Chapter 8
An interview with Mac and Maddie…
Here we are, fifteen years later, with Mac and Maddie McCarthy. We’ve just revisited your love story. What do you remember most about this time in your lives?
Mac: I remember every detail of that first day with Maddie, especially how she wanted me to get lost and never come back.
Maddie: (laughing) I can’t deny that’s true because I thought you were too good to be true. But I’m so glad you made me fall in love with you.
Mac: As if it were a choice.
At the time, you had nine-month-old Thomas, and now he’s about to be sixteen! What’s he up to these days?
Mac: He’s counting the days until he can get his driver’s license.
Maddie: While I want to rewind the clock. I’m so not ready for him to be driving.
Mac: He’s obsessed with baseball, like I was at his age, but he’s better at it than I ever was. He also plays basketball and lacrosse. But baseball is his first love.
Maddie: He’s an excellent student and a wonderful big brother to his brother and sisters. We’re very proud of him.
Does he know what he wants to do after high school?
Maddie: He’s pursuing an appointment to the Naval Academy.
Wow, that’s impressive. What sparked his interest in the military?
Mac: It’s something that’s always interested him. We don’t remember a time when he wasn’t talking about joining the military.
You have two other teenagers now, right?
Maddie: We do. Hailey is fourteen, and Mac is thirteen. The twins are nine already. The time is going by so fast.
Mac: We also celebrate Connor’s birthday every year. We never stop thinking of the baby we lost.
Mac, we always wondered what you’d be like with daughters who were interested in boys. How’s that going for you?
Mac: It’s hell.
Maddie: (laughing) He’s handling it better than expected. Hailey has a lot of friends, some of whom are boys, but isn’t interested in having a boyfriend just yet.
Mac: Thank God for that.
Maddie: Mac doesn’t want to hear that we’re on borrowed time when it comes to boyfriends and such things.
Mac: You’re right. Mac doesn’t want to hear about that.
How are your parents doing?
Maddie: Mom and Ned are great. They’re traveling a lot. Last year they went to Paris, and this year they’re planning an Alaskan cruise.
Mac: My parents are doing well, too. My dad had knee replacement surgery last year, and he’s getting around a lot better since then. My mom has taken up pickleball, and no one can beat her. They’re looking forward to an African safari next week with their travel crew.
Maddie: We’re very thankful for their continued good health. They’re surrounded by grandchildren when they’re home, and they wouldn’t have it any other way.
When you look back over the last fifteen years, what’s the thing you’re proudest of?
Maddie: Definitely our family. The kids are close and enjoy being together. We never miss a chance to remind them their closest friends are right here in our home. They’re also very close to their cousins.
Mac: That philosophy comes right from my dad. He used to say that to us, and my siblings and cousins are still my closest friends.
Maddie: We’re also proud of all the things we’ve been through together and how our relationship has grown and evolved over the years.
Mac: She’s still madly in love with me.
Maddie: (rolling her eyes) I can’t deny that, even if he is still insufferable.
Mac: Her love is the greatest gift of my life.
Maddie: See how he messes up and then fixes it? Nothing has changed.
Mac: One thing has changed. I love you a thousand times more than I did fifteen years ago.
Maddie: Likewise, my love.