Today, you graduate from elementary school. I have mixed emotions about this and it’s been no secret to you or the internet as I’ve prepared for this over the past year.

But what stands out in my mind the most is that I am so STINKIN’ proud of you! You’ve come a long way since you first entered the doors of Colonial Elementary School just a few weeks prior to your 4th birthday. At that time, we could hardly understand what you were saying to us and enrolled you in the Special Ed preschool. We saw growth there, oh so much growth, and as I look back, I saw how God put the right people in our paths to get you the help you needed. Who knew that a simple game of golf that Papaw would play would lead us there?

I attribute much of your kind heart to those that you encountered before you even started kindergarden as you worked with other children who had disabilities. And there was a time while you were in preschool for a year and a half that they weren’t sure if you’d be able to start school on time. But you did.

The first day of kindergarten for most parents was difficult, but not for me. I was already putting you on the bus for a year and a half by that point and off you went. You helped the other children find places within the confines of the school walls, you knew the staff there and they loved you. Every one has always loved you. And it’s so easy to see why.

First grade was a little more difficult. I up and moved you away from Nana and Papaw to Richmond and I can’t ever remember crying to the teacher as much as I did that year. You were unruly in school, you struggled with home work and every night there was a knock out, drag out over the various assignments that you needed to complete. I remember thinking that if something didn’t change, there was no way we would survive to see you even enter middle school.

But here were are. Things changed.

We moved back to Roanoke and I vowed to keep you in the same elementary school no matter what I had to do to make that happen. When you entered second grade, I remember talking to your teacher and she couldn’t even believe that you were the same child she’d read about in your transfer paperwork. You came off you IEP and you thrived. You were happy. I was happy. Things got better.

But then third grade came along. And we were back to a repeat of first grade. I didn’t know what to do with you. I didn’t know how I was going to make it through but people kept telling me that the odd years were the hardest. I worked and worked with your teacher and by the end of the year, you were again back on track. We taught you how to take your time on your tests, we taught you how to work on controlling your temper. Together, you made great strides and I’ve always been thankful for the teachers that you’ve had. Without them, I’m not sure where you’d be.

When the SOL test scores came out, you had advanced proficiency in all subject matters except math and you only missed that one by a hair. But you still had yet to reach the milestone of having A-B honor roll.

When 4th grade rolled around, you finally decided to play football. I was scared. I was nervous. But I can honestly say that football was the best thing that we’ve ever done for you. Papaw was right. I saw you blossom into quite the athlete. You might not have known what you were doing, but you gave it 110%. You never quit and only mentioned it once. One time… and you took some pretty good beatings. But if there is one thing you aren’t, it’s a quitter.

Academically, you did well. You’ve always struggled with writing and spelling, but you worked on it. Homework was still a struggle, but we managed. It was a fairly easy year for both of us, which was good. Because my life was a shambles and I’m not sure how I provided any support to you. But we made it through.

You started playing basketball as well. How awesome that you did as that one move on your part changed all of our lives. Your coaches were so proud of you and talked about how “coachable” you were. And you are. You strive to learn. You strive to always do your best and you’re so hard on yourself, but your perseverance is amazing. I admire it, Matthew.

Football season rolled around and again, you gave it your all. The 5th grade started off a little rocky. I was prepared. It was an odd year. I struggled with the school getting you the help that you needed even though they didn’t see anything wrong. I knew that they only made it easier on you to get good grades and I was hard on you. Papaw was hard on you. You were doing extra work in addition to juggling sports, friends, time with your dad, and school. And you did it.

I’ve seen growth in you since you were born, which just seems like yesterday. But I’ve seen the most growth this year. I’ve seen you blossom as a son, a student, an athlete, a friend, and more importantly as a Christian. This was the year that you gave your life to Christ and you never looked back. There are days that I feel like I can’t keep up with you spiritually. You keep me grounded. You keep me in check when I get out of whack and I am forever grateful to have that reminder. And I love it when you tell me that you love me less than God, because you NEVER forget that He is first and foremost.

