Tie me down or I may float away!
Sam's ball team had a game this morning. The winner of the game would advance to the Provincial tournament next weekend; the losing team's season would be over. We were up against a team we had played four times before. We lost twice in close games, then we beat them, and we lost to them yesterday. We knew it would be a tough game, and while we were hopeful for victory, we were well aware that this could be our final game.
We were the "visiting" team, but we got one run in the first inning. We held them to 3 runs. In the second inning, we earned another run and held them to 2. We got 2 more in the third inning, holding them to only 1. They shut us down in the fourth, but they only earned one. Both teams got 2 runs apiece in the fifth. In the sixth inning, we were shut out but held them to 1. Final inning and we're down by 4. Our coaches huddled the kids for a quick pep talk. We needed to get on the bats if we wanted to win our way to Provincials, but even if we lost, we could hold our heads high.
Sam started us off with a crack of the bat, but he was thrown out at first base. Our next batter walked, followed by two singles safe on base. Loaded bases and the pitcher walked the next two batters. We're only down by 2 runs now, the bases were still loaded, and there are two outs. Up at the plate is one of our biggest players, but he has struggled with the bat all season. He has one ball and two strikes on him and BAM! Over the fence, out of the park, GRAND SLAM!!!
We're up by 2 now, but we still need defence to shut them down.
What a difference in the demeanour of the two teams facing their final bats! We came out desperate to win but equally determined just to go out playing our best. They came out simply desperate. Their first batter hit the ball but was thrown out at first. The second batter struck out. All our parents are on pins and needles. I learned later that Kane had even gone so far as to "hide" behind a truck in the parking lot, only peeking through the windows when he had the stomach to look. The next batter hit a double and a bad throw got him to third base. So, we're facing their #3 batter with 2 outs and a runner in scoring position. Even if that run comes in, we're still up by one; however, their homerun hitter is standing in the on-deck circle. We need to get this batter out now, and we did! Strike out. We're going to Provincials!
I still can't quite believe it, and I'm alternating between crying, wanting to jump for joy, wanting to shout out loud, and feeling cold from the adrenaline crash. To be honest, I wasn't really sure that we would win this game. We played a good, solid team and they've beat us more than we've beaten them. Our team worked hard and fought back the entire game to earn their way to Provincials. Last year, Casey's team was in the Provincials, but we were the host so they had an automatic berth. Not to take anything away from Casey's Provincial opportunity, but this one is so much sweeter, because it wasn't handed to us. They earned it. And you know, we did it the old-fashioned way with effort, determination and grit. We may not have had the stand-out players, but we have a team of 12 boys that love to play ball. A little more than two weeks ago at a practice, one of our players took a ball in the shoulder. It has hurt him ever since, but he never had it checked out, thinking it was only bruised. Friday morning, just as this tournament was beginning, he finally went to the hospital to get it x-rayed as he still couldn't do much with it. He has a fractured collarbone! He's been playing like that for two weeks! In our game yesterday, against the same team we just beat, one of our players was hit by the bat as he was catching the pitch. He couldn't finish the game but stayed to watch the end before going to the hospital. He fractured his elbow. Both boys were in the dugout cheering their team on today, and I know they'll be with us next weekend, too.
I should have known that we'd win. I booked time off work just in case, but I was beginning to think of having those five days with no obligations and no place to be. Silly me! We'll be at the ballpark, but at least it isn't too far from home. It's actually only about a minute from my house. It will be pretty tough to get far in the Provincial tournament, but it will be special just to be there. Whether we win or lose, we can be proud of our boys!
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Revenge of the Underdogs
Thursday, July 27, 2006
The Early Bird
I was going to write yesterday about nothing of importance simply because I had nothing intelligent to say. Truth is that I have been too busy and too tired to do much of anything. This is the work week of insanity. Originally, I was scheduled to work Monday from 9am to 2pm, then Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 6am to 2pm; however, I was asked to start at 6am on Monday as well. A forty hour work week was a little overwhelming (haven't had one of those in more than a decade), and a week of waking up at 5am is enough to make me cry out in pain. Then, on Sunday, we caught wind of the fact that Sam would have a baseball game on Friday at 1pm as part of his Zones tournament.
Between finding transportation for Abby to get to a birthday party on Tuesday and now finding a way for Sam to get to his baseball game, I was a little stressed, but everything has fallen into place. Not only did Abby get to the birthday party, but she has also been able to attend VBS with a friend. This is the same VBS that I hadn't registered her for because of our crazy lives and my work schedule. I was also able to switch shifts with a co-worker for Friday enabling me to take Sam to his game. Instead of working 6-2, I am not working from 5:30am to 11am tomorrow. Waking up at 4:30am seems like cruel and unusual punishment, but it is a short shift, I get to watch Sam play, and I have the weekend off! As far as I know, Sam doesn't play on Saturday until 11am, so I can actually sleep in!!!!
All that to say that I haven't had the energy or cohesive brain waves to do anything more than work, eat, wash my uniform, turn on the dishwasher, cook supper, and sit in front of the TV before tumbling into bed by 9pm. I hate early mornings, although the 6-2 shift really isn't too bad. I've been in the drive-thru (I'm covering the regular DT 6-2 worker while she's on holidays), and it is typically non-stop busy from 6am until 9am. Literally. My job is to pour coffee and get any other drinks. You would not believe the amount of cream, sugar, cups and coffee we go through in the morning. It's insane. But, time flies much faster when we're busy and we begin our coffee break rotation at 9am. Second coffee breaks begin at 11am. We change our tills over at noon. The drive thru order taker is off at 1pm and before I know it...it's 2pm and I'm off. Mind you, my feet are still throbbing and it is almost 4pm now. My body is covered in a sheen of sweat by 6:30am. My shirt sticks to my skin, and I desperately wish I could undo the top button to feel some relief from the heat. There is air conditioning, but we certainly don't feel it.
Waking up early on Monday was easy. I was awake and alert right before the alarm was to go off. Tuesday morning, for the final 45 minutes of my sleep, I kept waking up, checking the alarm and falling back asleep. Yesterday, waking up was the hardest thing. My eyes felt puffy and heavy. This morning, my bladder kept waking me up from about 4am until I finally got up and emptied it at 4:30, then I fell back asleep until my alarm went off, but I was reasonably alert and awake. How will I be tomorrow morning? I almost don't care. There's a light at the end of this dark tunnel...at least for this week. The regular DT girl is still on holidays next week, but I'm only working 6-2 on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, then I'm off the rest of the week! Yeah. I can survive a few more days of early mornings, right?
Between finding transportation for Abby to get to a birthday party on Tuesday and now finding a way for Sam to get to his baseball game, I was a little stressed, but everything has fallen into place. Not only did Abby get to the birthday party, but she has also been able to attend VBS with a friend. This is the same VBS that I hadn't registered her for because of our crazy lives and my work schedule. I was also able to switch shifts with a co-worker for Friday enabling me to take Sam to his game. Instead of working 6-2, I am not working from 5:30am to 11am tomorrow. Waking up at 4:30am seems like cruel and unusual punishment, but it is a short shift, I get to watch Sam play, and I have the weekend off! As far as I know, Sam doesn't play on Saturday until 11am, so I can actually sleep in!!!!
All that to say that I haven't had the energy or cohesive brain waves to do anything more than work, eat, wash my uniform, turn on the dishwasher, cook supper, and sit in front of the TV before tumbling into bed by 9pm. I hate early mornings, although the 6-2 shift really isn't too bad. I've been in the drive-thru (I'm covering the regular DT 6-2 worker while she's on holidays), and it is typically non-stop busy from 6am until 9am. Literally. My job is to pour coffee and get any other drinks. You would not believe the amount of cream, sugar, cups and coffee we go through in the morning. It's insane. But, time flies much faster when we're busy and we begin our coffee break rotation at 9am. Second coffee breaks begin at 11am. We change our tills over at noon. The drive thru order taker is off at 1pm and before I know it...it's 2pm and I'm off. Mind you, my feet are still throbbing and it is almost 4pm now. My body is covered in a sheen of sweat by 6:30am. My shirt sticks to my skin, and I desperately wish I could undo the top button to feel some relief from the heat. There is air conditioning, but we certainly don't feel it.
Waking up early on Monday was easy. I was awake and alert right before the alarm was to go off. Tuesday morning, for the final 45 minutes of my sleep, I kept waking up, checking the alarm and falling back asleep. Yesterday, waking up was the hardest thing. My eyes felt puffy and heavy. This morning, my bladder kept waking me up from about 4am until I finally got up and emptied it at 4:30, then I fell back asleep until my alarm went off, but I was reasonably alert and awake. How will I be tomorrow morning? I almost don't care. There's a light at the end of this dark tunnel...at least for this week. The regular DT girl is still on holidays next week, but I'm only working 6-2 on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, then I'm off the rest of the week! Yeah. I can survive a few more days of early mornings, right?
