Birthdays & Baseball

Since I have taken a social break online, I have missed sharing about my loved ones on their birthdays. So this is THE BIRTHDAY POST for my favorite people with a little bit of a baseball twist. 

Here's how it would go if we were a professional baseball team:

Top of the line up...

CF: Jeremy! There are days when this guy probably feels like he's batting .230, but from my view in the dugout, he is an all-star. One of the highlights of this year has been cheering him on and joining him (somewhat) in getting healthier. 

When Jeremy makes up his mind and sets a goal, he is undeterred. His self-discipline and dedication to losing weight and exercise has been fun, rewarding, challenging, and admirable.

I am super proud of him for making some healthy changes! But what I appreciate more, and what I too often take for granted, is how he always chooses me. We have had our share of blow-ups and disagreements, but that's not the end of the story. By God's grace, we come back together and work it out.

He's definitely the MVP on this team.

For Jeremy's last birthday, he met Wesley in Kansas City to watch the Astros beat the Royals 6 - 3. It was a quick trip for them both but they got to enjoy baseball and BBQ.

Next up...

2B: Me -- yes mom gets a spot on the team too. I am the author of this blog and manager of this team so I get to be 2nd in the line up. Often times, the 2nd batter is a good bat handler and needs to be one who can take pitches to allow the leadoff hitter to steal. 

I don't know about handling the bat, but I do know how to take some pitches. And I often sacrifice bunt so that makes me good for batting in the 2 hole.

I got to spend my last birthday at my favorite place in the whole world--THE LAKE. Being at the lake feeds my soul. It can be any lake, and fortunately, we have a few lakes within 1-3 hours from us that we can enjoy. 

3B: Marian! Marian has a birthday in April, so in 2020, we were in the middle of lockdowns and in 2021 we had a family crisis that didn't ask for permission to collide with her day.

So this year she actually got to have lunch with grandparents, dinner and dancing with friends, and then we had our family birthday dinner for her and Wesley a week after.

LF: Saimon -- this kid is our power hitter so he's 4th in the lineup to drive us home. Saimon got to spread his birthday celebration out over Spring Break with a big extended family lunch and fun with friends throughout the week. 

Saimon turned sweat 16 this year (that's not a typo). He is sweat 16 because I do not know anyone who works out more than this guy. He's in athletics at school and then he works out at home up to 3 more times a day. He is one strong dude.

1B: We have another power hitter, Omar! Omar did not get a car for his birthday, but he found a good deal on one a few months later. Omar spent the last two birthdays hanging out with friends and re-introducing the family to Golden Corral. He also has become a frequent shopper at Boot Barn so most of Christmas and Birthday money went towards his new style. 

SS: Wesley - Wes is one of two left-handed batters on the team (mom being the other). He has leadoff-type skills so he gets 6th in the lineup, and he makes a good shortstop because he takes charge on balls hit in the air as well as communication among infielders. Wesley has spent the last 2 birthdays at Pine Cove working as a counselor at the Bluffs. 

There is a lot to love and appreciate about Wesley, but what you may not know is that he is....

RF: Emily! When asked what position she wanted on the team, without hesitation Emily said, "OH, I want to be way out in right field, out where the dandelions grow."

Emily most enjoys spending her birthday with family and friends. She likes to read every birthday card...out loud. The last two birthdays she has gotten to do exactly her favorite thing--quality time with her favorite people, feeling loved and celebrated. 

Emily has also been on a journey to a healthier lifestyle and is almost half way to her goal!

Catcher: Crouched behind home plate, Savannah primarily is responsible for receiving all the pitches thrown at her, but she also has a lot of duties on defense. Preventing stolen bases, suggesting pitch selections, and framing the strike zone make for a lot on her plate. Savannah is 8th in the lineup because she is also a patient hitter.

Savannah has spent the last couple of birthdays with a small group of friends. She is beyond ready for her next birthday because she will finally get a phone!

 

And last but not least....

P: Katerin is batting 9th in the lineup because of her leadoff-type skills. And as pitcher, Katerin is a swingman because she may be used as a starter or a reliever. 

