Jerome, Zoe, & Kallie

Jerome, 26

Zoe, 5

Kallie, 2

"When I first had them I vowed that they would never want anything. That they would always have what they wanted. But it is hard being a father. It's not something you wake up knowing how to do. The hardest part for me is telling my kids 'no.' I don't ever want to have to tell them 'no,' unless it's something that's gonna' harm them."

"I was terrified. When you find out you're having a kid you don't know what to expect. I was young when I had my first. It was hard. I was thinking, 'OK, so I'm bringing somebody into the world. What am I supposed to do? How should I do this?'"

"Most men want to have a son. So when you find out you're having a daughter it's like 'OK, this is something new.' Something I've never experienced. You don't know, but you gotta' try it. Once she was here and I actually met her, it changed me. I gotta' treat my girl better. I gotta' treat my mother better. I gotta' do everything better for the women that I'm around. Also, when I interact with them I have to think differently now, because I have little girls that are watching me."

"Having kids changed my life completely. I knew my girlfriend since 10th grade and then we went on from there. I went to college and when I was in college I was doing well. When I found out I was having my first child I stopped going 'cause I realized it's not just about me. I gotta' take care of someone else. I completely stopped going to school to take care of my oldest. She actually helped me, though. I eventually went back to school and got my nursing degree. She was the fuel to my fire to keep me motivated. So, she definitely changed my life for better."

"When I wake up the first thing I think about is their education. No matter what day it is, I want them to do something educational. This way their brain is constantly working and they're constantly learning. That's the most important thing. When it comes to kids you want them to be able to learn and experience life. To learn as they're growing."

"I just want them to be themselves. I want them to be able to trust themselves. Zoey and Kallie. I want them to be able to not only go out and express themselves but to be noticed and to be role models for other people. My youngest - I'm hoping she decides to play sports. You know, maybe ball or something like that... but my oldest, she’s more into the sciences and the animals, so hopefully she’ll go into that aspect of life and choose to be a nurse like me, or even a teacher. She enjoys teaching her sister different things, and she also has a little cousin that's around all the time. She's teaching them all the time so maybe she'll decide to be a teacher, but whatever they decide to do I'ma be happy with."

"Before I had my youngest I made a promise to myself that no matter what happened to me, I would always make sure that my kids were taken care of and that I would never leave it to somebody else to do that for me. That was a promise I made to myself. Knowing that you have somebody else to take care of...Once you get used to that, it's like walking."

"I love them and nobody and nothing could ever change that. They changed my life for the better."