Sunday, July 23, 2006
To Kill a Mockingbird
I started reading To Kill a Mockingbird to my children a few weeks ago. Because of work and baseball, we haven't got to far into the story yet, but I am hoping to pick up the pace a bit. My kids groan and complain when I say it is time for me to do some reading, but I think they secretly enjoy it. This is a ritual that goes back to our homeschooling days, but it is one that I continue in the hopes of instilling a love for literature with my kids and introducing them to good books. Over the years, we have read many books in this way: many of the Little House books, The Dog Who Wouldn't Be, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Owls in the Family, many I can no longer remember off the top of my head, and last summer, The Hobbit.
To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my most favourite books and movies. A lot of details of the story will fly over my children's heads like a 747, but there are still timeless principles to be found in the nuts and bolts of the story. It doesn't take long for my children's attention to be grabbed either. My boys immediately identified with Jem, while Abby took to Scout. Of course, what child wouldn't be intrigued by Boo.
In our reading, we have not yet come to anything regarding the trial of Tom Robinson. We left off the other day just after the kids had made a night time excursion into the Radly's back yard. Last night, I was pleased to discover that the movie of TKAM was going to be on TV. It would mean a late night for my kids, but they all wanted to watch it. Ha! I knew they were hooked. So, we watched the movie. They were excited to pick out parts that we had already read about, and they were sharp enough to realize that some parts were out of order or combined or missed altogether...the cost of translating a novel into a movie. Although they had no idea about the trial, they figured out really quick that Mayella Ewell was lying and Tom was innocent. They knew that Mr. Ewell was the one attacking the kids before Atticus was told by the sheriff, and they knew that Boo was the one that saved the kids and carried Jem home. I had planned on watching the movie with them once we had finished the book, but I think this unplanned viewing was good timing. It might help them picture the characters and the setting just a little bit more, and maybe they won't groan quite so much the next time I'm ready to read another chapter.
Life gets so busy at times, but reading to my kids from a "big" book is something that I want to always make time for. It doesn't matter that my kids are old enough to read books themselves; there's just something intangible and special about being read to. Plus, it's a great way to slow the pace for even just a half hour, and it brings us together. There are lots of books on the shelves...lots more reading to do!
To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my most favourite books and movies. A lot of details of the story will fly over my children's heads like a 747, but there are still timeless principles to be found in the nuts and bolts of the story. It doesn't take long for my children's attention to be grabbed either. My boys immediately identified with Jem, while Abby took to Scout. Of course, what child wouldn't be intrigued by Boo.
In our reading, we have not yet come to anything regarding the trial of Tom Robinson. We left off the other day just after the kids had made a night time excursion into the Radly's back yard. Last night, I was pleased to discover that the movie of TKAM was going to be on TV. It would mean a late night for my kids, but they all wanted to watch it. Ha! I knew they were hooked. So, we watched the movie. They were excited to pick out parts that we had already read about, and they were sharp enough to realize that some parts were out of order or combined or missed altogether...the cost of translating a novel into a movie. Although they had no idea about the trial, they figured out really quick that Mayella Ewell was lying and Tom was innocent. They knew that Mr. Ewell was the one attacking the kids before Atticus was told by the sheriff, and they knew that Boo was the one that saved the kids and carried Jem home. I had planned on watching the movie with them once we had finished the book, but I think this unplanned viewing was good timing. It might help them picture the characters and the setting just a little bit more, and maybe they won't groan quite so much the next time I'm ready to read another chapter.
Life gets so busy at times, but reading to my kids from a "big" book is something that I want to always make time for. It doesn't matter that my kids are old enough to read books themselves; there's just something intangible and special about being read to. Plus, it's a great way to slow the pace for even just a half hour, and it brings us together. There are lots of books on the shelves...lots more reading to do!
Heat Wave
We're experiencing a heat wave, so it is only natural that our weekend is being spent at the ballpark. Yesterday was incredibly hot and muggy. As often as I could, I would shuck my sandals to feel the coolness of the grass beneath my feet, except the grass wasn't as cool as I would have liked. I think my skin melted, and I know that my clothes were plastered to my body by sweat. Even the shade offered little reprieve from the heat, but I didn't get sunburned yesterday! Go figure! I was exposed to the sun more yesterday than I was last weekend, but I did get burned in spots then. Not yesterday.
Casey's team played two games yesterday, both brutal games to watch. We were mercied both times. We didn't look like a team and didn't play like a team. Our problem players had their little tantrums and crying fits...business as usual, I'm afraid. There's too much drama on our team, but the season is almost over. Barring a miracle, Casey's all-star season should end today. It is unlikely that we will win either of our final two games today which will eliminate us from attending Provincials. Honestly, I can't wait for this team to be finished.
Even though I am confident that we will be lambs at the slaughter again today, we still need to go out in this heat for a double-header. Yippee. Not. I'll watch my son and I'll clap and cheer. My eyes will most likely roll in my head every time I see a little too much attitude or dramatics from certain individuals on the team. Undoubtedly, I will need to debrief my son once again after the games. "That is not what sportsmanship looks like. This is why we punish you or don't allow you to do certain things. That behaviour is not what we want to see develop in you. Blah, blah, blah"
Casey's team played two games yesterday, both brutal games to watch. We were mercied both times. We didn't look like a team and didn't play like a team. Our problem players had their little tantrums and crying fits...business as usual, I'm afraid. There's too much drama on our team, but the season is almost over. Barring a miracle, Casey's all-star season should end today. It is unlikely that we will win either of our final two games today which will eliminate us from attending Provincials. Honestly, I can't wait for this team to be finished.
Even though I am confident that we will be lambs at the slaughter again today, we still need to go out in this heat for a double-header. Yippee. Not. I'll watch my son and I'll clap and cheer. My eyes will most likely roll in my head every time I see a little too much attitude or dramatics from certain individuals on the team. Undoubtedly, I will need to debrief my son once again after the games. "That is not what sportsmanship looks like. This is why we punish you or don't allow you to do certain things. That behaviour is not what we want to see develop in you. Blah, blah, blah"
Snake in the House
I had a weird dream the other night. What else is new?
A large, yellow snake was in our house. It was as big around as a very large python and about six feet long, but it moved very quickly and was extremely intelligent. This snake was also highly poisonous. I tried calling pest control companies and the like to come trap it and remove it but nobody would come. At night, this snake would lie across my legs as I slept in my bed. It would roam the house as it chose, and we were all terrified of being bitten. We tried to trap it several times, but it was always smarter than the trap and us.
Nice dream, huh.
A large, yellow snake was in our house. It was as big around as a very large python and about six feet long, but it moved very quickly and was extremely intelligent. This snake was also highly poisonous. I tried calling pest control companies and the like to come trap it and remove it but nobody would come. At night, this snake would lie across my legs as I slept in my bed. It would roam the house as it chose, and we were all terrified of being bitten. We tried to trap it several times, but it was always smarter than the trap and us.
Nice dream, huh.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
The Cola Wars
Anyone who knows me well knows that I love Coca-Cola. I collect Coca-Cola stuff. I drink a lot of diet Coke black cherry vanilla (my current favourite). I love it.
Anyone who knows me well knows that my oldest son does not share my love for Coke. On the contrary, he has this strange and disturbing love for Pepsi.
I don't know how I could have given birth to a child who loves Pepsi. I wouldn't have thought it possible, but maybe it is God's way of showing His sense of humour. Either that or someone dropped Sam on his head as a baby. I dropped my brother when he was a baby and he loves Pepsi, so I figure my theory could hold some water.
I love my son dearly, but I struggle with this dark side within him. It is bad enough that he is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. It's unthinkable that he would cheer for Sweden over Canada simply because his favourite player is Mats Sundin (yes, he's a Maple Leafs player). I don't understand Sam sometimes, and now that he's a teenager, I suppose I will understand him even less. Of course, he doesn't understand me either.
When I get excited about finally finding Coca-Cola fabric at Wal-Mart, after searching for years, he only rolls his eyes, shakes his head and says, "Oh, Mom! You've lost it!" When I threatened to make him sheets and pillowcases and curtains and clothing from the fabric, he was repulsed and indignant.
On Sam's baseball team, there is a boy who's father works for Pepsi. Over the course of the season, Sam's plight has come to Jeff's (the father) attention, and he has felt sympathetic to Sam's misery in a Coca-Cola house. The other night, Sam came home from the ballpark with a stack of Pepsi products bestowed on him by Jeff. He received a toque, a ballcap, a CD notebook styled carrying case, a tote bag, a stack of tattoos, a roll of corrugated signage, two placemats, a t-shirt, and an inflatable Sobe lizard. Sam was so excited!
Yesterday, Sam had started the day wearing the Pepsi t-shirt but changed out of it before we went to do our errands. I asked why. He didn't want to get it dirty! Since when does he care about keeping his clothes clean?!
I gave Jeff a thank you card last night at practice. While I am, of course, visibly disgusted by this rival merchandise in my house, I am inwardly very pleased that someone took the time and trouble to make my son a very happy boy.