Athletically, you finished a great football and basketball season and was instrumental in helping me with my softball team in the role of equipment manager. I know the girls gave you alot of flack and I know that there were days that you just didn’t want to deal with them, but you were a great help to all of us.

And then there’s the whole artsy side of you. Where did the singing come from? And why did it take making a perfect score on your audition for the All County Choir for me to realize it? And your acting? You’re amazing, Matthew. You’ve got so much talent and so many gifts that I’ve sat in awe way too many times over the last year. Including your comedic performance just a week ago.

As a member of the C-Team you helped show others in your school the value of character. You led by example and again, the teachers all loved you. And now? In middle school, you’ve already been asked to serve there and you’ve not even started yet. That says so much about you.

But let’s talk academically for just a moment. When 5th grade started, your writing and reading were a little lacking and you hated to do either. How proud was I when you were asked to join the reading society, when you voluntarily would pick up books and when you entered the Young Writers Competition. You did ALL that, Matthew. You did it. And when you didn’t think that you were going to be able to get all the extra work for the Reading Society done, you found a way to do it. You sacrificed friends and sleep to do it and you did it, proving, once again, you are not a quitter.

All of this and A-B honor roll THREE times this year. AND advanced proficiency on your writing SOL.

And let’s not forget the four hours of tutoring each week that you’ve been doing the last three months and you’ve never complained.  Not once.  You just go, sometimes eating in the car between tutoring and church or softball.

Matthew, my heart bursts with pride when I stop and think about all of these things. I could not have asked for a better child. I love you and your sister so much but you are both so different. You each bring things to the table to complete this family.

But today?

Today is all about you. Today is YOUR day. Because you’ve earned this.

And selfishly, I’m not looking forward to this because I don’t feel old enough to be a Middle School Mom. I just don’t.

But the reality?

I am.

And a proud one at that.

I’m looking forward to what the future holds for you, Matthew. I can’t wait to see what’s on the horizon. I can’t wait to see what else you are capable of doing. Because you’ve surpassed everything that I’ve ever wanted for you thus far.

Congratulations on making it through elementary school. As you enter this new chapter in your life I want you to be able to look back on all of these things that I’ve told you about and remember how you’ve pushed through. I want you to see what comes from hard work and perserverance. And I want you to always remember that you are not a quitter.

I love you (less than God)…

Mom

***************

I’ve been drafting this letter in my head for a little over a week, and yes, I’ve actually got it to give to Matthew when he walks that stage tonight.  I do love both of my children, but for Samara, things come so easily.  I’ve never seen her work to the extent that Matthew has in anything that she’s done.  She’s just one of those kids.  Matthew has to work a little harder than most kids to achieve the things that they do when it comes to sports and academics.  And he never complains.

I’m proud of all of the achievements that my kids make.  But today, Matthew needs this.  Matthew needs to see how far he’s come and how proud I am of him.  And I want you to see it too…

Until next time…

The New Middle School Mom

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Tonight, we played our last softball game of the regular season. It’s done. Finished.

And I?

Survived.

I have mixed emotions about it. Part of me is excited that I can now have my nights and weekends back but the other part of me is going to miss these girls. Miss the game. Miss the competition. Miss the victories, not just in the final score of the game, but in what I saw these girls, and myself, accomplish.

I entered the season not knowing what to do, if I could do it, if I would like it, etc. So many unknowns… so many insecurities.

I’m not a confident person.

And then I found out that my head coach was going to miss ALOT of games. Like eight of our 15… and there went my security blanket. I really felt like I would just be the head coach in name only and he would be the real coach. (They wouldn’t let him coach two teams, so this is the arrangement that we made….)

Oy.

And like I mentioned, we only won when he was there and it baffled me. I always made the line up. I always decided who would play where. I did all that, so why did we always lose when he wasn’t there? It bothered me. Alot. I was beginning to develop a complex.

