Confessions of a Baseball Mom

Wax On.... Wax Off

2009-07-20T18:01:59-05:00

While I was making dinner a few days ago, I was watching the 40 Year Old Virgin, (which is a hilarious movie if you have been living under a rock and never seen it). The boys happened to walk into the room during the scene where they waxed Steve Carell's chest. I have to say that is by far the funniest scene of the movie and I laugh every time I watch it. Of course, the boys were completely perplexed by what they were watching (and I am thankful it was the t.v. version so that all of the expletives were edited out). I tried explaining to them the purpose of waxing but I don't think they fully understood the concept.

Fast forward to yesterday. I was going to play Pokeno and I was joking that I wanted to win the big money so that I could afford to get my eyebrows waxed. Jared was so cute today... he asked if I won. I told him no and he responded with "so you can't get your eyebrows done?' I swear, that kid is so smart. After taking a closer look, I decided that a battle with the tweezers was not worth the $8 it would cost to go to the nearest salon. So, I gathered up the boys and told them they could watch. I was surprised by how interested they were and by all of the questions that came along with it.

When we got to the salon, she escorted us to the back room and the boys lined up along the wall to witness this event firsthand. Jordan was concerned that it was going to be too hot and Jared was afraid my eyes were going to bleed. I think they were relieved that the experience was not quite the same as it was portrayed in the movie. And I am hopeful that they have a greater appreciation for the things that women do to be beautiful. I have made it my goal in life to prepare my boys to be good husbands which includes making their beds, cleaning up their messes and being aware of the price of beauty. Every time I nag at them, I tell them "you're wife is going to thank me for this one day". I should note that they still aren't good at completing all of those tasks, but I am working on it.

Sadly, that was the most exciting part of our day. I have been working all afternoon on laundry and packing. I can not leave town with dirty laundry or a mess. When I come home from vacation, it is always overwhelming enough trying to get things back to normal. The last thing I want to deal with is a messy house. I think I have done a pretty good job of staying on task. DS's, DVD players and camera batteries are charged. Clothes are clean and packed and all of the quilts have been washed. I think they may be the first time EVER that I have been packed the day before a trip. I usually scramble around at the last minute barking at everyone to get things done. But since Lance isn't here (and I think he prefers it that way), it seemed easier just to do it now and save everyone a lot of stress. I am sure I'll find plenty of last minute things to do anyway, including painting my own nails because I did not win the big money and I feel guilty having them done right before leaving for vacation.

I also wanted to share another page I did this week. Most of the elements on this page came from Libby's Marco collection. These photos were taken by our neighbor, Michelle. I love the one of Jared's pants falling off of his little bum as he was being thrown into the pool. I guess that's it for now. Have a good one!

Fun with Cousins

2009-07-19T10:27:24-05:00

Another week gone... that is the story of my life. While we were in San Antonio, Lance's sister came in to town with Ashley & Jessica. Their vacation quickly turned into another vacation for us when we got back. Every day we went somewhere (bowling, mini golfing, movies) and by the end of their trip, the boys were waking up asking what we were going to do next. That's the problem with doing so much at home... the kids start to expect it. And suddenly, playing video games or with Legos didn't sound like near as much fun. Overall, they had a great time and the boys were sad to see their cousins go. It's amazing how well they all get along. And I was glad to see that Ashley is just as pouty as Jordan when things aren't going her way. It was a competition to see who could be the worst poor sport. While Jordan probably edged Ashley out in the end, it was a close race. I can't say I am proud of that but that is my son. He is a competitor in everything he does. I guess I like the fact that he wants to be the best at everything. Unfortunately, he needs to learn that he isn't always going to be the best and he needs channel that negative energy into something more productive. I have been saying this since he was 6 years old. He is 9 now. I have a feeling that's never going to change.

Since their departure, we have been busy working around the house. Lance's camping trailer was in our garage for the last 2 weeks which was driving me crazy. Once things are out of place, you start putting stuff anywhere and everywhere because it no longer matters. I finally told him that if he didn't get it out of there, I was going to sell it. Remarkably, it was out the next day. Unfortunately, what started as a minor cleaning project turned into a day long reorganizing effort. We decided to move everything from one side of the garage to the other and park both of our cars in the double bay. While it seemed like a good idea at the time, it quickly because less appealing as they day went by. However, we got most of it finished and it looks pretty good. We'll see how long it stays that way.

