Be Still My Heart... Tonight was the night.

I type this blog with a tear of joy streaming down my left cheek. Tonight friends, family and world o' blog, my 3 year old Anna Lucille Cooke conquered my world. She caught, on her adorable Disney Princess fishing pole (which was a bday gift from our awesome neighbors) a catfish at the Marine Creek Lake. For historical purposes here are the following facts:

Date/Time: 5/23/2010  7:37 PM

Location:    Marine Creek Reservoir
Locale:       Eastern shore, about 200 ft south of the trees on the waters edge
Bait:            Live worm (Canadian Nightcrawler)
Gear:          Fishing rod, see details above.
Tackle:        Hook (size 8, tiny, old school, not barbed).
Mood:         A very chatty patience yet absolutely determined
Witness:      Andrew Cooke
Prize:          Channel Catfish
Length:       Approx 5"
Action:        Catch & Release or as Lucy says... "Putting him back so he can go swim with his Mommy"

For the mystery and enchantment on her face; THIS is why I have fished my entire life and have just began a life long fishing journey with my 1st daughter... I hope you all enjoy the following pictures as much as I enjoyed being with her on this monumental occasion!!!

Picking out the right tackle!

 

Worm & Hook. Old School. Good choice girl! Daddy is proud!

 

One-handed casting! All on her own and all night long!

(picture cute but very misleading... Daddy helped a LOT with casting tonight)

 

A must-have in every fisherman's tackle box... Patience:

Another handy talent? Being able to talk to the fish!  

 Picture below went something like this: "Fiiiiiishieeeeees Come eat my worms I will forgive you for eating my worms I just want to see you tonight I saw your friends at the zoo and I want to see you please bite my worm there is a hook so be careful but I will forgive you for eating my worm and Daddy and I are going to be SOOOOO happy to see you eat my worm and if you are a little one you can go with Molly and if you are big one you can go with me! Spin, Spin, Pull, Pull. Worm dances in the water hurry fishy the sun is going to sleep........................."

  

Fishing? Who needs fish? Let's sing & dance... 

The bobber wasn't working out to well (although she "loved the pretty orange" color) so we switched to a weight instead. I taught her the "spin spin pull pull" technique. This technique "makes the worms dance" in the water! She loved it and sang (loudly) "Spin Spin Pull Pull Dance Dance Dance" for about an hour and a half.

 

It was a race against the clock and the beautiful sunset when suddenly....

BANG!! The prizes! 

Her prize: the joy of the first catch! That little fight she felt on the other end of the line! The  OH MY GOODNESS she shouted when she knew what was going on (which took a solid minute or two between dancing and singing)! My prize?... The mystery, enchantment and sense of accomplishment/celebration on her face:

Look at that adorable nervous left hand perched back tugging at her shirt. She had no idea what to do with that catfish wiggling all around! Afterall, he needed to quickly "go back to swim with his Mommy"!