There's no crying at Parades!

This post is not the one I promised last night that would be from our Maui trip . I will get to that soon. However, this has to do with the parade today. Well, not really with the parade but with what happened at the parade....

Layton had to work.

Sara was the one who wanted to go to the parade, so she and I went.

Just us.

We walked until we decided that every spot was completely taken and so we set up our chairs on the street. It was a good spot.

Sara found a friend and stood with everyone else at the edge of the parade route to grab a taffy thrown out here and there in the midst of the hoards of children diving for the sticky, gooey goodness.

I sat in my camp chair.

Alone.

Watching.

I would smile and cheer and wave to the few faces that I recognized. I love people watching and listening to the conversations around me.

There was an older lady in a wheelchair sitting next to me who

surprised me when she complained to her family that they had

"missed all of the good stuff being thrown out because the kids kept running in front of her and had grabbed it all before it reached her".

Are you kidding me? I laughed right out loud! What good stuff?

Did I miss the 100 dollar bills or the coupons for the free cars?

Geez, all I saw was smashed up taffy, fat ties from missionary mall and the plastic Madi Gra beads being thrown by Taco Time.

Next time I will have to keep my eyes peeled for the "good stuff".

So, there I am, having a perfectly good time when it hits.

Out of nowhere, it hit me.

A darling little boy with a square head walked in front of me and my nose started to turn red.

Then I looked away only to see a sweet little girl dressed up in Fourth of July colors complete with the ribbons and bows.

Quickly, I turned my eyes to see a mommy holding her child's hand while running back to the daddy with her grocery bag of 4 pieces of taffy picked up off of the road. Oh, no, there went an entire family

that walked right in front of me all dressed in the same stupid t-shirts from

Old Navy and the flood gates were about to burst!

Tears were about to stream down my face and I could feel that

my nose was the color of Rudolf's.

How did this happen?

I use to have children that had square heads and darling dresses too!

When did my children all grow up?

How is this possible that I am the old person

sitting on the side lines watching all the young parents juggle with their children, viewing everything through the children's eyes?

The lump in my throat felt as if I couldn't breath.

And, then, just in the nick of time, someone tapped my shoulder.

I was jolted back into reality.

It was a grandmother asking me if I knew that there was a string of red beads under my feet.

"Why no, I did not know that but you may have them if you would like" , I politely answered back hoping that she would think that I had a sunburned nose even though it was an overcast sky.

"Oh, yes, I will give them to my granddaughter, thank you", she replied as she grabbed the beads and disappeared in the crowd.

And that was that.

Odd, I know but I guess that is how I am going to enter this new phase of my life.

This new grown up phase.

In short, dramatic bursts of emotional quandary

in the least likely places in the most awkward moments.

Oh well, I am woman, I will survive .....I will just have to remember....

"there's no crying at Parades!"

Plus, Sara got drenched by her friends

at the traditional water fight parade

after the first parade and

she loved it!

What more could I ask for?