Now we are gearing up for a few trips. In the next 3 weeks, we are planning to go to Las Vegas to see my family. It's a fabulous 110 right now there. Not sure why I thought going to Vegas in July was a good idea but it was pretty much the only time we could make it work. Then we will be taking a quick trip to San Diego to visit Sea World and hopefully Legoland. It is 80 degrees there and it will be nice to get some relief from this summer heat. Then we will return to Las Vegas and leave the boys with my mom for 2 days. Lance has a trip to San Francisco for work so I am going to hitch a ride with him. We love San Francisco and we haven't been in 10 years! To top it all off, I will be heading to Florida for 3 or 4 days to visit with my best friend, Karen and another friend, Ramona. It's going to be a crazy few weeks but I am looking forward to it.

As soon as we get back from all of our travels, it will be time to start thinking about school and baseball again. In fact, tryouts are the week after we get back. I dread getting back into a routine but I am sure after the next 3 weeks, I will be changing my tune.

On that note, I have some more things to work on around here before we head off. But I wanted to share this page I did last night. Our niece, Ashley, celebrated her 11th birthday while they were in town. I had been begging Libby to make a birthday kit for me and who would have thought the colors she chose would be so perfect? The kit is called "Forever Young" and it was released yesterday. Go check it out and support her store! I guess that's it for now. Lots to do.... have a great day!

Happy Fourth of July! (one week late)

2009-07-11T11:05:03-05:00

It is July 11 and I am really starting to freak out a little. I know I keep saying this but I have no idea where this year has gone. And the summer if flying by even quicker. We are already halfway through summer vacation and it feels like we just started!

As usual, it's been busy around here. I can't imagine what we would be doing right now if we were playing baseball, too! Last week, we celebrated the Fourth of July with some of our friends and neighbors. The kids went swimming and then shot off fireworks. Fireworks are one of those things that you enjoy watching, but hate paying for. Our friend, Larry, suggested handing the boys a $100 bill and letting them set it on fire... I thought that was funny. Obviously, it took a little bit longer to light off the actual fireworks, but not THAT much longer. However, the kids got a kick out of it because they are finally old enough to do it themselves and it's pretty much the only time that playing with fire is acceptable. It was a really fun day.

After the fourth of July festivities concluded, we decided to take a quick trip to San Antonio to visit Shamu and his friends. We wanted to buy season passes for our trip to San Diego in a few weeks. Oddly enough, it is cheaper to stay in a hotel room in San Antonio for 2 days and buy the tickets there, than it is to get them in California. Notwithstanding the sweltering 105 high temps, it was fun. The boys are finally old enough to go to the water park and they had a blast. They loved all of the slides and the wave pool. And when we finished there, we went to watch some of the shows. They all decided to sit up front and get splashed by Shamu. I decided that I had to protect my camera from the water, so I chose to sit outside of the splash zone (that had nothing to do with not wanting to be splashed by ice cold water that smells like fish). They thought it was awesome and loved Shamu Rocks Texas, where there is a LOT of splashing involved.

Now we are back home for a few weeks before we head off to Vegas and San Diego for a little R&R. I have been working on staying on top of my photos and my new project is getting them put into photo books. I am in love with 8x8 Shutterfly books and my goal is to make one with all of the pictures I take throughout the year. I am venturing into digital scrapbooking to add some fun elements to the pages. Fortunately, my super awesome friend, Libby Weifenbach, is a digital designer and she is kind enough to share her products with me. Here is a link to her store. I am keeping the pages simple because my goal is to get all of the pictures on there. But I like that it combines some scrapbooking elements at the same time.

I am hoping to do a page a day (because I have 6 years of digital pictures to work with). So, if I can keep up, I will start sharing the pages here. I am starting on 2009 and then I will work my way back. That being said, I guess I need to get going. Got lots to do today to make up for the 3 days we were out of town. I attached the page I did with our Fourth of july pictures with Libby's "American Pie" kit. I hope to have Sea World pictures soon. Have a good one!

