Cruisin'

I had one excited 7, almost 8 year old in my house today. She is on a dinner cruise tonight. My Mom works on the Lady Anderson and had asked a while back if she could take Sarah for a night on the boat to celebrate her birthday. I, of course, said yes, seeing as how my firstborn LIVES for events such as these. So, tonight she is out crusin'.

I just know she is having the biggest time. I don't know anybody who likes to party and celebrate like Sarah. I'm pretty sure the term "social butterfly" was created to describe her.

I started to say she was going on her *first* dinner cruise, but then I remembered it is not. There is no way I could forget her first dinner cruise. It was December 2002, just a week or two before Sarah's first Christmas. The boat ran a Christmas cruise for the worker's families and my Mom was so excited to have us on the trip. I'm sure it would've been an amazing night. It should've been. It could've been. If Josh and I weren't both recovering from the flu. If Sarah had not been a colicky baby. If the Christmas carols had perhaps been....just a little less peppy. If I had the swimming skills to jump off the boat and swim back to shore.  JUST KIDDING! (Kind of).

It's funny now. Praise God for traumatic events that become funny 8 years later, right? It absolutely makes me laugh out loud now to think of looking across the table at my Dad and the silly faces he would make when the singers would hit a really high, really long note that perhaps would not have been quite as painful if it were not accompanied by a screaming baby and an upset stomach. Did I mention we were on a boat? For 3 hours? Don't worry, we got some relief. They didn't just hit the high notes. They also sang songs like "Here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus, Here Comes Santa Claus" and "Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells". Oh, is that not how they go? That's how I remember them!

I have two purposes in sharing this story tonight. 1.Education. 2. Encouragment. First, I know that my sister has struggled with a colicky baby for the last month and I've had other blog readers share they have as well. If you don't ever learn anything else from me, please, I beg of you, heed these words. DO NOT TAKE A COLICKY BABY ON A 3 HOUR TOUR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In fact, don't ever go anywhere where there is not an estimated escape time of less than 45 seconds. Take my word for it, y'all, please!

Second, just at the time that this story came to my mind I experienced the most special moment of my mothering experience. My kids spent the night with my Mom this week and they have a tradition of going to the Dollar Tree. Sarah, despite being my daughter, is the most thoughtful child on the planet. She must get it from her Daddy. Everytime she goes she has to buy a present for everybody and their grandma. Literally. Well, when I got to my Mom's to pick them up Sarah had a present waiting for me. And a card. She wanted to tell me thank you for everything I've done for her since she was a baby. Can you believe that???? About did me in. I was already having one of those crummy days where you feel fat and ugly and like you stink at everything. Do you ever have those days? I'll tell you, when I heard that my heart decided that nothing else matters. Being a Mama to that sweet girl and her brother and sister is more than I could have ever hoped or dreamed of. She also bought me a frame and wrote a note on it. She had seen the picture from our wedding that all of our guests had signed. She is too much. I'm overwhelmed. And no, I don't wish to relive those early, colicky days, but I would in a heartbeat to get to be Sarah Elizabeth Fidler's Mama! Tonight she's cruisin' and my heart is soaring!