Hope this is OK here, but I just felt the need .......
I know just how Keystone19250 feels and what he means when he says "they were the best". I can tell you that blood does not always mean the best parents. I was taken in by my step dad as his own when he married my mom and I was only 3 yrs old. After about a year, they surprised me with a little brother and a few years later a little sister and then another brother, all three his blood, but never once did he ever treat me any different from the others.
I'm 73 now and he just passed away a few years years ago at age 87 IIRC, so it was a long time he was my dad. Not quite the same as adoption, but real close. And if I could have hand picked my own step father, I could never have picked a better one. Like Keystone said .... "He was the best"!
Love ya dad!
regards,
jumpinjoe