Happy Campers

2009-06-28T14:50:05-05:00

Last week, Lance decided to take the boys camping at Medina Lake with our neighbors, Gary & Michelle. When asked if I wanted to join them, the answer was an unequivocal "NO THANKS". I am not a camper, nor do I pretend to be. In fact, I am more of a complainer when it comes to sleeping anywhere other than my own bed, particularly in a room 1/5 the size of a standard hotel room with limited air conditioning and bathroom facilities. I think everyone was happy with that decision.

So, on Tuesday, Lance and the boys headed off and left me here to fend for myself. I had the house cleaners here by 11:00 and went off to do a little shopping. When I got home, the house was spotless (and remained that way for 3 whole days!). I decided to sit down and finish a project I started over a year ago... editing and saving my photos. It might sound like an uneventful way to spend my min-vacation but I can't think of a better way to spend my time. This has been a project that has weighed on me for quite awhile and I hate feeling so overwhelmed by it. Now, I am hoping to stay on top of my pictures and I am even hoping to get some scrapbooking done. It doesn't do much good to have all of those photos stored and organized on my computer where no one can see them!

Back to camping.... Lance and the boys rolled back into town Friday afternoon. While they had fun, they were happy to be home. Lance didn't want to come out and say it but he eluded to the fact that my obsessive cleaning and organizing would have been helpful. And Jared told me that he was anxious to sleep in his warm, comfortable bed. I thought that was an interesting observation coming from a 5 year old.... then again, he is his mother's son. Joseph told me all about feeding the deer and how he liked sleeping in the "camping trailer". Jordan was nowhere to be found because as soon as they pulled into the driveway, he went to Paul's house to play. (Some things never change.) Their favorite part of the weekend was feeding the deer. There are dozens of deer at the campground and they come right up to you and eat out of your hand. Thanks to Lance's camera phone, he was able to send me some pictures which I thought was pretty cool. It was like being there with them without having to be there. :) I know that Michelle will be coming home with a lot of good pictures for me, as well. But I will share a few that Lance sent.

It's funny how things get back to normal so quickly. We are back to watching Transformers at least once a day and now that todays' showing is over, the boys are donning Buzz and Woody costumes with our neighbor Katelyn who is sporting her best "Jesse" look. I was going to take them to the pool but no one seemed too excited about that which is fine by me. It is so hot outside that I don't even want to think about going out there. Instead, I am going to finish catching up on email and blogs and enjoy the quiet while I can.

I guess that's about it for now. Hope you are having a great weekend!

Show Me The Money

2009-06-16T12:39:34-05:00

As I was finishing up yet another load of laundry this morning, I looked on the window sill at a pile of "junk" that I have been collecting over the last few weeks. It is amazing what you find in a little boy's pocket. Of course, I have not learned to find it PRIOR to putting it in the wash so it usually turns up in the dryer. This leads me to my thought of the day...

I have long heard tales of moms finding $20 bills and other items of value in the laundry. Sadly, the only money I have managed to find in the last month totaled a whopping 63 cents! In fact, I found more "fake" money than "real" money (if you don't count the Chuck E. Cheese's tokens). And the only time I have ever actually found a dollar bill... it belonged to me, which made me glad that I am the one doing the laundry. The only solace I have right now is the knowledge that my boys are young and really don't carry much money with them. So maybe one day my pay day will come. Until then, I will continue to collect, rocks, legos, bubble gum and bolts, along with the occasional ice cream ticket or watch.

So we have another hot day on tap here in the great state of Texas. The boys are doing VBS this week which is nice because I have a few hours of quiet before the "I'm bored's" strike again. I actually did a little "Turbo Jam" this morning which felt good (when I finished). Now I am waiting for the boys to get home so we can hit the pool. That's about all of the excitement I can stand for one day. I am sure we will return home for another viewing of Transformers as the countdown to the sequel continues.... 7 more days if you are wondering.

While I am thinking about laundry, here is a picture of my cute laundry room (since I pretty much slacked on the whole Home Improvement week thing). A few years ago, I got my front loaders and decided that it was time to "girl up" the room a little bit. It goes without saying that in a house full of boys, I am surrounded by blue. So I went with my favorite color.... pink. And it is pink in every sense of the word. I can honestly say that I hate doing laundry, but it does make me smile every time I look at that room. One day, I would like to change the cabinets to white and have some cabinets with laundry bins put on the opposite wall so that I can have someplace to put all of my folded clothes. It's on the list...