Anyone who knows me well knows that my oldest son does not share my love for Coke. On the contrary, he has this strange and disturbing love for Pepsi.
I don't know how I could have given birth to a child who loves Pepsi. I wouldn't have thought it possible, but maybe it is God's way of showing His sense of humour. Either that or someone dropped Sam on his head as a baby. I dropped my brother when he was a baby and he loves Pepsi, so I figure my theory could hold some water.
I love my son dearly, but I struggle with this dark side within him. It is bad enough that he is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. It's unthinkable that he would cheer for Sweden over Canada simply because his favourite player is Mats Sundin (yes, he's a Maple Leafs player). I don't understand Sam sometimes, and now that he's a teenager, I suppose I will understand him even less. Of course, he doesn't understand me either.
When I get excited about finally finding Coca-Cola fabric at Wal-Mart, after searching for years, he only rolls his eyes, shakes his head and says, "Oh, Mom! You've lost it!" When I threatened to make him sheets and pillowcases and curtains and clothing from the fabric, he was repulsed and indignant.
On Sam's baseball team, there is a boy who's father works for Pepsi. Over the course of the season, Sam's plight has come to Jeff's (the father) attention, and he has felt sympathetic to Sam's misery in a Coca-Cola house. The other night, Sam came home from the ballpark with a stack of Pepsi products bestowed on him by Jeff. He received a toque, a ballcap, a CD notebook styled carrying case, a tote bag, a stack of tattoos, a roll of corrugated signage, two placemats, a t-shirt, and an inflatable Sobe lizard. Sam was so excited!
Yesterday, Sam had started the day wearing the Pepsi t-shirt but changed out of it before we went to do our errands. I asked why. He didn't want to get it dirty! Since when does he care about keeping his clothes clean?!
I gave Jeff a thank you card last night at practice. While I am, of course, visibly disgusted by this rival merchandise in my house, I am inwardly very pleased that someone took the time and trouble to make my son a very happy boy.
Mid-Week Musings
Here it is Wednesday, the middle of the week, and I am feeling suprisingly refreshed. Not bad for someone who had to wake up at 5am to go to work!
On the weekend, there had been a message on our voice mail from our children's pastor. She was letting me know that there would be a meeting next Sunday for the leaders and helpers for the VBS program we're holding next week. Months ago, I had said that Sam and Casey could be helpers. At the time, I had thought it would be good for the boys to help out in that capacity, but I also hadn't anticipated that both boys would still be playing baseball in July. The original plan was that only Casey would be playing summer ball. This change has made our lives incredibly busy. With my inconsistent work schedule, it feels as if we really haven't had much of a break yet this summer. My days off consist of housework catch-up and errands needing to be run. We've had little time to just hang out together whether at home or at the beach or anywhere else.
So, I listened to the message with dread and intense guilt. I have a hard time saying 'no' and I hate to disappoint, but I had to return her call. The church office is closed on Mondays, so I waited until yesterday to make the call. The conversation went well, and my boys are welcome to help out but are also able to not help. She doesn't want to close the door on them but understands that I know best what my kids need. Besides, with my work schedule such as it is, I wouldn't be able to get them there or pick them up every day of the week. I am so relieved to have that burden removed from my shoulders.
Yesterday was a day off. I worked on Monday and today and will work again on Friday and off for the weekend. While I appreciate the hours, the 'work one day, off one day' thing is a little disruptive to any kind of routine at home. It's far too easy to let housework slide because of fatigue and busyness. Errands chew up large chunks of time, and I strongly dislike being out and about the town all day long. There is so much to be done and wanting to be done that nothing gets done. Or very little and certainly not what I'd like to get done. I fear that August will be a month taken over by housework and large work projects about the house and yard. Or, maybe September once the kids are back to school and I am "free" on my days off.
We went to the library yesterday. It was the first trip to the library with all the kids in many months. Sam and I went at the end of June, and even that was the first for some time for myself. For all my love of books and reading, it is such a bother to get to the library with any regularity. It was easy this past hockey season, as there is a small branch in the same complex where Sam's practices were held. Could we be so lucky as to have another season of practices in the same complex?
I checked out two books only. I finished the thickest one this afternoon, and I've read through a good portion of the other already. Not too shabby for someone who went to bed early last night and was at work all morning today.
Of course, we have ball practice tonight, just as we had last night and will have tomorrow night. Casey's team will be playing several games for Zones this weekend. The winner will earn themselves a trip to Provincials in August, but we're silently hoping that the winner is not our team. Actually, it would be quite unlikely to be our team victorious. We might do well against Kamloops, but the Kelowna team is definitely far stronger than our team. We haven't come close to beating them yet. While we don't want Casey's team to win Zones, we would love for Sam's team to win Zones, although we don't really have any information about that yet. Provincials for Sam's team are being held just down the street from our house. What could be more perfect than that?
The air-conditioner hasn't been turned on yet today. The windows are open, and the breeze feels comfortably cool. It is warm enough outside, but I'm glad for the reprieve from the heat and sun of the past weekend. Supposedly, this coming weekend will be hot, hot, hot. Of course, it will be. We have baseball all weekend! I bought some medicated Solarcaine for my sunburned arms; it works great!
I'm ready.
On the weekend, there had been a message on our voice mail from our children's pastor. She was letting me know that there would be a meeting next Sunday for the leaders and helpers for the VBS program we're holding next week. Months ago, I had said that Sam and Casey could be helpers. At the time, I had thought it would be good for the boys to help out in that capacity, but I also hadn't anticipated that both boys would still be playing baseball in July. The original plan was that only Casey would be playing summer ball. This change has made our lives incredibly busy. With my inconsistent work schedule, it feels as if we really haven't had much of a break yet this summer. My days off consist of housework catch-up and errands needing to be run. We've had little time to just hang out together whether at home or at the beach or anywhere else.
So, I listened to the message with dread and intense guilt. I have a hard time saying 'no' and I hate to disappoint, but I had to return her call. The church office is closed on Mondays, so I waited until yesterday to make the call. The conversation went well, and my boys are welcome to help out but are also able to not help. She doesn't want to close the door on them but understands that I know best what my kids need. Besides, with my work schedule such as it is, I wouldn't be able to get them there or pick them up every day of the week. I am so relieved to have that burden removed from my shoulders.
Yesterday was a day off. I worked on Monday and today and will work again on Friday and off for the weekend. While I appreciate the hours, the 'work one day, off one day' thing is a little disruptive to any kind of routine at home. It's far too easy to let housework slide because of fatigue and busyness. Errands chew up large chunks of time, and I strongly dislike being out and about the town all day long. There is so much to be done and wanting to be done that nothing gets done. Or very little and certainly not what I'd like to get done. I fear that August will be a month taken over by housework and large work projects about the house and yard. Or, maybe September once the kids are back to school and I am "free" on my days off.
We went to the library yesterday. It was the first trip to the library with all the kids in many months. Sam and I went at the end of June, and even that was the first for some time for myself. For all my love of books and reading, it is such a bother to get to the library with any regularity. It was easy this past hockey season, as there is a small branch in the same complex where Sam's practices were held. Could we be so lucky as to have another season of practices in the same complex?
I checked out two books only. I finished the thickest one this afternoon, and I've read through a good portion of the other already. Not too shabby for someone who went to bed early last night and was at work all morning today.
Of course, we have ball practice tonight, just as we had last night and will have tomorrow night. Casey's team will be playing several games for Zones this weekend. The winner will earn themselves a trip to Provincials in August, but we're silently hoping that the winner is not our team. Actually, it would be quite unlikely to be our team victorious. We might do well against Kamloops, but the Kelowna team is definitely far stronger than our team. We haven't come close to beating them yet. While we don't want Casey's team to win Zones, we would love for Sam's team to win Zones, although we don't really have any information about that yet. Provincials for Sam's team are being held just down the street from our house. What could be more perfect than that?
The air-conditioner hasn't been turned on yet today. The windows are open, and the breeze feels comfortably cool. It is warm enough outside, but I'm glad for the reprieve from the heat and sun of the past weekend. Supposedly, this coming weekend will be hot, hot, hot. Of course, it will be. We have baseball all weekend! I bought some medicated Solarcaine for my sunburned arms; it works great!
I'm ready.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Finish Well
The Valley of Champions Tournament is over. Hallelujah!
My arms and knees and forehead are burned. Is it possible to get sunburned when you spend the entire day either in the shade or beneath an umbrella? It must be, because that's where I was all weekend. I don't know how the players do it, running and playing out in this scorching heat. Even under a big beach umbrella, the heat is stifling. The temperature on the infield is even higher because of the gravel reflecting the sun. I'm in shorts and a t-shirt; they are in long socks, pants, t-shirt, and jersey!
Casey's team played much better this morning. I could only stay to watch the first five innings, but it was a tie game when I left. In fact, it remained tied for the final inning and an extra inning. Casey showed up at Sam's game with a medal saying '4th place', but I'm a little confused on that. They shouldn't have been playing for a medal, but there has been so much confusion and changes that anything is possible.
