \ / /(_)) ((_)_  ((_)((_)
| _ \| || | | |  / _` || ' \))/ _` |  | .` |/ -_)| |    |__ \| () |   \ V / / -_)/ _` || '_|(_-<
|___/|_||_| |_|  \__,_||_||_| \__,_|  |_|\_|\___||_|    |___/ \__/     |_|  \___|\__,_||_|  /__/                                                                            

So it's been that long already? Doesn't seem that long to me. Oh yeah, I missed the first few years, didn't I? What can I say? I wouldn't be the man I am today if it weren't for you. I owe my life to you?

I've heard it said that the most important thing for a kid growing up is to know that their parents love each other. Of that there has never been any doubt. You kinda show it funny sometimes. But the affection is always there and it's 100% genuine. You still hold hands. You still go for walks together. Dad still climbs up on the peak of the roof during the holidays and risks his life to put some kinda of....what is it...garland or something up there. Mom still makes custard pie for Dad (which I still don't really understand). Mom lays on the couch and tries to appear to be awake while they are watching late-night television. Dad puts up with Rush Limbaugh echoing through the halls during the day. Mom doesn't seem overly concerned when Dad brings home yet another Diesel VW Rabbit pickup (his 23rd).

What but love could cause that kind of behavior?

I was going to put some anecdotes from when I was a kid but I can't remember anything before my junior year in high school. But I'm reasonably sure you took good care of us during that time. I do have some kind of vague, whispy recollections of playing that Slap Stick board game you guys bought us where you take turns hitting each other with sticks. We couldn't play the other games because they were all missing parts but it was sometimes fun to try to make stuff out of them. I think you still even have the Probe game. Has anyone ever played that? And there was that kid who beat me up on the way home from school that Sherri eventually named one of her girls after. Oh yeah and the other kid who shot a big ball bearing up in the air with his wrist-rocket and it came down right on my head and I screamed bloody murder. And Dad tried but failed to teach me to swim (sorry Dad) by flipping me backward into the deep end of a pool on our way to Florida or somewhere. But, those incidents aside, it was a good childhood mostly because we knew we were loved...and because you were there. Together.

Oh, did I mention Dianne kicking her shoe into her own head and coming into the house looking like something from Friday the 13th? Or Sherri "driving" her bike through the sidelight window rather than coming in through the door? As someone has already mentioned down below, we weren't always the smartest kids. But there was always a goodly supply of bandages or at least old shop rags that we could use to mop up the damage with.

And life is still good because we know you are there. Together.

You guys have modeled what it means to have a strong relationship and I hope some of it has rubbed off on us kids. I do try to hold the door open for Laura still when we are getting in the car and she puts up with my late nights working out back (sound familiar?). We may not have too many really big great adventures but those that we do have we have together. And we have you to thank for showing us how it's done.

Happy 50th Mom and Dad. We love you both (even if it does embarrass you to say it back Dad, we know you love us too).