Well, that's it for now. Have a great day!

Transformers... More Than Meets the Eye

2009-06-14T13:57:11-05:00

Every day for the last 2 weeks, Jared has watched the "real" Transformers movie. I am not sure where the sudden obsession came from, but I imagine it has nothing to do with the multitude of Transformer toys flanking the aisles of every toy store in town. In fact, yesterday, he spent the morning making a list for Santa of all of the Transformers that he wants for Christmas. Newflash... Christmas is 193 days away! Nonetheless, I can't help but appreciate his enthusiasm because for a 5 year old boy, there are few things in life more than awesome than Transformers.

Being the good mom that I am, I finally sat down to watch Transformers, approximately 16 viewings ago, so that I can properly discuss this common topic of conversation with my children. It turns out, it's not all bad. It's no Star Wars (if I am judging on the merits of science fiction "boy" movies) but it is pretty good. There is some humor and a lot of action and it is hard not to be impressed by the graphics. Transformers have certainly come a long way since I was a kid.

All of this leads up to the discussion of costumes. As you know, my kids LOVE their costumes... particularly Jared. He can't wait for Halloween and continues to ask me on a daily basis, how many more days. The answer would be 138 if you are wondering. I am sure that he will have picked out dozens of different costumes before the day actually arrives. However, yesterday, he put in his most interesting request yet. He would like "an Optimus Prime costume with a button you can press that will turn him into a car so that he does not have to walk". If you are reading Grandma, I know you have skills in the costume making department but I am not sure even you can pull that one off.

As you can imagine, with all of the Transformer talk, we are very anxious for June 24 which is the release date of the sequel. I have to admit that, while I never cared to see the first one, it is hard not to be anxious for this movie. I suppose that once you have seen a movie 37 times, it is hard not to be anxious for the next one. At least it will be different.

Other than that, not a whole lot going on here. I have been trying to get motivated to do something but all I have done today is watch 2 hours of Snapped followed by 2 hours of classic 90210. Of course, I am now listening to Transformers from the other room. I really need to do some laundry and make beds before I do anything else. Tonight I have Bunko and I am hoping to come home with some cash.

As promised, I am going to start sharing some pictures. Here are some of my favorite pictures of Jared this season.... isn't he the cutest little catcher ever? I love him in the gear. Which is funny because I always say I love catcher photos because they look like transformers with all of that gear on. How timely? As you might note, he is a switch hitter. He is actually right handed but he hits really well on the left so he does both (quite well, I might add).

I guess I am off to attack my laundry now. It mysteriously multiplies up there when I am not looking. Have a great Sunday!

Let Summer Begin

2009-06-11T20:40:35-05:00

As I sit here for the first time in months trying to decide what to do, I can't help but wonder how it is already June 11? It seems like it's only been a few weeks since I declared my resolutions for the new year and my optimism for for all of the things I wanted to accomplish. Unfortunately, my optimism was quickly rendered useless against reality. With 3 boys in school and playing baseball and my dugout sign "business", there is not enough time in the day to do all of the things I want to do. I haven't cooked more than one meal a week in months, my blog has been updated even less than that, I haven't seen the gym since October and I am still months behind on editing and saving my photographs. I did successfully get rid of 3 bicycles, but that was only because a donation truck pulled up to the front of our house and hauled them off.

In any case, I am starting to feel a little better about things. Summer vacation officially started last Thursday, which was also the last day of our baseball. I have never been so happy to be finished with school and baseball. I feel like I have months of sleep I need to catch up on and so many little projects around the house that I would like to complete. But first and foremost, I want to get back to the basics. I have been trying to cook more and I found the bottom of my desk which I haven't seen in months. I still haven't made it to the gym but I am shooting for next week on that one.... baby steps. I am also thinking of all kinds of great blog topics so that I can have something new and exciting to talk about. I wouldn't say they are "great" in the literal sense. But they are things I have been thinking about. And I am sure that anyone who is reading is anxious to hear about anything other than Snuggies. :)

Here is a quick rundown of what has happened over the last 3 months:

Joseph & Jordan successfully completed their school years and did great. Joseph will be moving on to second grade and Jordan will be in 4th. Jordan took his TAKS tests for the first time this year (standardized tests for TX). He was commended on both tests, missing only one on the reading and he received a perfect score on his math test. It's a shame his grades do not reflect that kind of intelligence. At least I know it's there...... deep down.

