Adri and Ashley and Brandy

I got lucky when I moved into an apartment in the early 90s and shared an entryway with Nicole and Brenda. Brenda had two daughters, Ashley and Brandy who were about Adri's age, and for years afterwards, through several moves, they remained friends.

It was great for me. I was her dad, and she was definitely a daddy's girl when she was with me, but I always worried that she'd feel isolated when she was with me. These girls made sure that wasn't the case.

They swam and did each other's hair and nails. Played video games, rode bikes and just hung out. It made it easier for me, took some of the worry away that I wasn't giving her everything she needed.

I mean, I did try to do her hair and such, but there are some skills that other little girls are just better at.

Last week I learned that Ashley and Brandy's mother passed away, and though I had been thinking about them a lot these last six months, I made a concerted effort this time to find them and thank them for all they did for my daughter, as well as give them my condolences.

Both girls are of course now full-gown women with children of their own. I'm extremely sorry for the loss of their mother and hope they and their families get through this as well as they possibly can.

And I want to thank them again for being such an important part of my daughter's early life. You guys made her life just a little brighter.