- My name is Donella and this is my husband Chris
and we live in West Columbia, South Carolina.
- In our family there is Dylan,
my son from a previous marriage
and Miles, a son that we had together,
and also, Gypsy the dog.
- When we step into a restaurant
someone will ask me, "How many people are in your party?"
And then they'll turn around and ask Chris,
because they don't actually think that we're a couple.
So tonight we are celebrating Mile's ninth birthday.
We've invited my aunt Connie
and her partner Kim, over.
Come on in.
- It's us!
- How ya doin'?
- Oh you look so good.
- And it's just gonna be a family celebration.
Nothing big and extravagant.
- Good to see you.
- How are you?
- Good, how about you?
- Okay, where's your fro?
- I left it, at home.
- I used to always get my kisses.
Aunt Connie needs her kisses.
- You got lipstick on.
- Oh god, you're just like my son.
- We're just a bunch of nerds.
I'm the computer nerd,
he's a language nerd
That's us .
And apologetic .
My step son Dylan, he's our soccer player.
Straight A student.
He gets his chill from his father.
- People say "sauce" nowadays.
- I say "awesome sauce." - [Chris] Sauce, sauce?
- Yeah, like "I'm saucy."
Saucy's like, I got a style.
Like, I just have--
- [Donella] So it's, "Got sauce."
- I got sauce.
- I see myself as his step-mom
because he has a mom that is a wonderful woman in his life.
But when he's here with us,
I treat him as one of my own.
- I feel like, most kids with a step-parent
they won't immediately embrace the step-parent.
Just because, like, the original parent was there before.
But like now, as I've gotten older,
I've opened up to her and like,
we have really good relationship.
We talk all the time.
- Ah!
I touched it.
- [Dylan] It was just too much.
Too much power.
- [Chris] The divorce was not easy decision to make.
I delayed it because of Dylan.
Good game.
- Good game.
- You got a few in.
That was not bad.
Although my ex-wife and I did not agree
on many things when we were married
the thing we got in common is
that we want what's the best for our son.
- [Donella] Miles, who's nine,
He keeps us all on his toes.
We never know what he's gonna come up with.
Um, he might be nine but he's going on 20.
- What do you want to be when you grow up?
- [Miles] A doctor.
- What type of doctor?
- I want to work in the ER.
- Alright then.
- Growing up in France, it was never an issue about races.
I didn't realize how segregated the south still was.
So it was kind of a shock to see
the look on some people's face
when we're together and it's like--
It's almost like it's not right.
- We just described our children as
what they're supposed to be.
Straight A students, into their sport, their hobbies.
I can't put their GPA on their hoodie.
People aren't gonna see them
the way we see them and love them.
They are always going to have to prove themself.
Always have to be above and beyond.
And sometimes that's not even gonna be enough.
- When we first move into this house,
maybe a month after we had moved in,
somebody had put a dead possum in our driveway
as a welcome to the neighborhood present.
We have a good circle of friends
but a lot of time it's just us.
- Connie has been my substitute mother
even though she's my aunt.
She stepped in as a grandmother role for Miles.
- She understood that we didn't have family here.
- Mr. Miles, that's so cool.
Hope your birthday is too.
Happy Birthday.
Love you, Aunt Connie.
Thank you.
- [Donella] So she'll swoop in and save the day
and take him off to wonderful adventures.
Without her support and love for Miles
it would have been a lot rougher as new parents.
And I don't want her to ever think
that we take for granted everything that she does for us.
Hi.
- Hey Nella.
- Thank you for coming over.
- Aww.
- My mother used to always say,
"Give me my roses while I'm alive."
And I think I've heard you repeat that sentiment before.
- Yeah.
- So, that's what we wanted to do tonight.
- [Chris] Thank you for who you are.
It's like you're a mother to us.
- You have really been that grandmother figure for Miles.
And just to say thank you and we appreciate you
and everything that you've done.
Miles?
We want to give you your roses while your here.
- Ohh.
Ohhh.
Ohh.
I just love you so much.
I can't kiss you like I want to.
Oh, thank you.
This is, um, gosh.
- Thank you Aunt Connie, for being you.
- I love you so much.
Thank you.
- I love you.
- I love you too.
- [Chris] Thank you for all you do.
- Thank you.
Thank you for being a part of our family.
I just, um, I do it because I love you.
- I know you do.
- You guys have been my rock
and I think I needed you sometimes more
than you ever would have imagined.
But, you know, we're family.
No matter how you look at it.
How different we are.
There's one thing between all of us
and that's love.
You know, it's like, unconditional love.
So, I just want to say,
thank you for loving me.
♪ Happy birthday to you ♪
- [Chris] Whenever our kids blow a candle on the cake
I always get my guitar out
and we sing the Happy Birthday song in English, French,
and since Mile is taking Mandarin at school,
we're gonna try to sing in Mandarin,
but it's not gonna sound right.
- [Donella] Happy Birthday to you
- [Chris] Our family my look atypical
but we are a typical family.
- [Donella] A family is the people that you
have brought into your fold to love.
- [Chris] When people see my family
I want them to see people who love each other
and that are happy together.