Jared graduated from preschool on May 20 and we are now tuition free. Hallelujah! It was a little sad considering we have had kids at that school for the last 6 years. But it will be nice to save the money and to have all of the kids at the same school next year.

Baseball went really well.

Jared's team started off good but they hit a bit of a slump. They finished in 6h place out of 15 teams so that's not too bad. Jared had fun and he loved playing catcher. As a side note, the catcher in 6U really does not do anything but stand there so his role was somewhat limited. But he enjoyed it and looked really cute in all of his gear.

Joseph's team ended up doing much better than expected. They finished 3rd out of 6 teams. His team was the epitomy of disfunction but for some reason it worked. Joseph had a lot of fun making new friends and he was probably the best hitter on the team. At the beginning of the season, I was sure he would never want to play baseball again but he might be more inclined to play again next season after all. We shall see.

Jordan's team won their division. They came in first place with a record of 12-2. He played with an awesome group of kids and he was by far the best pitcher in the league, which didn't hurt. They played in two tournaments and did pretty good, as well. The first tournament, they came in 3rd place. Then they played in the state championship and came in second place. Those kids worked so hard and were amazing out there. It's hard to imagine 9 year olds with that much composure. At the end of the season, their record was 16-5 and they walked away with a first place and a second place trophy. Can't complain about that. Lance is probably going to coach Jordan again next season. It's hard to pass up the opportunity to coach when you have the best pitcher in the league and you get to take him in the 3rd round of the draft.

Last but not least, my dugout sign business did pretty well. In the fall, I did 9 teams.... in the spring, I did 29! I am hopeful that I will have a lot of return customers next season. I even branched out to 3 other leagues in the area so I am hoping to get more business from them next time around. The process is time consuming and I don't make a lot of money but I did make enough to pay my housekeeper for the rest of the year and I was able to get some random household things we have been wanting such as a new bat for Joseph. Well, that wasn't really something "we" wanted but you know what I mean. Bats are expensive so it's nice to be able to buy things like that and not feel so guilty about it.

Well, it looks like it's time for me to run. We have had a busy day of baseball camp, basketball camp and swimming. I am going to head off to bed and tomorrow, I will plan to share some of the pictures I took during baseball season. Until then, have a good one and thanks for sticking around. :)

Snuggies... the Final Chapter

2009-05-07T12:48:12-05:00

As I sit here pondering the dozens of things I should be doing right now, I couldn't help but take a minute to stop by and give a shout out to my sister-in-law, Kristina. She was so entertained by my Snuggie story that she decided to purchase one for me. When I opened up the bag, I had to laugh out loud because it was totally unexpected. Jared was with me when I got it and he promptly modeled it for me and my mother-in-law. Then he laid down on the couch and displayed how we can still answer the phone, even while bundled up. It was the funniest thing. Perhaps if they decide to make a "junior" version, they can give us a call. I am sure Jared would sell thousands of them... he is very convincing and enthusiastic in his salesmanship.

So this week was interesting. On Friday, a child at our school tested positive for swine flu so they decided to close the school for 2 weeks. My kids were thrilled, to say the least. Unfortunately for them, the CDC came to their senses and decided to re-open the school after 2 days. My kids were much less pleased about that news. I, on the other hand, couldn't be happier. Summer vacation is less than a month away and I was quickly reminded how long those 3 months are going to be. I am glad that everyone is healthy and that things seem to be back to "normal".

