Our First Time Out With The New Toys

My husband bought a couple new toys this past week. Although I am not happy with the timing of purchase, we have always talked about getting said purchase one day. What is this new toy, you ask? A new video game? Nope, jet skis.Tonight we decided to take them out for a couple of quick rides to test them out. We hitched up the trailer (I say 'we' but we all know, it was more of a hubby thing and I really had nothing to do with it), threw our life vests in the back, grabbed our extra cans of gas and we were off to the lake.

After we got there, Mike decided we would just unload one. I was the lucky one to go first. Hubby showed me how to start it and then I was off. Waves splashed and I flew across the top of the water. Oh . . . how I love to jet ski!! I pulled the trigger all the way and I was going full throttle. I let up a bit and start into my first turn. Bam . . . . it stalled. After a couple of tries I was able to get it going again and I was on my way back to the dock to give my hubby a turn. After throwing my dear hubby his life vest, he jumped on and ran a quick loop by himself. He came back and Reece was first up to take a turn. I gave Reece a little pep talk (not that he needed encouragement, he was very excited to go). I reminded him if he fell off, don't panic, the life vest will bring you right back to the top of the water. Reece flashed me a great big smile and climbed on. Mike and Reece were off. Grace and I stood on the dock and watched them for a few minutes. We saw Mike stall and then start back up again.

I turn my back to take this picture of Grace and I . . .

. . . . I turn back around and see the guys have tipped and are in the water. I can't really make anything out, but I can see the jet ski on it's side. I'm staring it down, waiting to see some kind of movement, but the boys are too far away to really see anything. Then I see it . . . the jet ski gets turned back up and I see the boys moving a bit. 5 minutes go by and I don't see the boys getting on. I keep on standing and watching. About this time a car with a older man comes into the lake area near me and sit and watches out over the lake. Then he takes off. I keep standing there watching. It looks like the jet ski is getting closer. I figure the guys are swimming it in and they had probably flooded it. As I keep standing watch, listening for any kind of yelling from them, and praying for our Lord to let everything be Ok. A woman starts to yell from the shore.

"ARE YOU ALL ALRIGHT?" she yells.

I was pretty sure everything was ok, I had no panic the boys were hurt. They were not going fast and I had seen them moving around.

The lady comes over and asks me if they are all alright. I tell her yes, I believe so, that they just tipped and it looks to be flooded. She tells me she has 911 on the phone. That a man, from the restaurant on the other side of the lake, saw the guys arms flinging around. I have a moment of panic. Could I be wrong?! Are my boys hurt?

By this time the boys are closer, they are swimming it in and dragging the now sinking jet ski behind them. Still too far away for me to see them clearly, but closer than where they tipped. I yell out to them if they are ok. I hear Mike yell back they are Ok. I tell the woman who is talking to 911, that they are ok.

At this time, in pulls the ambulance. I go to meet them and tell them what happened and that I heard my husband yell over that they are ok. Since they have no other calls, they said they'll stick around and help bring the boys in. I grabbed a rope out of the truck and we walk to the end of the dock. The sheriff pulls in now and makes a funny comment about forgetting to bring his water wings. We all giggle. Another 10 minutes pass and the boys are close enough. The ambulance driver tosses the rope to Reece and tells him to hold on, he is going to pull him in. Reece grabs the rope and instead of just holding on and being pulled to the dock. Reece only grabs the rope with one hand and swims over to his daddy and grabs Mike's vest so he can bring him in too. It was a moment I will never forget. It brought me to tears. My dear son, although scared and trying so hard to hold it together and be brave, freezing cold, wants to save his father. The Ambulance People and Sheriff all look at me and smile. They pull the boys in and I whisked Reece away to get stripped and wrapped up into a warm towel and heated truck. There is a little space between the dock and solid ground that has lake water. You have to make a big jump when you come off the dock so as not to step in it. When we reached this, sweet Reece melted down. Relief and the whole big ordeal swept over him. He cried and told me how scared he was. I hugged him and told him how brave he was. Even when he was scared he kept his head and helped his daddy swim all that way pulling the sinking jet ski back in. It's only a brave and strong man that keeps on even when scared and that was him, my Reecie.

Mike got helped in and they helped us load up the jet ski. I guess a plug didn't get put back in and the jet ski was taking in water. Which was why it was stalling on us earlier. Mike was embarrassed 911 had been called and said they were fine the whole time, just very cold.