Last night, we finally won without him. And tonight? We did it again.

We ended the season with three wins in a row on three VERY hot days. I couldn’t have asked for a better team. They gave it their all and it showed.

We had our banquet after the game tonight and I have no pictures thank goodness because I looked like I had just gone through the wringer. As I looked out at all the parents who had cameras and video cameras, I was sick thinking about how many of these people have me permently embedded in their digital media looking the way that I did today. It. Was. Hot. Like 100 degrees hot.

But…

My point is this… Never have I been more proud of myself. I did this. I did the best I could with this. And I realized that I’m good at this… maybe not with the wins, but with the motivation of the team, of the teaching of the skills. I can do this.

I was honored tonight in many ways. I guess honored isn’t the right word… thanked would be better.

From our sponsor, the local Fox station, I received a clock with my name on it… and it says

COACH HEATHER JACOBSON

Thank You For Your Hard Work

Time And Patience

2008 White Sox

I had to laugh… I don’t think I’ve ever been thanked for my patience…

From the parents, I got this…

It’s signed by all the girls, and I’m not sure if you can tell, but that softball is sitting in a glove. It’s by far the best recognition I’ve ever received.

We ended our season eight and seven… yes, a winning season. In so many more ways than one.

One of the parents took pictures the entire season and gave all of us a CD. I was ever so grateful as I have very few. It’s hard to take pictures from the coaches box.

So I’ll leave you with a few…

But here are my two favorites…

It’s bittersweet coaching your daughter…

And this? This is Sam’s dad, my ex-husband, pitching to my daughter. While I coached. And friends, if you would have told me 7 years ago that this would be happening? I would’ve laughed in your face. If that’s not a God thang, I don’t know what is… but it’s also one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.

As for coaching again next year?

I’m already signed up.

Until next time…

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Or Emeril… or Julia Childs… or whoever that dude is on Hell’s Kitchen…

I WANT to be, but I fall very short.

I’ve done a few things about it, but I’m still not a good cook.

Yes, I’ve had some successes. Few. And they come when it’s important in my life, like cooking a meal for a guy for the first time, Thanksgiving dinner with church or when you invite Pastor Man for dinner. Of course, all of those times involved MULTIPLE phone calls to the BFF or her husband to seek advice and for them to talk me off the proverbial edge.

And when your son gets on stage and proclaims to the body of his elementary school that you “can’t cook. Period.” you know that you aren’t that great of a cook.

Please know that my mother worked with me in the kitchen. She did her best to set me up for success. I knew how to make the meals that we ate often and she sent me on my way with a cookbook, so that I would know how to make the important things… like her chocolate cake with icing and banana bread. I’ve yet to make either.

And I think part of my problem is my stove…. but I will be remedying that soon. But the last time I talked to you about my stove, it had TWO semi-functional burners and now we’re down to one.

Because I caught the stove on fire AGAIN.

And yes, I said AGAIN. As in more than once I have sent pretty flames up the front of my avacado green stove.

You might remember the great meltdown of 2007 in which I was cooking RICE. Come on people.. rice! It’s not like I was cooking something with the word flambe in the name… it was RICE.

A little except of that post…

That’s me…

That’s me right after the meltdown…

but it was more then melting…there were flames!

(Now, I need to point something out here…I don’t think I have ever produced flames in the kitchen…so this would be a first…)

But here’s what happened….

It was time for lunch… (I thought I would be considerate and eat before I called Yvonne) and so I set out to make my traditional “there’s no left overs” lunch — rice. Rice isn’t hard, ya know? You put it in water and you let cook for 20 minutes (or until all the water is soaked up in the rice — which, hey! is about 20 minutes.) I’m good at this. I make rice ALL THE TIME!!!!! Sometimes I put alfredo sauce on it, sometimes butter, sometimes cheese…. (they say peanut butter is good, but I’ve not tried that).

The point being — this was not a new cooking experience here.