Baseball is going well. It has been a very busy season but we have been having fun. Jordan's team is now 7-1 and they are crushing everyone else in our division. We decided to play in a tournament last weekend and we did pretty well. We ended up 2-2 and lost our chance to go to the championship game by one run in the sixth inning. It was a heartbreaker, to say the least. The boys played so hard and I am not exaggerating when I tell you it was the best game I have ever seen. Jordan pitched 5-1/3 innings and only game up 4 runs. He is amazing. While we were disappointed, it was still a good game and it had the kids fired up for our game Tuesday night. We played the only team to beat us in our league and we won 11-1. We have 4 regular season games left and then we have a tournament within our league and then the South Zone Metro Championship to determine the best team in Houston. We are excited about our chances. These kids play hard and they deserve all of their success. I will be very sad when this season ends.

Joseph's team is doing much better than I anticipated. It still isn't a good team but at least we are playing other teams that aren't any good, either. They are 4-5 right now and tied for 3rd place. I am glad that Joe isn't very competitive and that he has no idea how bad his team really is because he is having a lot of fun.

Jared's team is 6-2 and in third place, also. They play the number 1 team tonight. They are undefeated so we hope to change that. Jared enjoys playing when he feels like it. He is excited for tonight's game because if he catches a fly ball, he gets a Lego dump truck. I feel pretty confident that my $14 is going to be safe for quite some time.

Well, that's it for now. I have about 1400 baseball pictures to go through before tonight's game. I am trying to make photo books for the coaches but I have no idea who half the kids are so that might be challenging. Sadly, out of those pictures, about 200 of them will be good.... if I'm lucky. If I come across some good pictures, I'll be sure to share them. Have a good one!

Snuggies Are Awesome: Part 2

2009-04-13T16:21:19-05:00

Obviously, now that baseball is in full swing, my blog has become sorely neglected. I have tons of pictures to share but I haven't had a moment to edit them. I was hoping to get them done some time this week but since my mom is coming to visit tomorrow, it may take a little longer.

In any case, I am glad to see that I get the occasional visitor still. When I look at the stats, I notice that most of the people who stop by are looking for pictures of clone troopers. I am not sure if they are disappointed when they realize the only clone troopers here are Joseph & Jared. But they are pretty cute so I guess they aren't too disappointed. So imagine my surprise when I got an email from someone from the Houston Astros, referencing my Snuggies are Awesome post. I have a hard time getting people I know to look at my blog so I couldn't imagine why someone from the Astros would ever come across it. At first I was hoping he was going to tell me that the Astros were having a Snuggies promo day and that he was going to send me free tickets so I could get my very own. While I might have been a little disappointed that wasn't the case, I did enjoy the video (below) and I appreciate him sending it to me.

You probably have to be an Astros fan to appreciate who is actually in the video but anyone who loves the Snuggies commercial can't help but find the humor in it. And, no, I still have not ordered my Snuggie. It's spring time now so it doesn't seem worth the money so I think I'll just wait until the fall.

That being said, we are very excited because we are going to our first game of the season on Sunday. It is Youth Baseball day and we are going with Jordan's team. The kids all dress in their uniforms and they get to walk around the warning track at Minute Maid Park. This is a pretty big deal because you don't get to walk on the field very often. We did it a few years ago with the Rattlers and the kids really had fun. They don't get to socialize a lot outside of games and practice so it's fun for them to get to watch someone else play for once. And now they are old enough to appreciate what they are watching which will make it even better.

On the subject of Jordan's team, they are doing very well. They are the only undefeated team left in his division. However, they still have 9 more games to play so anything can happen. So far, they have only allowed 8 runs in the last 3 games and they have scored 31. Jordan is our starting pitcher and he struck out 14 out of 18 batters in the last 2 games. I think that's pretty impressive for a 9 year old.

Joe's team started out okay but has already started to spontaneously combust. On the plus side, we already have one more win that I originally anticipated. Since we have only won one game, that isn't saying much. I keep trying to be positive but even my cute tee shirt isn't helping right now.

Then there is Jared... he is on a great team. They lost their first game last week but they are still doing well. He has some really good coaches and a lot of great players. I am glad to see him having a good season. It's amazing how much more fun baseball is when you are winning.

Well, I guess that's the lowdown for now. I need to get some laundry finished and get the kids off to practice. I'll also try to post some pictures this week, if I can.

Snuggies are Awesome

2009-03-08T12:05:43-05:00

This morning I was thinking that I really need to update my blog and I was trying to decide what I should write about. Then, out of nowhere, Joseph & Jared gave me the perfect story...

