Thanks for the anniversary wishes Jabber. Yes, 25 years ago on the 13th of February the kids and I married Steve. It was 1988, and they were 10 and 7.

I walked down the aisle to meet Steve with a kid on each arm. They "gave me away."

The idea to do with was Steve's, he wanted both the kids and our families to know that he was not just marrying me, he was marrying all of us, and planning to be a big part of their lives, too.

(In case anyone is wondering, we did not take them on the honeymoon, though I've since known other women with children who were marrying a second time who decided to make the honeymoon into a family vacation at Disneyland.)

Steve and I honeymooned in Lake Tahoe, and the kids stayed with Bill, their birth father, while we were gone. Once we returned, they lived with us one week a month and all weekends, and with Bill the remaining 3 weeks of each month.

This worked well, as Bill traveled out of the state - and sometimes out of the country -- one week a month. And, since they were in school, this arrangement made school easy for all of us to handle.

Bill also had non-Hodgekins lymphoma, which was in remission when Steve and I married. I wanted him to spend as much time as possible with the kids when he was healthy.

But when Bill's cancer returned, Steve and I took over all the childcare responsibilities. And when the time came, Steve adopted the kids.

So Steve took on a lot when he married me, and I am delighted that we've had such a wonderful 25 years.

Well, I've sure deviated off topic here, sorry!

Thanks again for the anniversary wishes, Jabber.