I put in one cup of rice and one cup of water (remember this point — very important) — I sit it on the back left burner and I flip the knob and I walk away. I know that I have 3 minutes before it’s time to go back, stir, turn down to simmer, and wait.

All of a sudden I hear this noise…it sounded like a thud and I thought “that stupid mouse is back” (yes, there is a mouse in the house too) but it wasn’t a thud…it was a WHOOSH….

I turn around and look into the kitchen and I just see smoke.

I walk in the kitchen and that’s when I see the flames. Had they been in someone else’s kitchen I would’ve said they were pretty — but in mine…they were downright scary…

So, I utter a few explicitives (and that bothers me because I’ve REALLY been working on my mouth….) I find a bowl in the sink and I douse the flames…

Guess who turned the wrong burner on? Guess where that empty juice pitcher was?

I grab the pitcher handle and that’s when I realize (because my head feels a little hot) that the pitcher is still on fire…so I throw that in the sink and put it out…

Then I survey the damage…

Open the door, turn on the fan…everyone is okay…just feeling a little on the stupid side…

Many times I set the smoke detector off… at which point, my son, who loves to joke and kid will shout “dinner’s done” before he grabs a dishtowel to fan the smoke away from the squealing box in the living room as I rush around to open doors and windows.

After the meltdown, we went to two burners… until just a few weeks ago when I was making spaghetti… as I’m standing there waiting impatiently for it to finish, flames shoot up. They calm back down and go away and since there was only a minute left of the time, I, like a grade A idiot, put the pan back ON the burner.

In which the pan boils over and even bigger flames shoot up.

And now?

I have one sole burner. But like I said, we’re getting a new stove.

While I can’t cook, I can bake. I just made bread pudding last night for the first time and I deviated from the recipe (which scares me) but I did it.

I am the running joke when it comes to kitchen mishaps… at church, in my family, with my friends, and now at the elementary school… and that’s okay. I’m okay with that.

In fact, should someone feel the need to nominate me for America’s Worst Cook, I would be okay with that too…

But I do try…

That’s something, right?

**************

This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as part of a contest sponsored by the American Egg Board.

***********

Don’t forget! There’s still time left to get in on the Where He Met Me Carnival and Contest… ends at Midnight tonight, but even if you’re not playing along, PLEASE go read these wonderful stories and be blessed… and in honor of my 600th post, I’ve got another contest going on here…

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This is my 600th post and what better way to celebrate than by documenting how I apply makeup for the sole purpose of entertainment… and to possibly win a prize.

What I won’t do to win a prize…

But the gals over at Chic Critique are hosting a “blog your face” carnival so if you want to learn a little more about great products and application tips, don’t read my post, but go directly over there… where I’m sure you’ll be greeted by people who are much better at this than I am.

The things I do to make you people laugh…

So here goes…

Here I am fresh out of bed… au natural… and let me tell you something… I put brighter lights in the bathroom and had NO idea that I looked like this in bright lights with no make up on. Now I’m not one to wear makeup all the time, it just so happened that I needed to go my leadership luncheon yesterday and made myself up, and I don’t believe anyone who said I don’t need makeup. Additionally, I feel like I’m a gremlin in that I can’t go out in the light looking like this. I’m either going to have to wear make up all the time now, or I’m going to have to put less bright lights in the bathroom….

Ok, I can promise you, the pictures only get better from here.

The first thing I do is apply this moisturizer… and yes, that’s a Big Lots price tag. I have no reason for using this particular moisteurizer, really. I was at Big Lots, it was there, I could afford it and so I bought it. You might notice the big “3″ that’s listed there. Well, that’s because there’s a series of this particular product. That same day, I bought “1″ and it was a cleanser. I have no idea what “2″ is since they didn’t have it and due to a slight bathroom mishap in which my daughter thought it would be fun to cleanse her face, I no longer have any more of product “1″.

After that, I put on this foundation stuff.