Since Katerin went to college and is now in the workforce, we have spent less birthdays with her on her actual birthday. But she has enjoyed special outings with her best friends and joined us for family dinners when possible.

 

What's a team without our own ballboys??

The best Ballboy & Ballgirl

Hiccup & Cocoa just celebrated their 2nd birthday

Birthdays give us a chance to turn our attention to each family member and give God thanks for their life, their gifts, who they are, and who they are becoming.

And I think we would make a heck of a baseball team!

You may have guessed already, but we love the Astros! 

So to end this post, I'll share some fan pics from over the years...

Let's go Astros!

Thanks MLB.com and Baseball-Reference.com for helping me form my lineup!

Bye-bye Big Blue

Today we said good-bye to our beloved Big Blue. It was time. But we cannot say good-bye without taking a drive down memory lane….

We got Big Blue back in 2012 right before we adopted.

Big Blue welcomed us at the airport when we came home from Colombia with our 4 additional kids.

Big Blue took us to church as a family every Sunday.

We took many trips to see family living a few minutes away, some a few hours away and some out of state.

Big Blue went with us to Pine Cove Family Camp.

Big Blue carried 13 Freshman for Marian’s Homecoming in 2015 and about 12 freshmen for Omar’s Homecoming in 2020.

Paw-paw and neighbors all shared Big Blue to carpool a few years while our kids attended Rosehill Elementary.

Friends piled in Big Blue to go view Christmas Lights one chilly December night—listening to Christmas music, munching on snack bags of Christmas trail mix, and drinking hot cocoa.

Big Blue shuttled students to the airport to head out on a mission trip.

And Big Blue carried Wes and Marian with their photographer, Hannah Clausen, and all their gear to downtown Houston for their Senior photo sessions.

As Big Blue aged, parts started breaking off in the interior, and we just collected the broken pieces under the seats. I was sure to tell the new owner in case he hadn’t noticed.

Gorilla tape kept the interior attached to the side passenger doors and held a few other parts in place too.

As kids became adults, we needed Big Blue less and less for family outings. We used it more for work errands, but errands requiring Big Blue became few and far between.

With it’s broken radio, poor A/C circulation, fabric stains, miscellaneous pieces tucked under the seats… none of the kids are really sad with the news of selling Big Blue. Can’t really blame them.

But Big Blue served us well and it was certainly well used. Big Blue logged nearly 100,000 miles and I’m sure 100,000 memories with us too.

Saying good-bye is not sad at all because unlike Big Blue, the family memories will last.

Love ya Blue!

Riding the rollercoaster

Well another summer just flew by!  Jeremy and I went to lunch for the first time this week since school started and he comments, "Can you believe summer vacation is over?"  He is so funny--I reminded him that summer is a SEASON, not a vacation.

School has indeed started.  I can tell because my kids' sleeping schedules have flipped.  I mean last week they were sleeping til the afternoon but this week they are falling asleep IN the afternoon when they walk in the door from school.
And with back to school, we get into all the back to school, back to schedule, back to structure stuff.  It's really good.  I like it.  But I also don't like it.  Probably for the same reasons you like it/don't like it, but maybe also because it can be overwhelming.

It's overwhelming in different ways--last weekend we moved Katerin back to UMHB on Friday 

and Emily to A&M on Saturday.  

We thought we had a week between those moves, but found out just a week prior that Emily would be going August 18th.  That was a whole week before we expected!  When Emily read the email about her move-in date, anxiety welled up inside her and she literally yelled, "I HATE IT...I MEAN THANK GOD FOR THE OPPORTUNITY, BUT I HATE IT!"

Rollercoaster.  That's our mode of transportation.  The ups and downs can happen so fast that I hardly have time to catch my breath.  A lot of the time I don't have time to process what just happened because I grasping the safety bar getting ready for the next turn.

I can see now how the summer program Emily completed was for the parents just as much as it was for the students.  Dropping her off this time was a lot less teary and more happy.  Happy because she was glad to be there, really happy because she was already connected with a few friends, and she knew a little more about what to expect.  Rollercoaster is headed up at the moment.

