Tom Cruise cherishes his real-life role as a father - because he dreamed about becoming a dad from an early age.

The Jerry Maguire star has two adopted children - Isabella, 16, and Connor, 13 - from his marriage to Nicole Kidman, and daughter Suri, two, with his wife Katie Holmes. And it was a lifelong ambition come true for Cruise, who harbored a paternal instinct since he was a youngster.

He tells Britain's OK! Magazine, "I love it. I love being a father. I always wanted to. As a kid, I couldn't wait to grow up. I remember being four years old - I always wanted to work and grow up. I always wanted to be a father. I've enjoyed every part of it to all three of my kids. I feel lucky to have teenagers and to have a toddler, to have the journey of both happening at the same time. All my kids, I love them."

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(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)