The foundation is Medium Beige from True Minerals. The BFF bought it for me to help me with this make up thing. That brush next to it? It’s called a Kabuki brush and I’m sure the majority of you know that. I found it odd when she told me to go buy a kabuki brush because in my mind, Kabuki is the Japanese steak house that I love to frequent here (when I can afford it). So now, every time I use the kabuki brush, I think about the little chef at the restaurant flipping a piece of shrimp in my mouth and I get hungry. I guess I can attribute any weight gain to the desire to look beautiful.

After applying the foundation, which, I still can’t tell if it does anything for me (or even if it’s the right color) I then have to remove the cat from the sink… because she likes to stare at me while I do this and it freaks me out….

And then I start working on my eyes… which really is my favorite part of my face…

Also, from true minerals, I apply Apricot Frost to my entire lid. Those are all sample sizes from them that the BFF sent in this little kit. It will last me forever and it’s cheap. And that’s the brush I use, because that’s what the BFF told me to use.

And so that’s what it looks like… and yes, I am well aware that I need to trim the bushes that are growing above my eyes.

Now, I used to use eye liner, plain ol’ brown until I got this true minerals stuff. Now, for the liner type look, I use the Khaki eyeshadow and wet my brush before dipping it in the little pod and applying. I’m sure this isn’t in or hip or anything like that, but it will leave a slight dusting of green sparklies on my eye lashes… and green is my color. So this is what I use to make my eyes pop. And I’m an eye person, so popping eyes is a good thing… bug eyes are not.

Then comes the mascara, and I found this mascara after reading about it on Chic Critique.

I read the post, got up from the computer and went in search of mascara in an orange tube because I couldn’t remember what it was called. I found it at the third store that I went to. I’ve been using MAC mascara forever and it sucks but I was too lazy and uneducated to go and buy something else.

And there are the eyes… with the shrubbery up top… but I’m not quite done…

Normally, my lip glosses are all confiscated by Sam the moment she lays eyes on them, except this one. She knows that she will meet her demise if she so much as desires to use this one. Normally, I don’t care, but this little thing of lip stain and gloss (which cracks me up… stain) cost me $16 (5 years ago…lol) at Sephora. I read about it in the ONE issue of Allure that I’ve ever read (I was attempting to learn about what was in and how to be more girly… obviously, it didn’t last…) and I went out and bought it. And I love it. Although, they say you can use the stain on your cheeks too and I just don’t get that. And I tried it once. I looked like one of those people that put their make up while riding in the car and hit a speed bump. So, I stick with putting it on my lips. The gloss is just about gone, so I use a cheapy clear gloss that I picked up somewhere, for I sure next to nothing.

And after all that… which takes about 5 minutes if you’re not stopping to take over 90 pictures to get halfway decent ones to post on your blog…. you get this…

Ah… much better.

**********

Oh, and since this IS my 600th post, let’s celebrate with a giveaway, shall we? Nothing special, just a little something….

I’ll randomly pick one person to win the book “Kisses of Sunshine for Moms”

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and tell me the one beauty product that you can’t live without…

Comments will be open until midnight Wednesday, June 11th and I’ll announce the winner on Thursday…

Until next time…

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(click to enlarge)

Until next time…

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Being a youth leader affords me the opportunity of being a kid… alot.  I get to let my hair down, act stupid, and get away with it.  The beauty of it is those aged 12-18 think that I’m cool whereas doing stuff like that at the office?  Not so much.  (And I do it at the office, but I don’t get the same response…)

There is very little proof, documented anyway, of me acting like a kid.  The main reason is that I’m always the one taking the pictures.  Actually, I take that back.  If you visit the MySpace pages of the majority of my youth members, there might be some pictures that I chose not to share with the rest of the world… or at least my true “grown up friends”…

However, this morning, I read about a contest at 5 Minutes For Mom and they want to see a picture that captures the kid in you.

