Grace Part II

Midway through my sixth grade year I received a phone call from Junior. Very rarely did he exercise his visitation rights and the phone calls were the same. Obeying the courts orders to provide child support were out of the question since he would jump from job to job. Spending time in jail because of not paying child support didn't matter because, well as he said "he had a place to sleep, hot meals, tv, new friends and didn't have to work." Junior explained to me that he never wanted me. He told my mom to abort me and she didn't. He said that I was nothing more than a mistake that should have never happened. Let me remind you, in sixth grade I was ELEVEN years old!!! He said that if he ever saw my mom and I on the road he would try to run us off. Crying hysterically, my dad (remember, Brad?)took the phone, walked outside our house and well...I'm not sure what all was said. All I know is that when my dad came back inside our house he gave me a huge hug and asked if I would officially like for him to be my dad.

The summer between sixth and seventh grade my name changed legally to Shellie Pittman. My birth certificate now read that Brad Pittman was my Father...yay!

From that point forward it all seemed to go by so fast. I was a typical teenager doing typical teenage things. I was a good girl. I never got in trouble. I was always afraid to. I had boyfriends but of course my dad never liked a single one.

Before I knew it I was entering my senior year. I was working at Chick-fil-A and had just started dating Joe. It was my last year of school, my last year of cheerleading and the first year to the rest of my life. Christmas of 1999, still in my senior year of high school, Joe proposed to me. My first boyfriend that my dad actually liked. Preparations for a wedding quickly began as well as preparations for graduation. Can you say busy?

I graduated in May of 2000 and on November 18, 2000 I was having my first kiss as Mrs. Joe Wilburn. It wouldn't be long and there would be more excitement to come.