Sam's team was most definitely playing for a medal. It was us against Surrey for third place. We played not so great yesterday, but we were a completely different team today! It was a great game, not a blow out but we did have solid control of the entire game. A third place finish is just fine and dandy.
So, we're home. The first order of business was to have the boys peel out of their dirty, smelly uniforms that hadn't been washed all weekend. I started a load of laundry, while they each took a turn in the shower. Now they are relaxing as they play Gamecube. Kane and Abby aren't home yet; they went to help tear down the mounds at one of the softball parks we used for the tournament. I don't know how much longer they'll be gone; hopefully not much longer.
We can take it easy for the rest of the night.
My arms and knees and forehead are burned. Is it possible to get sunburned when you spend the entire day either in the shade or beneath an umbrella? It must be, because that's where I was all weekend. I don't know how the players do it, running and playing out in this scorching heat. Even under a big beach umbrella, the heat is stifling. The temperature on the infield is even higher because of the gravel reflecting the sun. I'm in shorts and a t-shirt; they are in long socks, pants, t-shirt, and jersey!
Casey's team played much better this morning. I could only stay to watch the first five innings, but it was a tie game when I left. In fact, it remained tied for the final inning and an extra inning. Casey showed up at Sam's game with a medal saying '4th place', but I'm a little confused on that. They shouldn't have been playing for a medal, but there has been so much confusion and changes that anything is possible.
Sam's team was most definitely playing for a medal. It was us against Surrey for third place. We played not so great yesterday, but we were a completely different team today! It was a great game, not a blow out but we did have solid control of the entire game. A third place finish is just fine and dandy.
So, we're home. The first order of business was to have the boys peel out of their dirty, smelly uniforms that hadn't been washed all weekend. I started a load of laundry, while they each took a turn in the shower. Now they are relaxing as they play Gamecube. Kane and Abby aren't home yet; they went to help tear down the mounds at one of the softball parks we used for the tournament. I don't know how much longer they'll be gone; hopefully not much longer.
We can take it easy for the rest of the night.
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Long Day, Short Temper
In case you didn't know, I am hot, tired and cranky. More than just cranky really...I can smell the smoke seeping out my ears. Things are so frustrating!!!
It has been an excruciatingly long, hot day. I was literally at baseball for 12 hours. I left my house around 7:30am and did not get back home until after 7:30pm. The only building that I saw the inside of in that time was the washroom facilities.
The games didn't go so well today. Sam's team lost both games today, so they will play for 3rd or 4th place tomorrow. Casey's team lost their game today and will play a consolation game tomorrow. Each of the boys' teams had extremely painful losses.
The frustration isn't because of the outcome of those games. Win or lose, I cheer my kids and their teams on. I know that my boys played well and did their best. You win some, you lose some, and that's the way sport is. The lack of communication seems to be the biggest cause of my stress this weekend. When we arrived at the ballpark first thing this morning, once again the other team was late to arrive. Another schedule mess-up? I think so. When the schedule changes three times in three days, including the night before the tournament begins, there is a huge potential for miscommunication! And so, we have one team warming up at 7:30 for an 8:30 game, while their competition arrives at 8:15 thinking that they play at 9:00. Two days in a row.
The other communication frustration comes from Sam's coaches. They seem to think that ignorance is bliss, and unless they hear "it" from the right people, they don't need to take any action. Wrong!
The tournament this weekend is hosted by three neighbouring associations, ours being one of them. A tournament of this size requires a lot of volunteers for umpires, field prep, 50/50 draws, souvenir tables, and so on. Every ballpark in the area is being used, and so each association has a specific day (Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) that they are responsible for volunteers for each ballpark. Casey's team has been playing at a different ballpark from Sam's team, and Casey's coach has been asking the team parents to volunteer for most of the week now. So, I've been waiting for Sam's coaches to ask about volunteers, knowing that volunteers would be required from our team. Ha! They never once asked. Kane mentioned something about needing volunteers a few days ago, but they hadn't heard anything about it. Rather than asking someone about it, they did nothing at all. Yesterday, a different association took care of the fields and manned the tables. All day today, a different association did most of the work, until the end of our final game around 5:30pm. Then, someone finally came and talked to our coaches and let them know that today was our day to take care of everything. Our coaches pleaded ignorance and indignation and frustration over the lack of communication. The same person came and told our team's parents that we needed to take down our field as well as the other three fields (still in use) at the park. Of the four fields, our game was the first to be completed which meant we had to wait for three other games to end before we could leave. Well, I stayed and waited and helped. The three coaches stayed and helped. One dad stayed and helped. Everyone else left. And our coaches moaned and groaned about the lack of communication.
Obviously the ball has been dropped several times and by several people, but I'm not feeling too sympathetic towards our coaches when it comes to communication break downs. I do believe that our head coach's son was involved in this same tournament last year, so there's no reason why the head coach shouldn't have known that our team would need to be involved in running the thing. Our assistant coach has been a hockey coach for years. Has he ever been hosted a hockey tournament without being asked to help out? Doubt it. So you didn't get the memo, but you do have a brain in your head. Use it. And communication goes both ways. How many phone calls have I received about practice times, dates or locations? Hmmmm...none. Did I get a phone call saying that our team photo time had been cancelled until next week? Nope, didn't get that one either. Have I been told when the photos are going to be? Still waiting for that one. I know that I tell my kids that I know everything there is to know, but the truth is that I do not read minds and I cannot foretell the future. Like any other parent on the team, I need to be told what is going on and when. My phone works, and we have voice mail. I check my email several times a day, and I do have a cell phone. Really, I'm not too hard to get a hold of.
You know, I asked the coach last week about the need for a photocopy of Sam's birth certificate. He had no idea what I was talking about, didn't know anything about needing one. This isn't our first time in an All-Star season, so I know that a photocopy of the birth certificate IS necessary. Betcha he hasn't asked anyone whether or not he needs it. Silly question. If he had, he would know and would have asked the parents for the photocopies. He hasn't.
If you're not getting information from above you, then perhaps you should take advantage of the tidbits you get from beneath you. I may only be a parent, but I'm a parent that pays attention, knows some of the "inside" information, and wants to help. You can't keep blaming someone else for your ignorance.
I've said enough.
It has been an excruciatingly long, hot day. I was literally at baseball for 12 hours. I left my house around 7:30am and did not get back home until after 7:30pm. The only building that I saw the inside of in that time was the washroom facilities.
The games didn't go so well today. Sam's team lost both games today, so they will play for 3rd or 4th place tomorrow. Casey's team lost their game today and will play a consolation game tomorrow. Each of the boys' teams had extremely painful losses.
The frustration isn't because of the outcome of those games. Win or lose, I cheer my kids and their teams on. I know that my boys played well and did their best. You win some, you lose some, and that's the way sport is. The lack of communication seems to be the biggest cause of my stress this weekend. When we arrived at the ballpark first thing this morning, once again the other team was late to arrive. Another schedule mess-up? I think so. When the schedule changes three times in three days, including the night before the tournament begins, there is a huge potential for miscommunication! And so, we have one team warming up at 7:30 for an 8:30 game, while their competition arrives at 8:15 thinking that they play at 9:00. Two days in a row.
The other communication frustration comes from Sam's coaches. They seem to think that ignorance is bliss, and unless they hear "it" from the right people, they don't need to take any action. Wrong!
The tournament this weekend is hosted by three neighbouring associations, ours being one of them. A tournament of this size requires a lot of volunteers for umpires, field prep, 50/50 draws, souvenir tables, and so on. Every ballpark in the area is being used, and so each association has a specific day (Friday, Saturday, or Sunday) that they are responsible for volunteers for each ballpark. Casey's team has been playing at a different ballpark from Sam's team, and Casey's coach has been asking the team parents to volunteer for most of the week now. So, I've been waiting for Sam's coaches to ask about volunteers, knowing that volunteers would be required from our team. Ha! They never once asked. Kane mentioned something about needing volunteers a few days ago, but they hadn't heard anything about it. Rather than asking someone about it, they did nothing at all. Yesterday, a different association took care of the fields and manned the tables. All day today, a different association did most of the work, until the end of our final game around 5:30pm. Then, someone finally came and talked to our coaches and let them know that today was our day to take care of everything. Our coaches pleaded ignorance and indignation and frustration over the lack of communication. The same person came and told our team's parents that we needed to take down our field as well as the other three fields (still in use) at the park. Of the four fields, our game was the first to be completed which meant we had to wait for three other games to end before we could leave. Well, I stayed and waited and helped. The three coaches stayed and helped. One dad stayed and helped. Everyone else left. And our coaches moaned and groaned about the lack of communication.