I immediately thought of a picture that, to me, would fit this description for me.  To many, it might not be anything special, but to me, at a pretty dark time in my life, it was a bright spot.

click to enlarge

Yup, that’s me… jump roping… and it was the first time that I had picked up a jump rope in I can’t tell you how long…. and it was fun as I skipped around that tennis court, showing my kids just how awesome I am.

So there it is… a picture that captures the kid in me… and not one of me being totally off the wall for the entertainment of others.  That, dear readers, was for me.

For more pictures of the kid in others or to enter your own for the chance to win a Wii, head over to 5 Minutes for Mom.

And if you do enter, leave me a comment… I’d love to see the kid in you!

Until next time…

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The science fair is done. Awards were given today and tonight, we parents can go and ooh and aah over our children’s projects, bring them home and then find a time when the kids won’t notice to trash them because they are taking up space.

(You do that too, don’t you? Surely you don’t save EVERY project?)

But because I’m behind the 8-ball, I never got to show you the finished products.

Let’s start with the dreaded potato clock. Here is what my porch looked like Sunday afternoon…

But we pulled it off and created this…

I think it looks pretty good… especially since the kid doesn’t have a design bone in his body… ok, so maybe i helped a little… but seriously, just with the typing. They were his ideas.

Nice title, don’t you think?

And my kid has a sense of humor… just read that last line on the materials…

What I don’t have a picture of is his conclusion… which started off with this… “Don’t believe everything you read on the internet…”

The kid’s a riot I tell ya!

And then there was the floating egg project by my lovely and talented, anal, perfectionist daughter…

The title isn’t creative in and of itself, but it’s what she wanted and she didn’t want to hear any suggestions…. and the entire project was made with my scrapbooking supplies…

It WAS my idea to replace the ‘o’s with eggs. It took me 20 minutes to explain to her what I meant and she finally agreed that it would look cool…and yes, I realize that there are only 4 cups there instead of the 5 that we used… that’s because after the SECOND trip to get photos developed I realized that I forgot to copy cup 0 on the disk… I said screw it, she didn’t complain, so I didn’t make a big deal out of it.

Everything… and I mean EVERYTHING is color coordinated on this including the brads that she used on the sides. It really did look nice…

Today, in the door they came with news that I, the best mom in the world, Sam won best effort. Can you believe it? (Personally, I think Matthew put forth more of an effort, but hey! I wasn’t a judge.

And no, that wasn’t an award for me, but this one is….

Amy at Permission to Peruse awarded me with this award and tickled I am.. Especially since I’ve not mentioned awards, at all, on my blog and I didn’t have to pay her for her to give it to me.

This one really is mine… unless I have to share with the kids, since it is they who give me the most of my content…

Until next time…

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In a house…

on a street…

right here in the Star City of the South as it is affectionately known.

Why, yes… of course I’m talking about Roanoke, VA.

Heard of it before?

Most people haven’t. It’s tucked away in the Blue Ridge Mountains, along the Blue Ridge Parkway… and the Appalachian Trail? You’ve heard of all of these haven’t you?

Ever order from Home Shopping Network? Elizabeth Arden? Orvis? The Company Store? Domestications? There’s a likelihood that you’re either placing your order here in Roanoke OR that you package comes from here.

I have to admit…this was not on my list of places to live. EVER. growing up. I’m a city girl. I thrive on the hustle and bustle, the sights and sounds… and the FOOD of big cities. Like Philadelphia. Because I love love love Philadelphia. In fact, I’m planning on taking the kids this summer, sometime, to go back now that they are older to see the city.

I’ve moved to and from here four times in my life — twice because of my parents and twice on my own. But the last time I moved here, four years ago this June, I finally realized that Roanoke is where I belong. For now.

And I love it here.

Lori at Just Pure Lovely is hosting a “Where Do You Live” Carnival and since I have nothing better to do right now, I thought I would play along…

Here’s where Roanoke is…

Here’s a few pictures from Around Town.

