To The two men in my life, my father and brother, you mean the world to me, and I don’t get to often say hat, but in honor of both Father’s Day and your birthday, in that respective order, I thought I would tell you.

To my dad, thank you. You have been a pillar in my life keeping me steady and grounded when I need it. You are the scholar I look to when I don’t know the answer to the questions I have, whether it is mundane or not. Thank you for teaching me how to ride a bike, and for attempting to explain the importance of Algebra, though that lesson didn’t stick well. Thank you for being the best dance partner at the daddy-daughter dances we went to, and for being the best Valentine a girl could ask for. Thank you for giving me driving lessons, and for not getting too mad when I got into my first car accident. Thank you for encouraging me to join the various clubs I have been a part of, and for volunteering to help out with them. Thank you for taking me to work on impromptu ‘take your child to work’ days, because you knew that even a boring office was like a magical kingdom to me. Thank you for sneaking out with me to get ice cream, and letting me use the car button opener, even if I did hit the panic button almost every time we tried to sneak out without mom knowing. But most of all, thank you for being the best father a girl could ask for. Happy Father’s Day, daddy.

To my brother, thank you for being my best friend. You are always there to add humor to my life or to encourage me, whether it is with an off-hand comment of with a much needed hug, you are there. Thank you for letting me join you on all your outings with your friends, because I thought it was cooler to hang out with my older brother’s friends. Thank you for being a complete dork with me, for geeking out over new movies and video games. For all of the arguments we get into, for I know these skills will become handy one day. Thank you for being a clown, and making me laugh when I feel at my lowest, and for being a ray of sunshine in my life. Alex, you are the best brother I can ask for, and I know I don’t tell you this as often as I should, but I love you. Happy birthday Alex!

Without the both of you in my life, I don’t think I would be where I am today, and I think on that often. You have become examples in my life on how to act, and what kind of man I need to have in my life. I can’t think of a life without the both of you, because such a life would be too boring. Happy Father’s Day and Happy Birthday!