Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

Isn't it amazing that you can't recreate a moment? It seems like it would be such a simple thing to do, but it is just NOT possible. So many times I have been somewhere and felt such a wave of pure happiness that all I could think about was how to recreate that feeling, that very moment in my life, but it just doesn't happen that way. You can't do it. Once it is over, it is gone, and I think that in trying to recreate it you take something away. I had to learn this the hard way, so many times I would feel this and even as I was feeling so happy inside, part of me was trying to think of ways to recreate it. I would plan everything out...the same people, the same place, even the same time of day, but it was never quite the same. It took being a Mom for me to learn that you can't make special moments happen, they just do, so you better grab hold and enjoy it while you can because once it is gone, it's gone, never to be experienced in quite the same way again.

Last night was a series of moments, such sweet, special ones I just wanted to hold onto them forever. We took the girls to the Keys game with Mac's grandfather, his parents, and our niece. Driving to the game the three big girls sang "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" the whole way there. The baby cooed and squealed the entire time, so delighted that her big sisters were so entertaining. I dressed the girls in red, white, and blue to celebrate going to a baseball game, the all- American pastime. When we got there, we found my niece dressed in red and white, completely unplanned, but perfect all the same. We had great seats. The kids ate popcorn and pretzels for dinner. They rode a carousel and jumped in a moon bounce. They played games. Bug and Peanut won prizes. Girly and my niece didn't, but they didn't even complain. The mascot came up to us and the girls were on the Jumbo screen. The Keys won. The kids all got to run around the bases at the end of the game. We watched the fireworks and the baby was so enchanted by the lights that she reached for the sky. When we walked to the car Grandpa held my niece's little hand the entire way, even though he was limping and his knee hurt. The girls sang "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" the whole way home. When brushing her teeth, Girly said to me, "Hey Mom, I guess some of those kids have already run around the bases a million times and that is why they didn't want to do it." I asked, "If you had already run around the bases a million times, would you still do it again?" She gave me a big nod and smile. Perfect answer. So many great moments, so sweet, and so special even though I could feel them slipping through my fingers never to be experienced in quite the same way again. Another great day. Another great adventure. Another item checked off the list.