See all the mountains?  We actually live in the Valley…

Here it is at night…

And those pictures were taken from up here… our Star that sits on top of Roanoke Mountain and is lit up every night…

Getting a little closer to my home…

Not at that light, but at the next one you’d turn…

And here is my street…. (and the kids walking to get the bus…)

Yes, I do love where I live.  And while I’ve had the option to move, I firmly believe that God wants me right here for a reason… although I’m DYING to figure out the reason… And this is home.

And at one point in time, I thought that when the kids were grown and gone that I would pack up and head back to the city, those feelings are diminishing day by day…because this?

This is where my heart is.

It just took me a long time to figure that out.

Until next time…

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In Roanoke, Virginia’s war on good parenting, the worst crankiest criminal offenders kids are pursued by the detectives of the Mom Squad. These are their stories.

dum dum

Monday, April 28, 2008

3:34pm

Jacobson Residence

Me: Samara, I’m moving your bedtime back 30 minutes.

Samara: Why?

Me: Because on at least 3 occasions in the last week you’ve fallen alseep after school which, to me, means you’re not getting enough sleep at night.

Samara: I DID NOT!

Me: Yes, you did.

Samara: I think you’re wrong.

Me: Oh yeah? Well, look here…

and then I proceed to show her

exhibit A - Thursday

Exhibit B - Friday

Exhibit C - Monday

Case closed

Until next time…

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I would like to report that I came home victorious yesterday, having just logged my first win of the season.

I did not.

I would like to say everything ran like clockwork.

It did not.

I would like to say that I appeared to know what I was doing on that field full of 22 girls and many parents, friends, grandparents, aunts, uncles, babysitters, and coaches.

I did not.

But you know what?

I don’t care.

Because I did it. I learned some things. I learned alot of things.

Like…

• make sure you make all your girls go to the bathroom before the game begins.
• And don’t assume that because your game is scheduled for 3:30 that you will actually get on the field at 3:30.
• Additionally, don’t make plans for seven assuming that your game will start at 3:30.
• Make sure your daughter team knows that even if the cutest boy in the school is in the stands watching the game next to yours that under no circumstances are they to leave the dugout.
• Always have an extra pen.
• And make multiple copies of your field rotation and batting order for those that graciously offer to help you with the girls so that you will not be scrambling at the last minute to copy everything over to scraps of paper 10 minutes before the game.

See? A learning experience.

But I did it.

And we got spanked. 14-4. Of course, I didn’t share this with the girls.

But see, what I learned in church this morning was the quote that I posted just a few hours ago… “It doesn’t have to be perfect to receive God’s blessing…”

and God’s blessing was ALL OVER yesterday.

It was supposed to thunderstorm all day…know when they started? The moment I pulled in the driveway.

We had the right line up so that no one had to switch out batting helmets with a runner and the girls were happy.

We played a good game and some girls made some plays that I never in a million years thought they would make.

No one got hurt.

I kept myself together even though, on more than one occassion, I felt like I had no business coaching these girls.

But you know what?

Even though the score said we lost, we didn’t.

Because when a little one comes up and tugs on your shirt and says, “Coach Heather…. did you see that hit? It went all the way to the grass.” and their face is lit up like the proverbial Christmas tree, you feel good.

But when they follow that with, “You were right. I was using the wrong bat.” it makes you realize that maybe, just maybe, you’re doing an okay job.

And so, I’ll leave you with some pictures of opening day….

White Sox rule!

Seriously, Mom… we’ve already been introduced, so why do we have to clap for all these other teams?

You know what would be a great idea? Let’s play in the dirt so we can get all messed up right before our pictures…

Let’s think about this…

I’m ready… my hair is not, but I am…

Perhaps if she moved her visor up, or if her mother made her cut her bangs, she would see that there’s someone running right by her…

I made it to first!

Next stop… home… won’t it be great if I could be the first girl to score today?

But Mom! I only went over to say hi to him!!!!

Whatever…

Until next time…

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