When people hear the word step-dad, it doesn’t usually come with a lot of good feelings. Most people think of a guy who married a woman with a child, and really wishes she didn’t have that child, but with my niece, Susan Griffith’s husband, Josh, they would be wrong. When Susan met Josh, she didn’t know how he would feel about her daughter, Jala Satterwhite. Susan needn’t have worried. Josh stepped into Jala’s life and became the dad, that he didn’t have to be. Jala has a dad, but if she was going to be happy with her mom’s husband, there was going to have to be something in it for her too. That’s all any child wants…to be accepted and loved, as if their step-dad were their biological dad. When Josh became Jala’s step-dad, he took his role very seriously, and he became a great father figure for Jala. She never feels like his step-daughter, because he has never made her feel that way. Josh and Susan have another daughter, Kaytlyn too, and Josh loves both girls the same. They have never felt different.
Josh is pretty good at making people feel comfortable, and less fearful. I guess it’s a knack he has. When he and Susan first met, she was really afraid of 4 wheelers. Josh came up with a way to ease Susan into the idea by starting with horses. I’m not sure how horses could ease the fear of 4 wheelers, but maybe it’s because both of them eliminate the closed in feel of a car. One thing they have found is that horses are expensive…but as with any hobby that a person loves, the horses are worth every penny. They bring the family joy and they get them out in nature, and in that way they are truly a blessing.
Josh is an avid outdoorsman. He is really at home in the mountains. The family stays very busy in the summer, trying to cram as much fun and activity into the few short months before the girls go back to school, and winter arrives. They go camping, fishing, horseback riding in the Beartooth Mountains every other weekend. In fact, living in the mountains would not be out of the question, except that the kids have all their activities. Maybe 
someday, when the girls are grown and on their own, that dream can become a reality, but for now, they know that the kids need school and friends. For Susan, it is clear…she and Josh will be together forever, because they are true soul mates. They are both going in the same direction, and the are very happy with their traveling companion on life’s journey. Today is Josh’s birthday. Happy birthday Josh!! Have a great day!! We love you!!
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