We all want to be heros in our children’s eyes.  When you become a parent, there is just something that makes your chest puff up and make you happy to be you when you realize that to your kids, you are the strongest/richest/fastest/bestest person in the whole world.

Jon and I had a day like that yesterday.

Now,  my kids have been around water since the day they were born.  Having an indoor pool on the property at home in Ohio certainly helped their “fishdom” grow and they’ve all had swimming lessons.  Colin is a very proficient swimmer and Ter and Jake can both doggie paddle, float and tred water should they ever get beyond their reach.  It also helps that Jon is a certified lifeguard too.  Needless to say, we spend a lot of time around the water.

We decided to go to Cocoa Beach yesterday since it was a holiday, we hadn’t been for a while and all the kids were begging.  It was a great day to go.  The heat was fairly mild (high 80s), the humidity was not down and due to the approaching storms/hurricanes, the surf was active.  Unfortunately, since the surf was so active (due to the storms), the undertow was also pretty bad.  So we instigated all the normal rules (basically, colin can’t go in past his waist and the other two, not past their thighs unless Mommy or Daddy is right with them).  I set up the tent about 5 feet from water’s edge, so I could relax in the shade and still take pictures/watch the kids.  It was great fun – especially for Jake.  He LOVES getting washed around by the surf.  He runs up to it, gets knocked down by the waves, drug back to the beach and then jumps up, covered in sand and smiling ear to ear.  Literally, he will do this for 4 hours until I drag him kicking, screaming and physically exhausted back to the blanket.  Yesterday was no different.

At one point in time, Jon had come back to the blanket to get a drink of water and we were sitting there, by the waters edge watching the boys.  He had his eyes on Colin, who was further out, body boarding with the surfers (they were all over the place!); I was watching the little ones.  I saw the big wave come up and crash over the head of Jacob.  When the wave rushed back, I didn’t see Jacob where I expected to see him, but instead, his head popped up a good 10-12 feet back into the surf – a place where I knew he couldn’t reach.  I saw his head pop up and down twice as he tried to find his footing and then when he couldn’t, he started spinning around (this is how he treads water when he can’t reach).  Jon and I have an agreement.  If we are together and one of the kids in the water needs help, I don’t move.  I tell him and he goes for them.  This is because he’s faster and knows how to do it and I need to stay the hell out of his way.  So I said, “Jon, go get Jake” and pointed.  Jon stood up and saw Jacob but I don’t think he realized the gravity of the situation.  So I said in a more hurried voice, “GO NOW” (and by hurried I mean yelling).

Now for being a little overweight, I will tell you that Jon does baywatch proud.  I’ve never seen him move so fast in my life.  He got from my side to Jacob in less than 3 seconds, full dive into the waves and all.

He brought Jake back to the blanket and set him down next to me because according to Jon, as soon as he got to him Jake said, “take me to mommy”. *heart strings*  It was nice to hear that when he was frightened, it was me he asked for.  Jake was ok, not coughing or anything since he really didn’t go under, but you could tell he’d been scared.  He sat, rather serious next to me, but not upset.  I hugged him and looked at him and said “are you ok Jacob?”.  He looked me in the eye and just said, “My Daddy saved me”.  I tried to not cry and just replied, “yes, he did.  And you remember that no matter what, if you need help, Mommy and Daddy will always be there to save you.”

His seriousness lasted all of about 5 minutes and was quickly replaced by a Capri Sun and piece of candy.  He ran back to play in the waves as soon as Mommy’s anxiety would give in.

But for the rest of the day, Jacob wanted to tell everyone how his Daddy saved him.   In the elevator at Ron Jons, he told the guy next to him, “My Daddy saved me”.  To the little boy playing in the sand next to him, “My Daddy saved me”.  To me when I tucked him into bed, “My daddy saved me.”

I know that Jon and I may not be there someday when Jacob needs us; but for now, I will do everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen.  And knowing that in Jake’s heart he can be secure in knowing that his daddy will save him means my world is also a little more secure today.

Because at the heart of it, isn’t that what we all want?  Just to know that when push comes to shove, “my daddy will save me” and that when push comes to shove, if you are daddy (or mommy), that you can.