Obviously the ball has been dropped several times and by several people, but I'm not feeling too sympathetic towards our coaches when it comes to communication break downs. I do believe that our head coach's son was involved in this same tournament last year, so there's no reason why the head coach shouldn't have known that our team would need to be involved in running the thing. Our assistant coach has been a hockey coach for years. Has he ever been hosted a hockey tournament without being asked to help out? Doubt it. So you didn't get the memo, but you do have a brain in your head. Use it. And communication goes both ways. How many phone calls have I received about practice times, dates or locations? Hmmmm...none. Did I get a phone call saying that our team photo time had been cancelled until next week? Nope, didn't get that one either. Have I been told when the photos are going to be? Still waiting for that one. I know that I tell my kids that I know everything there is to know, but the truth is that I do not read minds and I cannot foretell the future. Like any other parent on the team, I need to be told what is going on and when. My phone works, and we have voice mail. I check my email several times a day, and I do have a cell phone. Really, I'm not too hard to get a hold of.
You know, I asked the coach last week about the need for a photocopy of Sam's birth certificate. He had no idea what I was talking about, didn't know anything about needing one.
If you're not getting information from above you, then perhaps you should take advantage of the tidbits you get from beneath you. I may only be a parent, but I'm a parent that pays attention, knows some of the "inside" information, and wants to help. You can't keep blaming someone else for your ignorance.
I've said enough.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Long, Hot Day
Is it still only Friday? Feels like a Saturday night to me.
Last night, I went to Casey's practice and wound up working the concession as the regular guy was busy organizing the umpire schedule for this weekend's tournament. Within minutes of opening shop, I managed to mangle my left hand ring finger between the fridge/freezer doors. To say that my finger hurts would be an understatement. It's a little swollen; I can't bend it all the way, but the bruising is barely noticeable. But, it is very sensitive to the slightest touch or bump, and it hurts.
We were up this morning by 6:45am, so that we could make it to the ballpark by 7:30 for Sam's pre-game warm-up. The other team didn't show up until 8:15. The game was supposed to start at 8:30. Ooops! Apparently, the opposing coach hadn't been told that the schedule had changed once again. He thought the game was to start at 9:00. Our parents were a little antsy until the umpire got the game going, albeit slightly late. We would not have been happy about being woken so early if our game was going to be delayed until 9:00!
Sam's team won both their games today, and they played so well. In the first game, every single player hit the ball. The game ended after the fourth inning as a mercy. Final score was 20 to 6. In the second game, we played Salmon Arm, the same team that we lost in the final game of the Kamloops tournament last weekend. It was a fairly close game, but we managed to hold on to an 8-5 win. Tomorrow, we play against Blaine, Washington for top spot in our pool. Regardless of the outcome, we should get two more games with the potential to play in the final.
Casey's team lost both their games today. The first game was very close and well played. Well, mostly. A few errors and careless plays might have cost us that game, but they only lost by one run. Casey played very well all around the board. He pitched well, hit well and scored three runs, and he made a few great defensive plays. He was a well-deserved MVP winner. The second game wasn't so great for the team. I missed watching it, but they lost badly. Too many errors. It is doubtful that they will make it to the final, but I suppose that nothing is set in stone until after their final round robin game tomorrow.
After Sam played his second game today, Sam, Abby and I headed back towards home. I had to drop Abby off at her friend's house for a sleepover, and Sam and I had to deliver newspapers. We dropped off the girl and got home. Sam headed for the bathroom while I began listening to phone messages. My cellphone rang. It was the umpire scheduler asking if Sam could ump at 5:30. It was shortly after 5pm! So, we raced back to the ballpark with about five minutes to spare. Sam umped, and I sat in the shade and journalled and read my book. One of the teams that was playing at that time is the team that Sam plays tomorrow morning. They look beatable if we play as well as we did today.
The boys just walked in the door from finishing newspapers. Time to feed and get them to showers and bed. We have another early morning and busy day tomorrow. And my finger hurts.
Last night, I went to Casey's practice and wound up working the concession as the regular guy was busy organizing the umpire schedule for this weekend's tournament. Within minutes of opening shop, I managed to mangle my left hand ring finger between the fridge/freezer doors. To say that my finger hurts would be an understatement. It's a little swollen; I can't bend it all the way, but the bruising is barely noticeable. But, it is very sensitive to the slightest touch or bump, and it hurts.
We were up this morning by 6:45am, so that we could make it to the ballpark by 7:30 for Sam's pre-game warm-up. The other team didn't show up until 8:15. The game was supposed to start at 8:30. Ooops! Apparently, the opposing coach hadn't been told that the schedule had changed once again. He thought the game was to start at 9:00. Our parents were a little antsy until the umpire got the game going, albeit slightly late. We would not have been happy about being woken so early if our game was going to be delayed until 9:00!
Sam's team won both their games today, and they played so well. In the first game, every single player hit the ball. The game ended after the fourth inning as a mercy. Final score was 20 to 6. In the second game, we played Salmon Arm, the same team that we lost in the final game of the Kamloops tournament last weekend. It was a fairly close game, but we managed to hold on to an 8-5 win. Tomorrow, we play against Blaine, Washington for top spot in our pool. Regardless of the outcome, we should get two more games with the potential to play in the final.
Casey's team lost both their games today. The first game was very close and well played. Well, mostly. A few errors and careless plays might have cost us that game, but they only lost by one run. Casey played very well all around the board. He pitched well, hit well and scored three runs, and he made a few great defensive plays. He was a well-deserved MVP winner. The second game wasn't so great for the team. I missed watching it, but they lost badly. Too many errors. It is doubtful that they will make it to the final, but I suppose that nothing is set in stone until after their final round robin game tomorrow.
After Sam played his second game today, Sam, Abby and I headed back towards home. I had to drop Abby off at her friend's house for a sleepover, and Sam and I had to deliver newspapers. We dropped off the girl and got home. Sam headed for the bathroom while I began listening to phone messages. My cellphone rang. It was the umpire scheduler asking if Sam could ump at 5:30. It was shortly after 5pm! So, we raced back to the ballpark with about five minutes to spare. Sam umped, and I sat in the shade and journalled and read my book. One of the teams that was playing at that time is the team that Sam plays tomorrow morning. They look beatable if we play as well as we did today.
The boys just walked in the door from finishing newspapers. Time to feed and get them to showers and bed. We have another early morning and busy day tomorrow. And my finger hurts.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Ramblings from a Tired Mom
It's been a day. Work was somewhat crazy. The same old story...short-staffed and busy. I was originally scheduled to work from 6am until 11am, but my schedule was changed earlier in the week. Instead, I worked from 6:30 to 11. That half hour change meant that I didn't work long enough to get a break. Starting work (being awake) at that time of the day is bad enough, why deprive me of a break?! Of course, I was asked if I could stay an extra hour (because we were short staff), but I said that I couldn't. I had told my kids that I would be home a little after 11am, so we could do something together. It doesn't matter that we had no concrete plans; my kids need mom at home sometimes, too. July is such a busy month, even on the days that I am not working it feels like my kids really don't get a lot of me.
I was in a bit of a mood last night. One of Sam's baseball coaches has been pushing all the wrong buttons. I love this coach to pieces and he'll always have a special place in our hearts (because of Sam's first year of hockey), but I was ready to spend 10-20 years in the slammer. Of course, I could have claimed insanity and been given house arrest, but I restrained myself so it is all moot. I'm almost over it, but there is still some season left.
Casey began to get a little snarky and whiney once we hit the ballpark last night. He had been so good during the day, but Sam's friend was still over which made all the difference. Casey doesn't do well without sleep and staying up until 4:30am probably wasn't such a bright idea. Well, Casey did not wake up this morning until 10:50am! I was almost finished work by then. Obviously, he needed to catch up on some sleep. No complaints here, only jealousy.
Sam has wanted an ipod for a little while now, although I don't think that he was specifically wanting an "ipod" so much as any little music playing thing. Knowing nothing about such things, I did some window shopping on Future Shop's website and found some NHL mp3 players. Hmmmm...Sam loves anything Toronto Maple Leafs, so I showed him and he drooled. He wanted to buy it right then and there, but I'm not a big fan of online ordering when I don't know very much about the product. I recommended that we go to the store and check it out there. Today was the day that we actually had time to go to Future Shop. He had money in the bank and money in his wallet from his birthday. We walked in the door of the store, and right there on a table in front of us were these NHL mp3 players! Better yet, they were on sale for $29.79!!!! So, Sam now has his little music player and he saved himself $50. It was such a good deal that I bought myself a Vancouver Canucks player.
Tomorrow begins the Valley of Champions tournament. It is massive. Every ballpark in the city will be in use. There is a shortage of umpires. So much so that they are even asking untrained people to be an umpire! Both my dad and my brother will be umping some games this weekend. Even though Sam will be playing this weekend, he is also being pressed into umpire service for at least one game. Hopefully, all games run smoothly, so he can play and ump and get transferred back and forth without any problems. Unfortunately for me (and Kane), our boys are playing on different diamonds and their schedules are too similar to allow us to watch very much of both boys' games. Kane will miss most of Sam's games as he is one of Casey's coaches, and I will miss most of Casey's games in order to transport Sam and watch him play. I hate missing games!
