A Captain, a Co-Pilot...and his kid

Monday was a big day in the Ayers household, Hadley Blaine got her ears pierced.  For the most part, this isn't a huge day in many households.  Heck, this was the fourth time we had done it in ours.  Well fifth if you count mine, its a long story.  Anyway, we sort of decided on the spur of the moment to do this.  It would be made even more special with one set of her grandparents there.  That didn't work out so well, apparently Pop is somewhat squeamish.  At 2.5 you never really know if your girls want their ears pierced or not.  One minute they tell you yes, the next they say no.  They want sparkly ears like their sisters, but they really have no idea what it takes to get them.  She was so calm and trusting in that tall chair, she sat in the chair like a champ.  Thankfully, she had both ears done at the same time.  There was a half a second delay, when she got this shocked look on her face.  How could we do this to her? She then scrunched her face and almost began to cry from the pain.  That is when someone, perfectly timed I might add, shoved a bowl full of lollipops in her face.  She immediately forgot the pain in her ears, and then began picking suckers out for everyone.  She was the Oprah of suckers...."AND YOU GET A SUCKER, AND YOU GET A SUCKER!" Well, perhaps it wasn't that dramatic, but close.  In her handing them out, she ignored her pain.  That was it,  she was ready to move on.

The real pain of the night, I think, belonged to her mother.  I know how she feels, I felt it once too.  I vividly remember the day when Reagan got her ears pierced in Lexington.  I remember being a little sad on that day.  To me it meant my first big girl was growing up.  I figured it was the first of many of these moments, that will prove to me that my time as her first/greatest love is on the clock.  Like many other seemingly minor moments with her and her sisters, I was reminded that all of this is limited.  We live like there is an infinite well of life's precious moments which is ultimately one of the greatest mistakes we can make in life.  Despite all that,  I was happy for Reagan, sad for her Old Man.  I remember the sting that day, Brooke felt it today.

Brooke is always the brave one with the girls.  She can let them run off the diving board at the pool like flying squirrels.  I prefer to be out of the state when this happens.  She lets go of the bike when they are driving it.  I prefer to turn my back and cover my head in the dirt.  I want nothing but to protect my girls, and not ever let them get run over by life.  We are actually a good combination for the girls, like with most things, Brooke and I are a good team. They get a lot of their toughness from their mother, and a lot of their compassion from their Dad.  This is good though, when it comes to emotions, they will expect a husband to be empathetic, sympathetic, and passionate like me.  They will grow up to be disciplined, organized,  and dedicated, like their mother.  Anyway, when the idea came up for the earrings on Monday, I was all about it.  I didn't think twice.  Brooke on the other hand, was a little sad.  She was sad because this was her last baby.  Her last one to get their ears pierced.  She has carried her children in her for close to 40 months, or well over a total of 3 years of her life.  She has fed them with her own milk for a longer amount of time than that.  Sometimes she was pregnant with one, while feeding the other.  She has changed an uncountable number of diapers, she has gotten up in the middle of the night more times then she would care to admit...and here was one of those moments for her.  One that sort of kicks you in the gut.  Its a little, unplanned moment, but a moment nonetheless.  Her last baby was getting her ears pierced.   I felt bad for Brooke, more than I did for the actual pain that Hadley was unaware she would get.

In the end, not much has changed.  Hadley woke up on Tuesday and was pretty much the same kid she was on Monday (Lord help us).  We will go on with our routine, and the girls will get a little older.  It depresses me to know that with each passing day this holiday season, it might be the last for Reagan to have that special sparkle in her eye.  One that only a kid who truly believes has.  It will make me sad when that day comes and she wants to know the truth about the season.  Brooke (of course) is prepared.  She has a letter ready for Reagan and fully knows how she is going to tackle the issue.  She will be the stronger one of us two.  I wouldn't be surprised though, when that day comes for Hadley, that it is me that is the strong one.  I guess that says a lot about the differences between the both of us.

In the old days, it is believed by some that Pirates got their ears pierced because they thought it gave them better vision for the horizons in front of their sails.  With each passing day, Brooke and I see those horizons a little clearer.  We are doing our job as parents, so that one day those girls can set sail on their own.  I have heard that the only way to discover new oceans is to have the courage to lose sight of the shore.  Its nice to have a good co pilot (and many times be a co pilot myself) to navigate those waters, especially when you have an unruly crew.