Military Stepdad Surprised With Memory Book Adoption Request

A military stepdad was surprised with a book containing memories from his stepchildren – only for him to turn the page and see a loving adoption request. Noah Webb, 16, and his sister Amanda, 18, had always seen Christopher Anzaldua, 43, as their father, after he raised them both since they were just infants. When Amanda turned 18, she decided that she wanted Chris to officially adopt her, so she liaised with Noah in secret to see if this might be possible. Noah, like Amanda, had only ever seen Chris as his father, as his mother, Gina, 41, had separated from his biological father while she was pregnant with him. After Gina heard her kids' request, they began putting together a book of Noah and Amanda's memories with Chris, picking a date to surprise him with it at their Texas home. Noah and Amanda originally planned for the surprise to take place at Christmas, but the siblings were so excited, Gina said, that they decided to move the presentation forward to September 13. With friends and family gathered for lunch, Chris – who recently retired from being a flight critical care paramedic in the U.S. Army after 22 years of service – was presented with the box. Inside the box was the book Amanda and Noah had been working on, and when the 43-year-old began reading through his stepchildren's notes, looking at the accompanying pictures, his eyes immediately began to well up.

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