the promised homer

Cooper is incredibly serious about baseball.
He is intense from start to finish and replays each game over and over again after its finished. He's also very aware of the mistakes made during the game- both his and those of every other player on the team.

It's a little bit of a problem, but we're working on it.



He had a night game under the lights on Friday. The counselors from his after school care have been telling him that they're going to come see him play- and on Friday night, they did.

Cooper was thrilled!
He also struck out...
But made a come back with a double and had some impressive defensive work.
They lost the game but he was proud of himself, which is always the goal.

Saturday brought another game but I wasn't able to go. That news didn't go over too well.

So I kissed his little head, told him to hit a home run for me and went to Sarah's Bridal Shower.

About an hour later I got this text message from Jon.

Mets down 0-6 in the 1st. Coop just hit a homer to try and bring them back!


When I tucked him into bed I asked him about it....and he said, "Well, Momma. I promised that I would, so I did."

Like I said,
Cooper is incredibly serious about baseball.

The Wedding

I was one of the crazies....up at 4am with Matt & Meredith and a zillion others anxiously waiting to see Kate become a princess.



I invited some friends to watch with me....but they thought I was nuts, so I settled for texting with a few other die hards who live across town!

Was it worth it?
Absolutely.

I sobbed almost the entire time. I started when Will and Harry got into their car to go to the abbey and didn't stop. I got myself under control for an 8:30am conference call- but then there were the recaps and I had to turn the TV off completely so I wouldn't gasp for air & sniffle through my other meetings.

And yes, I worked from home today on purpose so I wouldn't miss a second.

I thought they looked SO happy-



And the kiss was so sweet-



I do hope they live happily ever after....

one word wednesday

HOPE

spelling matters....so does grammar

I got this message from someone on my team late this afternoon. Names have been changed to protect the innocent (and the spelling challenged).

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

From: Tracey
Sent: Tuesday, April 26, 2011 04:48 PM
To: Carolyn
Subject: FW:

Example of why this temp will not be a good resource for written communication to associates :)

From: Charlie (TEMP)
Sent: Tuesday, April 26, 2011 4:40 PM
To: Tracey
Subject:

Hi mz tracey this is just a reminder that I will be leavin early tamarrow at 11 I hav a appt to get some lab work done and to meet with my case worker. Bt I will be coming in at regular time in the moring.

***********

So, when Cooper asks me why he has to write his spelling words 3x each....and why he has to use proper punctuation.....

I'll be able to tell him.

It's because spelling and grammar matter- and because I never want you to send a message like this.

EVER.

where does he get this stuff?

we're going through some changes in our kitchen right now- and on the list to purchase is new kitchen hardware.

seems simple- right?
i've had in my head what i want for weeks...and jon and i went shopping together.

that could have been my first mistake.

have you ever picked out hardware for your cabinets? it's overwhelming- a great big wall with knobs and pulls in all different sizes, shapes, colors and price points.

but i think i'm ahead of the game- since i know exactly what i want for the drawers.

these (or something similar).



but jon isn't on board.
in fact, he flat out refuses to even consider the cup pull.
this from a man who really has relatively few hard core ideas about decorating decisions.

so i ask him why he's so opposed to cup pulls......because i really love them.

his answer??
and i quote-

"it feels like spiders could hide inside the cups and i can't live in fear"

i'm not even joking a little bit.
for the record, i'd like to add that we've never had an episode where spiders have been found lurking near our cabinets...or our drawers.

evidently, one can't be too sure.
and really, how can you argue with that? if the guy is going to put himself out there with a real life fear of spiders........well, who am i to argue.

and so the search for kitchen hardware continues....and one thing is for sure- there will be no cup pulls.

sign- i LOVE a cup pull.

thank goodness for smart phones...

and the camera's inside them.
otherwise, i wouldn't have these pictures from a wild & crazy evening on the town (I know- STOP the madness!)

let's be clear- these aren't good picture by any stretch of the imagination- but that's ok because they get the job done.

they capture the fun that was had on a VERY rainy Saturday night...after the segway tour that had been booked for months got canceled!!



they capture goofy exchanges between friends (yes, that's blue gum in my mouth)



the acknowledgment of another year gone by & an attempt to remind ourselves that we ARE NOT OLD!!



and the love we all have for this wife, mother, sister, daughter & fab friend.



mission accomplished. what else could you ask for?
happy birthday diana- hope you had a BLAST!!!!

bELIeve

Meet Eli-

Eli is the son of our friends Jen & Nathan.
Recently Eli brought it to their attention that his name was in the word BELIEVE.

He's right (clearly) but until that moment, it never occurred to them.
Kids are funny like that. They point out the obvious that isn't obvious.

Want to know what's not obvious about Eli?
Eli has autism.

He's a smart little kid who loves to play soccer and surf. He runs and laughs and figures things out like the fact that his name is in the word believe.

AWESOME.

Jen and Nathan are passionate about advocating for autism- it's a part of their lives. What's not to be passionate about?

For the past few years, Team Eli has turned out in full force at the Autism Society Annual 5K Walk. But this year, Team Eli won't be there.

TEAM bELIeve will be there instead!!!

It's fitting because he's absolutely a kid to believe in.


