Army Way of Life

Chapter Three

"Constitution was given to the American People in 1908. It was received by President Theodore Roosevelt. It was Mrs. Russell Sage and Miss Anna Warner who presented Constitution Island to the United States government as a joint gift under certain conditions..." the tour guide droned on as we rode the boat over to the island. Melanie, who was sitting on my left, was completely zoned out and not even trying to act like she was listening.

"How long is this supposed to last?" she asked.

"I have no clue, but hopefully once we get over there, we can walk around on our own. I can't stand listening to her squeaky voice any longer," I complained.

I focused on my little boy on my lap, who was babbling. He started playing with my hands and smacking his lips, something he does when he's thirsty. "John, can you get his sippy cup out of the diaper bag?" I whispered. He handed it to me then focused his attention back on the tour guide. I just shook my head.

When I gave Ryker the sippy cup, he went to town on it. He drank half the cup without taking a breath. "You would think he hasn't had anything to drink all day," Mel whispered.

"I know. And we just filled the cup up again when we ate lunch..." I replied.

We finally reached the dock on the island and were able to get off the boat. Because of the weird ramp, I had to carry Ryker off so John could carry the stroller. He plopped it down after we got out of the way of the flow of traffic and I sat Ryker inside. He was content as we walked over to the large group, but then started getting fussy. "Mama!" he said.

"Shhh, Buddy. Mama's right here," I soothed, kneeling down beside him. The tour guide was giving directions, and because of Ryker's growing impatience, I didn't hear any of them. "Mama!" he cried, reaching for me.

Not wanting to cause a scene, I unbuckled him and whispered, "I'm going to go stand over there with him. Come get me when she's done talking."

"Okay," Mel whispered back.

I walked over to a bench under a tree about 50 feet away from the group. Ryker was rubbing his eyes and I knew he was tired. This was usually his nap time, and Dad knew it too. But he insisted everyone be present. I sat down and started rocking side to side, trying to get Ryker to go to sleep. After about 10 minutes, he was out and my family approached me.

"What's wrong?" Mom asked, looking worried.

"Look at the time," I said.

So she did. "Oh, Honey, I'm sorry."

"It's fine. He's asleep now."

"Do you want to put him in here?" John asked, pushing the stroller.

"He'll probably wake up if I try. I'll just hold him for now."

"Well, let's get moving," Dad said. "We want to keep up with the rest of the group."

I just rolled my eyes. I loved my Dad, I did, but he was such a stickler for the rules and his schedules. He was just a hardass, and having a baby around, that's not a good thing. He doesn't like deviations. It made me wonder how he and Mom ever had kids. Maybe he wasn't so bad then, I don't know.

But we continued on anyway. We walked through the buildings and read more signs with little bits of history than I cared to. After about 45 minutes, I thought my arms we going to fall off. "John, can you please take him for a few minutes? I can't feel my arms anymore."

"Yeah," he said, reaching for my sleeping child. Ryker moved around a bit, but just nuzzled his head into his Uncle's neck. I took the stroller and we continued on.

When we were back out in the open, someone said, "Hey, John." John, Melanie, and I all turned toward the source. It was a guy, I assumed John's age, with blond hair and tan skin. He was attractive to say the least.

"Hey Toby, what's up?"

"Showing my family around before we leave tomorrow," he said. "This is my mother Kim and my father Bill," he added. John stuck his free arm out to shake their hands.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," John greeted.

"Likewise," Bill said.

"This is my little sister Melanie, and my twin sister Quinn. This is my nephew Ryker," he said, looking down to the sleeping boy in his arms.

"He's precious," Kim cooed. "Is he yours?" she asked me.

"He is," I said with a smile. "How could you tell?" I joked. He's a spitting image of me and his father. He has the dark blonde hair and his father's eyes.

They laughed at my statement. "You're very blessed," Kim said.

"I am."

"It was great meeting you, but we probably need to go find the rest of our family," John said.

We all said goodbye and found our family a few hundred feet away. "Who were you talking to, Dear?" Mom asked.

"Toby Keaton, he's in my platoon."

"Oh, that's nice. You should have introduced us."

"I would have had you not kept walking," he retorted.

"Fair enough," my mother laughed. "We need to head back to the dock, the boat will be here in 10 minutes."

Ryker was still fast asleep in John's arms. "I'll take him back," I said.

"I got him."

"You sure?"

"Yes, Q. I'm okay," he said, nudging my shoulder.