To Hear those Songs Again...

I was riding in the convertible today, top down, sunglasses on, hair blowing in the wind and a song came on the radio. You know one of those songs. I get those songs a lot.

The ones that instantly take you back to another time. The ones that make you want to close your eyes and engulf yourself in that memory. Except that wouldn't be safe since your driving. Usually those memories are of a carefree time. A time when the everyday worries seemed small and happiness seemed huge. Then there are the ones that make you tear up just from the emotion the song evokes. To this day I cannot hear "In my Daughter's eyes" by Martina McBride without remembering the day Lily was born.

Dan Seals "I wanna Bop with you Baby" takes me back to when I was a kid. Mom and I would ride with the windows down and scream it at the top of our lungs. Well that and anything by the Righteous Brothers. Or the Beach Boys. Or anything from the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack.

I am pretty sure that Whitney Houston, Madonna and Tiffany got me through elementary school and beyond.  I used to dance around in this horrible red pettiskirt to "I wanna dance with somebody" and "How will I know." Oh and NKOTB? I had the neon shirt with puff paint to prove my loyalty to all things Jordan Knight. I to this day blare "The Right Stuff" every.single.time it comes on the radio. No matter who is around. Complete with the signature dance move. You know the one. Pump the arms.

And Nirvana in middle school. Yeah I totally had a Kurt Cobain T-shirt. Don't hate. "Smells like Teen Spirit" was on repeat in my boombox. By repeat I mean I rewound the tape and hit play again. And I cried the day he died. And listened to nothing but Nirvana for months afterwards while sulking in my room.  I rotated between that and Smashing Pumpkins. Oh and Bush. I loved him (still do!). Oh and my secret love of Better than Ezra. My BFF Sharla and I used to call and request "Good" from 95.1FM just to try and get it on our mixed tape. It is debatable whether I washed my hair with any consistency those days.  I was pretty pissed off at the world for no apparent reason other than it existed. Ah to be a hormone crazed teenager.

Then there was high school. First loves, proms, graduation. I can still see the dust in the air as "Just to see you smile" by Tim McGraw plays on my high school sweetheart's truck radio behind that Dallas Flea Market. And remember that horrible Vitamin C "Graduation Song" Oh wow that song was horrible, but lets be honest I rocked out to it during that senior year. Oh and "Good Riddance" by Green Day. Yeah it was like three years old but we rocked it like it had just come out. The Weenie Roast!!! Was anyone else lucky enough to attend any of these? Do they still do it? I saw Green Day, Everclear, Third Eye Blind, The Wallflowers. I swear I saw Billy Idol. But good lord that was a long time ago. My head hurts remembering that day.

And no Thistledown party was complete in college without standing on the coffee table and belting "Proud to be an American" by Lee Greenwood at the top of our lungs until we couldn't sing anymore. Or the cops came. Whichever came first. Then Christal, Allison, and I drove to the Keys my freshman spring break. Blaring Old Dirty Bastard's "Baby I got your money" I mean seriously what was wrong with me? I am ashamed of some of these songs. Or the next spring break mantra of "Just a Friend" by Biz Markie. I still blame my friend Casey for that one. And the one too many hands of Devil's Square on the back of that red cooler. Whew.

 I haven't missed a Kenny Chesney show in ten years. I liked him before he was even big. I have attended everyone of them with my husband.

We went back to the classics for our wedding song. Most people our age haven't even heard of "Moon River" but every time I hear it (usually in an elevator) I can't help but sway to those waltz steps we worked so hard on. Five years later we still haven't brought ourselves to watching the video of that dance. Out of sheer embarrassment. Although we hear it was good.  Not nearly as good as the Shag we learned in 2007 at Red's in Raleigh, dancing to the Embers every Tuesday night. Michael still grabs me when "I love Beach Music" comes on.

Then "My Humps" by Black Eyed Peas. Which I still love as one of my favorite groups. She is named like a princess. I have to love Fergie. The Super Bowl Party that a recording of me dancing and singing that song like Will.I.am was in the crowd. No you can't see that video no matter how nice you ask.  I later had that song dedicated to me at a friend's wedding. No one needs to see my shaking my humps...or my lumps. It was bad.

Now my days are filled with dance tunes that Lily loves. Usually a Lady Gaga or Michael Jackson song.   With an occasional treat for Mommy in the Black Eyed Peas variety. What can I say? Lily likes to jam. She demands "Turn it up Mommy...my song!" Which is every song with a beat. Oh and she has a crush on Michael Buble. But who doesn't? Lord forbid we put on anything rock. Lest we hear a protest from the back seat.

And more often than not I will hear a song that makes me cry just thinking of Lily. Like "Don't Blink" or "There goes my life" Why is it the country songs always make you cry? But a kind of good cry. Like the ones that make you soak in this exact time in your life. When Lily was born George Straits "I saw God Today" was big. That song will always hold a special place in my heart.

Luckily I outgrew my horrible taste in music. Well I don't know if I outgrew so much as went back to some of the actual good music I have listened to in the past! To go to a Weenie Roast now! But I hope music stays a big part of Lily's life. Much like it has been a big part of mine. Because nothing like a  song can bring a memory back to the front of your mind in a heartbeat. There is always that song you thought was just in the background of that wonderful time. Even if it is a horrible, horrible song. Any music is better than no music.

Any songs that bring back that 'one time' for you?

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