Dictionary.com says: any group of persons closely related by blood, as parents, children, uncles, aunts, and cousins.

This past week I was able to meet Justin’s mother and stepdad for the first time. They also bought his half sister and step sister along. Was I nervous to meet them, no because I already felt they were family. The question was, would they feel the same about me…

And they did.

The moment I meet them I knew this was now a new part of my family. We were able to spend some great times together touring Orlando, going to theme parks and just having fun together sharing stories about each other.

Why did I feel they were family? Because they truly cared about who I was and was interested in my life and getting to know me. They also were open to sharing about their lives and eager to open up with me. They trusted me, they were honest with me, and there was love there.

I can think of all the extended family reunions I went to where my own blood cousins didn’t know anything about me and really didn’t care to learn. They weren’t willing to open to share about themselves and I didn’t feel welcomed. I knew that after the reunion was over, we would go back to our lives and never speak again.

I realized that I have to define what family means to me. I belive family is people who come into your life who make it better with their love, support, friendship and hugs. They truly care about who you are and love you no matter what. You can trust your family and you know they are always there with open arms. My family consists of my parents, my siblings, Justin, my friends and now my new west coast family who I am glad to add.

How do you define your family?

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