Overwhelming...so my two oldest girls are away at school and the other 5 are starting the new year.  August brings football practice, band camp, pick up schedules (oh yeah, be sure to re-enroll online so you can get your schedule), find your classes, find your locker, practice the combination, buy school supplies, clothes, order yearbooks, pay athletic fees, band fees, choir fees, orchestra fees, join the PTO, join the Athletic booster, join the band booster--all the things all the parents go through when it's back to school.

If you have a child with special needs, that receives special services, or has learning differences, there's a whole other level of overwhelming.  And it's not just parents overwhelmed.  Our kids feel it too.  They are facing challenges I never faced.  They are overcoming obstacles and finding ways to manage that I never had to consider.

I'm thinking about how to be pro-active and help their teachers understand -- yes they may have gotten the IEP, but honestly I don't know how teachers do it.  How do they have time to do everything they do??  And then put a stack of IEPs on their desk as they prepare for hundreds of students to walk through their doors all day.

So I'm typing and retyping emails to teachers, discerning what to say, what not to say, in efforts to help my kid be the most successful they can be.  And my kids are going to all the new classes, catching up with friends, getting all the papers and packets to sign, and coming home to crash in exhaustion.

It's overwhelming.  My feelings are not left off of the rollercoaster either.  I'm excited for all the new then I may feel down a little as I recognize the real challenges ahead.

This summer, in the middle of this crazy ride, when the rollercoaster was taking a dip and turn, Jeremy looked at me with a smile and said,

"Rollercoasters can be fun, right?"

He may have confused the summer season with summer vacation, but I love this guy.

10,000 Reasons

 

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

 

This is the beginning of Matt Redman's song, 10,000 Reasons.  We have been home almost 3 weeks and I have 10,000 Reasons to bless His name.  I want to share a few with you here....

 



We were here when he lost his first tooth

 

I got to take my older girls to a Wedding Reception of friends we all know and love.

 

Park time with Dad

 

We went to our cousin's wedding and had a blast!

 

 attempted a family picture....not going on the Christmas card.

 

 

AND it wasn't too cold that we couldn't jump in the lake at Nana and Paw-paw's!

 

We got some quality time with extended family that is about to move overseas!

 

You're rich in love, and You're slow to anger
Your name is great, and Your heart is kind
For all Your goodness I will keep on singing
Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find

This weekend, we headed to the lake again.  We were trying to squeeze one more "summer" like weekend in--including boating, skiing, and swimming.  Jeremy had to come late so my dad volunteered to ride with me, 7 kids, and a dog.  We had a blowout on the Beltway and even though it added 5 hours to our trip, I am thanking God no one got hurt and the van has not one, but two new tires.

 

There's actually many more things I am thanking God for regarding that day.  During the two hours we were on the narrow shoulder with trucks and cars speeding past us going AT LEAST 80 mph, we were sitting in the shade of an overpass (it was 90 degrees!), nobody rear-ended us, and we had fruits, brownies, and movies in the van! yea.

 

So we safely arrive at the lake and have about 2 more hours of daylight.  I ask my dad, "Are you ready to get the boat out??"  As if he hadn't just spent the last 8 1/2 hours on the road with us, he grabs his cap and keys to get the boat ready.  I had planned on getting there around lunch time so we could spend the hot afternoon on the water.  A cool front was heading in over night.

 

My dad is one of the best dads in the world. 

 

I'm not saying that your dad is not awesome, and that Jeremy doesn't measure up as a dad, because your dad probably is awesome, and Jeremy is the most amazing dad to our kids. 

 

But my dad is my dad. 

And I just can't wait until Father's Day or another birthday

to say how much I love and appreciate him.

 

He is patient.

He is kind.

He gives and he gives and he gives some more.

 

 

And he is an awesome Papa to his grandkids too.

 

 

 

That cool front did come through so we enjoyed bundling up and keeping warm by the fire while we played outside.

with s'more's of course!

 

The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

 

I am not blog savvy so I don't know how to have a song playing when you stop by here, so here is the link to Matt Redman's song

10,000 Reasons