As I was cleaning the playroom a few minutes ago, Joseph asks me if I need a Snuggie? I can't help but wonder if he really knows what a Snuggie is and why he thinks I would need one. So I ask, "why do I need a Snuggie?"

His reply, "You can wear it when you go to baseball games. And you can even carry your purse over your arm because it has sleeves".

Jared chimes in with "it is only $19.95" The he adds, "you can even reach the phone when you are wearing it. You should buy 5. One for each of us."

Joe adds, "But Jordan can't wear it when he is playing baseball". He then ends the conversation with "Snuggies are awsesome!"

And as I type this, Jared yells down the stairs, "mom, order the Snuggie today".

True story.

Thinking about this brings so many questions to mind.... the most prominent being "do my kids watch so much t.v. that they can tell me all of the features of the Snuggie, including the price?" I try to put my mind at ease by asking if they knew the phone number to call. Fortunately, they had not memorized the number and told me that I had to look it up but to "hurry".

This brings back the memory of the time Jordan and his friend decided to make some phone calls of their own. For some unknown reason, Paul called 9-1-1 twice, which became abundantly clear when a police officer showed up at our door to make sure that there was, in fact, no emergency at our house. I was concerned that Jordan had a hand in this but he swore he didn't. He said he was just sitting with Paul when he did it and that he called someone else instead. I couldn't imagine who he would have called because he was only 6 at the time and Paul was the only person he knew. Fortunately, there is a handy little feature on our phone that shows the last number dialed. It turns out he was telling the truth... it was to an 800 number. He was trying to order the Betty Crocker Bake N Fill Cake pan, as seen on t.v. He would keep a note pad in his room with numbers for things he would see on t.v. and constantly repeat the commercial to me word for word, using his best sales pitch, so I would buy it. The funny thing is my kids hardly watch t.v. They are outside almost all day long and, on occasion, I find myself begging them to sit on the couch and watch t.v. so they will wind down.

The strangest part of this story is I was on the Snuggie website a few weeks ago and I was strongly considering ordering one. I have never made it a secret that I do not like the cold. I would never survive anywhere further north than Houston because I hate winter... particularly snow. But even in Houston, it gets a little cold, especially at night. So when we go to ball games or practice in the winter, you will hardly recognize me. I have my parka on and I am covered from head to toe with blankets. The Snuggie would probably be very helpful. However, I am thinking about going one step further with the concept and sewing in legs because if you have ever sat in bleachers on a cold windy day, even a Snuggie won't save you from the draft. So, perhaps the Snuggie people will take this into account and make a prototype for me.

On the subject of baseball, things are going well. All of the practices are exhausting and I am already looking forward to game days because games are a lot more fun to watch than practice. Joseph's team is a mess so Lance went out to help get the coach situated. We will see this week, if any of it helped. It's not really the coach's fault because he did not volunteer to coach and they are new to baseball. The league was short so the team was handed to him. It's distressing to me because we do our part of the league and I can't help but feel punished because Lance can't coach all 3 of our kids. When you have a record number of kids signed up, why don't these dads offer to help out? Out of 500 kids, they only need 45 coaches. It does a disservice to the kids when their coaches do not know what they are doing or do not want to be there. I think if you sign up to play, you should sign up to help. It shouldn't be the same 20 guys every season doing all of the work. But the people who don't volunteer to help will be the first to complain. Unfortunately, that's how it is.

Sorry for taking a moment to stand on my soapbox. Obviously, I am frustrated by that. But I am excited to have the kids playing and I am trying to be hopeful that it all works out. I am also excited that my 3 new shirts are on order. Can't wait to get them!

Today is one of our 2 baseball-free days of the week so I am going to enjoy it. It's GORGEOUS outside so I am getting ready to send the boys out to play. I need to clean off my desk and do some work for my dugout signs. Of course, laundry is also calling my name. I hate laundry but I know it's the only exercise I'll get today because it forces me to walk up and down the stairs every time I have to do a load. I am going to consider that a plus because I need all of the exercise I can get. Other than that, just going to take it easy. I haven't been feeling too well so hopefully a nice relaxing day will help me kick whatever it is that has been getting me down. Have a good one! And if you own a Snuggie, let me know how you like it and if I need one!