I'm thrilled to be supporting Team bELIve.
And whether it's through prayer, participation or donation, if you're interested or led I know they would love your support too. You can go here to learn more about this awesome event/cause and help Team bELIeve.



This is a portion of the message that I got from Jen-

Every 20 minutes, a child is diagnosed with autism. Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S. Nathan and I believe that participating in the walk is an awesome opportunity for us to support families (like us) who are learning to live with the challenges of autism. Just like all new mothers, I was so excited when I found out I was pregnant because I was looking forward to teaching my child so much…funny how life works because it is Eli who has taught me so much!


Actually, they've taught ME so much.
Thanks Jen, Nathan & Eli.

GO TEAM bELIeve GO!!!!!!!!!!!

for you mom!!

My parents are enjoying a trip right now.....
And so just in case they tune in while they're away, I wanted to include a "cooper fix" to make them smile!







Love you Mom & Dad, hope you're having a super time!



(so does Cooper!)

ps- bring home chocolate!!

The Clampetts???

It's Spring....time for cleaning up and clearing out.
I left today and these were Jon's parting words to me-

"I'm going to work on making sure that our yard doesn't look like the Clampetts."

And I think...."super, see you later!"

When I got home, I saw this....



Ok, this feels good...progress has been made and things are looking spiffy & we're clearing out things that should have been dealt with already (like the tree house that Jon and Cooper built years ago while I was near death with strep throat- the tree house that's actually NOT on our property. sigh).

Until I notice this.


What in the world??
He doesn't see anything wrong with hanging aluminum equipment randomly from trees.

Evidently, Jon and I didn't watch the same version of the Beverly Hillbillies.
This simply won't do.

Here's hoping that your spring cleaning is going better than mine!

homerun (x2)

when something makes your child happy, you have no choice....it makes you happy too.
for cooper, it's baseball.
and he's over the moon about it.

therefore, i am too.



he's so serious and so determined....



and he gives it 100%- every single time.

and on saturday, his hard work paid off.
twice!

early in the game he hit a beautiful homerun- jon and i were incredibly excited for him.



and our kid was excited too.
the game could have ended there and we wouldn't have stopped smiling for days.

but it kept going...for 6 innings- and the score was tied.
and the other team was at the top of their batting order....and their coach wanted to win. so he asked for an extra inning.

rats.
but our scrappy little team played fabulous defense and they didn't let then score one run.

and then we were at bat.
and the 1st kid struck out
and the second kid hit a single
and the third kid hit a single
and the fourth kid was cooper.

and his first pitch was a strike
and his second was a foul
and his third was an out of the park bullet!!

and the crowd went wild!!!
(i'm pretty sure the crowd went wild....because certainly I did!)



and the game was won 7-4.
but it wasn't about winning (well, maybe a little bit)
it was about the feeling that runs through your head and heart when something exciting and unexpected happens.
the feeling of success and of pride.

it's what every parent wants for their child-
dreams realized, hard work paying off and knowing that he matters.



i love happy endings.

The Cleanse, part II

After the old clothes left the building, those that were left needed a little pick me up. Sara and Diana came back for Round II of the cleanse...this time to build me back up after I'd been stripped of the bad and the ugly!

Sara is a genius with accessories and took a look at my jewelry to help me add some pop to the remaining few pieces hanging in my closet.


I never would have put all these greens together...but I'm loving it!

And who knew that I could change the look of this top so easily?




I've never worn layered necklaces in my life....now, I've got all sorts of combinations and I'm feeling super trendy.


Let's be clear- I took pictures so I'd remember exactly what went with what. There is no way I can handle the pressure each morning.

It takes me an extra 15 minutes to put together an outfit and get my accessories on.


But I feel so great when I finally walk out the door!

The book in the background? Sara lent me a few titles to help in my cleanse and this one was my favorite. I thought their show was hilarious and the book was no different. It didn't solve my problem areas, but it gave me suggestions and made me laugh.

After the accessory tutorial we headed to the mall- it was 3 hours of pure bliss (and a TON of laughs!). My sweet friends tore things out of my hands and replaced them with better choices, brighter colors and LONG pants. I've never shopped that way in my life- I highly recommend it (especially if you have fashionable friends who can lend a hand...and an opinion!)

I can't wait until SPRING!!!

rats.

they lost.

62-70
our cinderella story is over.

but while it lasted, it was so much fun.
the city was united, people were so happy.
there was so much team spirit and BLACK AND GOLD was everywhere!!

we'll still have VCU cupcakes for dessert...but with heavier hearts.

the boys played hard- they're a fantastic team!!

Play Ball!!

Today was the season opener.....
My poor kid endured rain, hail and wind that nearly blew some kids away.


But he played well and had a blast doing it.






good game little kid- we sure are proud of you!

Final Four.....GO RAMS GO!!!

These are pix from the game last weekend....



and the damage one man can do to sofa pillows!



But when they WON the game....



it all seemed worth it!



We jumped in the car....picked up Wade & Sarah....and headed downtown...



to where it all started.



Fans were all over....even in the traffic jam on the way there.
We had a great time....and can't wait to do it again TONIGHT!!!

GO RAMS!