We thought we had this evening free to relax, but Casey's coach added a last minute practice for tonight. I don't think Casey was too impressed about that when I told him, but it could have been because he was still tired.
I can't sleep in tomorrow or Saturday. Sam plays at 8:30am both days. Thanks. I feel sleep deprived and haven't slept well the past couple of nights. Silly me. I'm sitting here with eyelids that feel thick and heavy, wondering why I am so tired in the middle of the afternoon. Duh! I was up at 5:45 this morning, so I could get ready for work. My brain hasn't been firing on all cylinders all day long. At work, I kept tripping over my words. What I wanted to say wouldn't come out properly. I don't think I could even spell exhaustion if I had to say it aloud.
I was in a bit of a mood last night. One of Sam's baseball coaches has been pushing all the wrong buttons. I love this coach to pieces and he'll always have a special place in our hearts (because of Sam's first year of hockey), but I was ready to spend 10-20 years in the slammer. Of course, I could have claimed insanity and been given house arrest, but I restrained myself so it is all moot. I'm almost over it, but there is still some season left.
Casey began to get a little snarky and whiney once we hit the ballpark last night. He had been so good during the day, but Sam's friend was still over which made all the difference. Casey doesn't do well without sleep and staying up until 4:30am probably wasn't such a bright idea. Well, Casey did not wake up this morning until 10:50am! I was almost finished work by then. Obviously, he needed to catch up on some sleep. No complaints here, only jealousy.
Sam has wanted an ipod for a little while now, although I don't think that he was specifically wanting an "ipod" so much as any little music playing thing. Knowing nothing about such things, I did some window shopping on Future Shop's website and found some NHL mp3 players. Hmmmm...Sam loves anything Toronto Maple Leafs, so I showed him and he drooled. He wanted to buy it right then and there, but I'm not a big fan of online ordering when I don't know very much about the product. I recommended that we go to the store and check it out there. Today was the day that we actually had time to go to Future Shop. He had money in the bank and money in his wallet from his birthday. We walked in the door of the store, and right there on a table in front of us were these NHL mp3 players! Better yet, they were on sale for $29.79!!!! So, Sam now has his little music player and he saved himself $50. It was such a good deal that I bought myself a Vancouver Canucks player.
Tomorrow begins the Valley of Champions tournament. It is massive. Every ballpark in the city will be in use. There is a shortage of umpires. So much so that they are even asking untrained people to be an umpire! Both my dad and my brother will be umping some games this weekend. Even though Sam will be playing this weekend, he is also being pressed into umpire service for at least one game. Hopefully, all games run smoothly, so he can play and ump and get transferred back and forth without any problems. Unfortunately for me (and Kane), our boys are playing on different diamonds and their schedules are too similar to allow us to watch very much of both boys' games. Kane will miss most of Sam's games as he is one of Casey's coaches, and I will miss most of Casey's games in order to transport Sam and watch him play. I hate missing games!
We thought we had this evening free to relax, but Casey's coach added a last minute practice for tonight. I don't think Casey was too impressed about that when I told him, but it could have been because he was still tired.
I can't sleep in tomorrow or Saturday. Sam plays at 8:30am both days. Thanks. I feel sleep deprived and haven't slept well the past couple of nights. Silly me. I'm sitting here with eyelids that feel thick and heavy, wondering why I am so tired in the middle of the afternoon. Duh! I was up at 5:45 this morning, so I could get ready for work. My brain hasn't been firing on all cylinders all day long. At work, I kept tripping over my words. What I wanted to say wouldn't come out properly. I don't think I could even spell exhaustion if I had to say it aloud.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
13 Already
Yesterday was Sam's 13th birthday. It was a quiet affair. He had baseball practice last night, but he had his best friend sleep over. We picked up some pizza after practice and had cake. The boys stayed up much too late playing Gamecube. Kane was up around 4:30 this morning, and the boys were still up! Needless to say, they slept in...until 11:00am. Sam couldn't understand why I was going to make lunch when he hadn't had breakfast yet. Think about it, Sam.
I don't know yet what I think or how I feel about being the mother of a teenager. There really hasn't been enough time to process that, and I have probably avoided thinking on it. Sooner or later though, it will sink beneath my skull and penetrate my brain.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike2.5 Canada License.
More Kamloops Photos
I stood in the parking lot of our motel to take
this picture of the Thompson River and part of
Kamloops. The ballpark we played at was visible
from our motel. It is across the river beside the
large, brown building.
This is a dead June bug that Abby came across
while watching baseball on Saturday. It was dead,
but she named it Junie and carried it around on a
stick for the entire game.
Casey enjoying a sucker after a game. His coach
had the team pass out a sucker to the opposition
as they shook hands, then they were allowed
to have one as well.
I was taking some photos of Sam at bat and
happened to snap one just as he was jumping
out of the way of an inside pitch. He ended up
on the ground.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike2.5 Canada License.
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Kamloops Tournament Photos
Mighty Casey at the bat.
The ballpark in Kamloops is inhabited by marmots
who are not afraid to ask for food.
Casey and his teammates coming together for
a team cheer. I was playing with the editing
features and thought the black & white
looked best.
Casey playing 1st base. Of course, when I put
the camera down, he made a fantastic stretched
out catch for the third out in the inning.
Sam was catcher a lot this weekend, and he did
a great job.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike2.5 Canada License.
Weekend Wrap-Up
The past four days have been crazy but good. The question is can I recall events in order to write them down. And how long will this post be?
Let's start with last Thursday, the day before we left for the weekend. I had to work. My parents got back home from their holidays late Wednesday night. During my first break at work, I called home to check on the kids and was informed that Casey was once again going to fast. Sure. I called again during my second break, which was a little after lunchtime, and asked Casey how his fast was going. Grandma and Grandpa had taken the kids to McDonald's for lunch, so naturally, Casey's fast didn't last very long.
Friday was a mad scramble to finish some housework and pack up for the weekend. We left shortly after 1pm and arrived in Kamloops a little after 3pm. We settled into our motel room, and then it was time to head to the ballpark. Both Casey and Sam played at 6pm that evening. Both teams lost. I mostly watched Sam's game, and his team started out well. After two innings, we had an 8-0 lead. Going into the final, open inning, we had a 6 run lead, but we weren't home team and we couldn't shut them down.
Saturday was a long day for us. Both boys played at 9am. This time, I parked my chair in between both fields (they were beside each other), so I could at least see most of both games. I was farther from the action than I like to be, but it was better than not seeing one of the boys play. Casey's team won that game, but Sam's team lost but it was close. We went back to the motel after for lunch and some relaxation before heading back to the park for Sam's 3pm game.
There were only 3 teams in Sam's tournament, so this game was against the same team that we lost to Friday night. Just as before, we started out really well, taking a big lead that slowly eroded as the innings progressed. However, this time, we managed to hang on to a victory, and we were in the final game! Casey's team played at 6pm. They lost.
Sunday was yet another early start for us. While Casey didn't play until 12pm, Sam played at 9am, so we had to pack up our stuff and check out of the motel by 8am. Sam's team played well, clawing their way back to take the lead over the last couple of innings, but we didn't have home team advantage. The opposing team tied it up in the last inning with a runner on third base and not a single out! Our pitcher did well and shut down their next three batters sending us to an extra inning. We needed to get on base and score some runs but couldn't do it. What we couldn't do, the other team did do, and so they won the game. The kids were disappointed in their loss, but the game was so exciting and they have played so well. There's nothing to be ashamed of there!
Casey's game was the complete opposite. Some of the kids played well, but others self-destructed from the very top of the first inning and it only got worse. Had we won that game, we would have gone on to the final, but we didn't.
We headed for home. Just as we entered Kelowna, the rain started and it was hard. By the time we got to our driveway, the rain was bouncing off the road and there was thunder and lighting. We all dashed madly from the van to the front door, saving the unloading until after the rain stopped. Poor Maggie (our cat)! We've had several thunderstorms over the past week, and she's been frightened of every one. I found her tucked in behind the hot water tank that night.
When the rain stopped, Kane and the kids unloaded the van, while I started putting stuff away and tidying the house. Not only did I have to work on Monday, but I was hosting a baby shower.
Monday. Work was long and crazy. It wasn't really that busy, but we were short-staffed and a new employee was put in a position where strength and experience is needed over lunch. Even having one more employee would have made a difference. There's no point in switching the new employee with someone in a different position, because that new employee would only create the same issues in that position. She's just learning, and I can accept that. It's just frustrating.
The baby shower went well, I think.
After everyone left last night, my house was so quiet, and it is quiet still this morning. My kids went to a friend's house for a sleepover yesterday. That worked so perfectly! I could have slept in as long as I wanted this morning, but my bladder woke me at 5:30 and then again at 7:30. So, I am up and feeling rather groggy. Oh well, I can sleep in on Wednesday yet. Thursday, I am working at 6:30 in the MORNING! Ugh.
Today is Sam's 13th birthday! I haven't got a gift yet, don't even have a clue as to what I would or could get. I'm not even sure yet how I feel about my little boy reaching this age. It's too early in the morning, and there's not enough caffeine coursing through my veins yet. I'll write more about his birthday later.
Let's start with last Thursday, the day before we left for the weekend. I had to work. My parents got back home from their holidays late Wednesday night. During my first break at work, I called home to check on the kids and was informed that Casey was once again going to fast. Sure. I called again during my second break, which was a little after lunchtime, and asked Casey how his fast was going. Grandma and Grandpa had taken the kids to McDonald's for lunch, so naturally, Casey's fast didn't last very long.
Friday was a mad scramble to finish some housework and pack up for the weekend. We left shortly after 1pm and arrived in Kamloops a little after 3pm. We settled into our motel room, and then it was time to head to the ballpark. Both Casey and Sam played at 6pm that evening. Both teams lost. I mostly watched Sam's game, and his team started out well. After two innings, we had an 8-0 lead. Going into the final, open inning, we had a 6 run lead, but we weren't home team and we couldn't shut them down.
Saturday was a long day for us. Both boys played at 9am. This time, I parked my chair in between both fields (they were beside each other), so I could at least see most of both games. I was farther from the action than I like to be, but it was better than not seeing one of the boys play. Casey's team won that game, but Sam's team lost but it was close. We went back to the motel after for lunch and some relaxation before heading back to the park for Sam's 3pm game.
There were only 3 teams in Sam's tournament, so this game was against the same team that we lost to Friday night. Just as before, we started out really well, taking a big lead that slowly eroded as the innings progressed. However, this time, we managed to hang on to a victory, and we were in the final game! Casey's team played at 6pm. They lost.
Sunday was yet another early start for us. While Casey didn't play until 12pm, Sam played at 9am, so we had to pack up our stuff and check out of the motel by 8am. Sam's team played well, clawing their way back to take the lead over the last couple of innings, but we didn't have home team advantage. The opposing team tied it up in the last inning with a runner on third base and not a single out! Our pitcher did well and shut down their next three batters sending us to an extra inning. We needed to get on base and score some runs but couldn't do it. What we couldn't do, the other team did do, and so they won the game. The kids were disappointed in their loss, but the game was so exciting and they have played so well. There's nothing to be ashamed of there!
Casey's game was the complete opposite. Some of the kids played well, but others self-destructed from the very top of the first inning and it only got worse. Had we won that game, we would have gone on to the final, but we didn't.
We headed for home. Just as we entered Kelowna, the rain started and it was hard. By the time we got to our driveway, the rain was bouncing off the road and there was thunder and lighting. We all dashed madly from the van to the front door, saving the unloading until after the rain stopped. Poor Maggie (our cat)! We've had several thunderstorms over the past week, and she's been frightened of every one. I found her tucked in behind the hot water tank that night.
When the rain stopped, Kane and the kids unloaded the van, while I started putting stuff away and tidying the house. Not only did I have to work on Monday, but I was hosting a baby shower.
Monday. Work was long and crazy. It wasn't really that busy, but we were short-staffed and a new employee was put in a position where strength and experience is needed over lunch. Even having one more employee would have made a difference. There's no point in switching the new employee with someone in a different position, because that new employee would only create the same issues in that position. She's just learning, and I can accept that. It's just frustrating.
The baby shower went well, I think.
After everyone left last night, my house was so quiet, and it is quiet still this morning. My kids went to a friend's house for a sleepover yesterday. That worked so perfectly! I could have slept in as long as I wanted this morning, but my bladder woke me at 5:30 and then again at 7:30. So, I am up and feeling rather groggy. Oh well, I can sleep in on Wednesday yet. Thursday, I am working at 6:30 in the MORNING! Ugh.
Today is Sam's 13th birthday! I haven't got a gift yet, don't even have a clue as to what I would or could get. I'm not even sure yet how I feel about my little boy reaching this age. It's too early in the morning, and there's not enough caffeine coursing through my veins yet. I'll write more about his birthday later.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
A Short-lived Fast
I came home from work yesterday to Casey's announcement that he was going to fast today.
"You're gonna what?" I said, not sure that my ears had heard correctly. This was Casey talking; the boy who is always hungry and can hear the rustle of a potato chip bag from his bedroom. He said it again. He was going to fast today.
"Do you even know what a fast is?" I asked, wondering where on earth Casey had come up with such a plan. He said it was when you don't eat.
"But, why?" He couldn't give me an answer, which means he truly doesn't know, or he is too embarrassed to tell me.
This morning, he asked me what he could have for breakfast.
"What about your fast?" I inquired. He would be fasting after breakfast.
For lunch, I made hashbrowns and sausage, and Casey dug in wholeheartedly.
Again I asked, "What about your fast?"
It seems that he'll only fast when there is food he doesn't like, but he won't fast when there is good food to be had!
"You're gonna what?" I said, not sure that my ears had heard correctly. This was Casey talking; the boy who is always hungry and can hear the rustle of a potato chip bag from his bedroom. He said it again. He was going to fast today.
"Do you even know what a fast is?" I asked, wondering where on earth Casey had come up with such a plan. He said it was when you don't eat.
"But, why?" He couldn't give me an answer, which means he truly doesn't know, or he is too embarrassed to tell me.
This morning, he asked me what he could have for breakfast.
"What about your fast?" I inquired. He would be fasting after breakfast.
For lunch, I made hashbrowns and sausage, and Casey dug in wholeheartedly.
Again I asked, "What about your fast?"
It seems that he'll only fast when there is food he doesn't like, but he won't fast when there is good food to be had!
Monday, July 03, 2006
Dream a Little Dream
Dreams are funny things. I often say that I could make a fortune by selling my dreams as movie scripts. Wouldn't it be interesting to try?
I had a dream last night that was quite disturbing. In fact, it was disturbing enough to wake me up. I looked at the clock, cracked my hip, and rolled over before falling back to sleep. Once asleep my dream continued but in a slightly different vein. This time, it was as if I was awake, remembering my dream and needing to do something about the events in my dream. A dream with in a dream, so to speak.
In the first dream, I was a witness to an incomprehensible act committed by a friend. I cried and screamed and struggled to make my friend stop, but my efforts were in vain and I woke up. In the second dream, I felt this overwhelming need to ask my friend about the situation in my dream. While I could not (and cannot) rationally believe that my friend would ever do what he did in that first dream, I knew that it was still a question needing to be asked. How weird is that?
Like I said, dreams are funny things. Why do we have them, and where do they come from? The origin of some dreams are easily ascertained, but others creep in without apparent rhyme or reason.
As a child, I had a recurring dream, or rather nightmare, about a shark. The dream began in a grocery store in the meat aisle. A shark would jump out and begin chasing me. He did not swim, but ran after me using his tail fins as feet. It's a dream...it doesn't have to make sense. I ran out of the grocery store, which was the only building in sight, and began to run down the road with the shark nipping at my heels. Eventually, I reached a gas station, a small, abandoned building with only a pop machine inside. I ran into the building and climbed up onto the top of the pop machine, thinking that I was finally safe. The shark entered the building and could not reach me. But then, to my horror, water began to rise from the floor, filling the building and bringing the shark ever closer to me. I was trapped. End of dream.
Where did that dream come from? I don't know. I would have been 3 years old when Jaws came to theatres, but I have no recollection of having seen it in my childhood. I also can't imagine that my parents would have taken me to see it either. But here I am, 20+ years removed from that nightmare, but I can remember it as if I had dreamed it last night.
Do our dreams mean something? Anything? I do not believe that we can translate each and every dream into a message or a sign, but I do believe that God can use dreams to speak to us. Believing that God can use dreams though is a far cry from believing that He speaks to me in my dreams. Why would He do that? It is much easier for me to attribute my dreams to stress or fear than it is to think that God has a message for me.
In high school, I frequently had dreams of being late for class or forgetting my locker combination. Now that I have a part-time job, I sometimes dream of being late for work or of my alarm not going off when it is supposed to. Such dreams are easy to nail down.
Late in my third pregnancy, I had a dream that my baby was born and was two years old. She had dark hair and walked up to someone I knew announcing that her name was Abigail. Our Abby was born with dark hair, although it is now blonde. She isn't as outgoing as the Abigail in my dream, but she is the girl that we were hoping to have.
It's not too often that my dreams include "real" people that I know. Even when my dreams do have such people in them, the situations are rarely "real" life. I like it like that. It's easier to forget a dream that is far removed from reality, but lately, I've had more dreams with "real" people in situations that may not be exactly "real" life, but they aren't as far removed as I would like. These dreams are much more difficult to let go of. They make me think and pray. They give me cause for concern or hope. Yet, they also present new difficulties. Do I share those dreams with the people within them? Do I keep it to myself? Does such a dream mean anything, or was it just something I ate?
I don't know.
Dreams are funny things.
I had a dream last night that was quite disturbing. In fact, it was disturbing enough to wake me up. I looked at the clock, cracked my hip, and rolled over before falling back to sleep. Once asleep my dream continued but in a slightly different vein. This time, it was as if I was awake, remembering my dream and needing to do something about the events in my dream. A dream with in a dream, so to speak.
In the first dream, I was a witness to an incomprehensible act committed by a friend. I cried and screamed and struggled to make my friend stop, but my efforts were in vain and I woke up. In the second dream, I felt this overwhelming need to ask my friend about the situation in my dream. While I could not (and cannot) rationally believe that my friend would ever do what he did in that first dream, I knew that it was still a question needing to be asked. How weird is that?
Like I said, dreams are funny things. Why do we have them, and where do they come from? The origin of some dreams are easily ascertained, but others creep in without apparent rhyme or reason.
As a child, I had a recurring dream, or rather nightmare, about a shark. The dream began in a grocery store in the meat aisle. A shark would jump out and begin chasing me. He did not swim, but ran after me using his tail fins as feet. It's a dream...it doesn't have to make sense. I ran out of the grocery store, which was the only building in sight, and began to run down the road with the shark nipping at my heels. Eventually, I reached a gas station, a small, abandoned building with only a pop machine inside. I ran into the building and climbed up onto the top of the pop machine, thinking that I was finally safe. The shark entered the building and could not reach me. But then, to my horror, water began to rise from the floor, filling the building and bringing the shark ever closer to me. I was trapped. End of dream.
Where did that dream come from? I don't know. I would have been 3 years old when Jaws came to theatres, but I have no recollection of having seen it in my childhood. I also can't imagine that my parents would have taken me to see it either. But here I am, 20+ years removed from that nightmare, but I can remember it as if I had dreamed it last night.
Do our dreams mean something? Anything? I do not believe that we can translate each and every dream into a message or a sign, but I do believe that God can use dreams to speak to us. Believing that God can use dreams though is a far cry from believing that He speaks to me in my dreams. Why would He do that? It is much easier for me to attribute my dreams to stress or fear than it is to think that God has a message for me.
In high school, I frequently had dreams of being late for class or forgetting my locker combination. Now that I have a part-time job, I sometimes dream of being late for work or of my alarm not going off when it is supposed to. Such dreams are easy to nail down.
Late in my third pregnancy, I had a dream that my baby was born and was two years old. She had dark hair and walked up to someone I knew announcing that her name was Abigail. Our Abby was born with dark hair, although it is now blonde. She isn't as outgoing as the Abigail in my dream, but she is the girl that we were hoping to have.
It's not too often that my dreams include "real" people that I know. Even when my dreams do have such people in them, the situations are rarely "real" life. I like it like that. It's easier to forget a dream that is far removed from reality, but lately, I've had more dreams with "real" people in situations that may not be exactly "real" life, but they aren't as far removed as I would like. These dreams are much more difficult to let go of. They make me think and pray. They give me cause for concern or hope. Yet, they also present new difficulties. Do I share those dreams with the people within them? Do I keep it to myself? Does such a dream mean anything, or was it just something I ate?
I don't know.
Dreams are funny things.
Sunday, July 02, 2006
The Lady in the Water
So the pool is up and filled and cold. Very cold. The kids didn't care. Too much. They've been in and out all afternoon. After helping Abby plant her little garden and doing some weeding, the pool was calling my name.
I'm not really much of a swimmer, and cold water is enough to keep me hot and dry on the sidelines. But, there comes a point when the heat and grimey-sweaty stickiness on the skin just can't be tolerated anymore, and the pool beckons with sweet promises of cool refreshment. Silly me.
I knew it would be cold, and it was. I had barely put my foot into the water on the other side of the ladder when those sweet promises evaporated. It was colder than cold. It was freezing! And, it was too late to back out. Have you seen the iced tea commercials where someone takes a drink and falls backwards into the sidewalk, except that the sidewalk gives way to a splash of water? That's what I did. I stood backwards on the ladder and simply fell. If you're going to take the plunge may as well do it right.
The water was so cold that even staying immersed and moving about did not keep me warm. After a couple of minutes, I'm sure I lost feeling in my hands and toes, and a cramp could be felt waiting in the wings. I am not usually so eager to get into the pool, and though it was colder than I like, it was refreshing.
I'm not really much of a swimmer, and cold water is enough to keep me hot and dry on the sidelines. But, there comes a point when the heat and grimey-sweaty stickiness on the skin just can't be tolerated anymore, and the pool beckons with sweet promises of cool refreshment. Silly me.
I knew it would be cold, and it was. I had barely put my foot into the water on the other side of the ladder when those sweet promises evaporated. It was colder than cold. It was freezing! And, it was too late to back out. Have you seen the iced tea commercials where someone takes a drink and falls backwards into the sidewalk, except that the sidewalk gives way to a splash of water? That's what I did. I stood backwards on the ladder and simply fell. If you're going to take the plunge may as well do it right.
The water was so cold that even staying immersed and moving about did not keep me warm. After a couple of minutes, I'm sure I lost feeling in my hands and toes, and a cramp could be felt waiting in the wings. I am not usually so eager to get into the pool, and though it was colder than I like, it was refreshing.
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Some Random Shots
Casey putting his cleats on before a game.
Another shot of poppies from the front yard.
Abby practicing cartwheels at the ballpark.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike2.5 Canada License.
Canada Day and 13th Birthdays
It feels nice but kind of weird. We have a long weekend without the cracking of a bat or the sound of baseballs popping in leather gloves. It is Canada Day, and we are able to stay home and enjoy the weekend. Imagine that.
Our enjoyment is limited though. There is much to be done, so a free weekend needs to be spent wisely. The pool is now being slowly filled with water; it will likely be ready when the weekend is over! The patio and deck have been swept and cleared of junk and is waiting to be scrubbed clean. I've cleaned and vacuumed the inside of my van. I'm surprised that my kids had room to sit back there; it was that messy!
The weekend hasn't been, nor will be, all work and no play. Kane, Casey, Abby and I went out for dinner and to see the X-Men 3 movie last night. We enjoyed the movie, although I wasn't thrilled with some aspects of the storyline, but that's the way movies go. Casey has gone to play at a friend's house. This is the same friend with whom Casey watched The Grudge several weeks ago. Kane did talk to the step-dad who was apologetic, saying that he would talk with his step-son about it. Sam is not even home this weekend. He is playing ball at a tournament out of town.
Sam was picked up yesterday. I was at work and missed seeing him off. No wonder I was distracted at work! Kane did make it home during the day to see Sam off, so at least there was a parent here. His team should be warming up for their first game about now, so I hope they play well. Sam will be gone until sometime Monday, depending on how they play.
Speaking of Sam...I'm at a loss as to what to get him for his 13th birthday next week. Any ideas? I want it to be something special for this milestone but not too expensive or extravagant. The only idea I've really had so far has been a teen Bible. He has a children's Bible that he was given at his baby shower. It still works just fine, but he's growing up and might not like to carry a Bible with children on the cover to youth group. But, I don't know if that is something that he would really want to get for his birthday. When I asked what he might like, he couldn't give me an answer. I suppose that is a better response than rattling off a wish list a mile long, but I sure could use a clue.
Our enjoyment is limited though. There is much to be done, so a free weekend needs to be spent wisely. The pool is now being slowly filled with water; it will likely be ready when the weekend is over! The patio and deck have been swept and cleared of junk and is waiting to be scrubbed clean. I've cleaned and vacuumed the inside of my van. I'm surprised that my kids had room to sit back there; it was that messy!
The weekend hasn't been, nor will be, all work and no play. Kane, Casey, Abby and I went out for dinner and to see the X-Men 3 movie last night. We enjoyed the movie, although I wasn't thrilled with some aspects of the storyline, but that's the way movies go. Casey has gone to play at a friend's house. This is the same friend with whom Casey watched The Grudge several weeks ago. Kane did talk to the step-dad who was apologetic, saying that he would talk with his step-son about it. Sam is not even home this weekend. He is playing ball at a tournament out of town.
Sam was picked up yesterday. I was at work and missed seeing him off. No wonder I was distracted at work! Kane did make it home during the day to see Sam off, so at least there was a parent here. His team should be warming up for their first game about now, so I hope they play well. Sam will be gone until sometime Monday, depending on how they play.
Speaking of Sam...I'm at a loss as to what to get him for his 13th birthday next week. Any ideas? I want it to be something special for this milestone but not too expensive or extravagant. The only idea I've really had so far has been a teen Bible. He has a children's Bible that he was given at his baby shower. It still works just fine, but he's growing up and might not like to carry a Bible with children on the cover to youth group. But, I don't know if that is something that he would really want to get for his birthday. When I asked what he might like, he couldn't give me an answer. I suppose that is a better response than rattling off a wish list a mile long, but I sure could use a clue.
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