Longing For A Day Off!

Oh how I miss being able to just stay in bed or at least lounge around in my PJ’s all day.  I am counting down the days till school is over.  That’s 12 actual school days left. I think the first day of vacation I will stay in my PJ’s all day and watch the DVR recordings I haven’t had time to watch.  I might move from the bedroom to the couch with my fluffy pillow and a big comfy blanket and do what my kids do when they have a day off!  I might even get a bag of my favorite Hawaiian Chips and a soda.  I won’t feel guilty or sneak in chores between commercials.  I won't think about what will need to be done tomorrow...I will take in the moment and enjoy a day off!

All Good Things Must Come To An End

Well, the Troy Varsity Softball Team had a wonderful season.  They started out a little shakey but got their heads in the game and worked very hard as a team to beat some of the better teams in the league.  We came in 3rd for league and played the Wild Card game for Division 4.  We beat Orange and continued to knock out Rancho Alamitos and Valley Christian Schools.  We knew going into yesterday's game it was going to be a tough game.  We played Aquinas High School who had a 25-1 record going into yesterdays game.  In reading up on Aquinas, we learned they were one of the best teams around and they have alot of power hitters on their team.  Their average is 12 runs per game.  Alyssa went in and pitched her little heart out and gave them a run for their money.  I'm sure they thought they would come in and sweep it but they scored 3 runs in the first inning and another in the 2nd.  Our girls held them the 3rd and they scored another in the 4th.  We came back and scored 2 runs in the 5th and 2 runs in the 6th.  We were down by 1 but in the 7th inning, they hit a home run.  They ended up winning 6-4. 


It was an emotional game for our girls.  This year as a team, everyone really bonded and loved and respected each other.  There are 5 girls graduating this year and the reality that they will never play together set in.  The amazing thing is that although they wanted to win and keep playing, our girls knew that they had played a fantastic game with an amazing season.  The girls also knew that in the end, they played hard and made Aquinas work hard for their win and they knew that Aquinas would drive away with respect for our girls as a team.  One of the things that struck me was how Aquinas handled their win.  It was with grace and humility.  They didn't showboat in front of our girls.  As we all walked off the field and to our cars, their pitcher asked me if Alyssa was our pitcher and walked over to her shook her hand and told her she did a great job!  It was such a nice ending to a great season!

I Knew The Time Would Come!!

I have 2 daughters that grew up playing softball from very young.  One of them stopped after a year in 14 and under and the other, has continued on through high school.  One of the things that was so aggravating during those years on the recreation teams was the politics involved.  My daughters were both good players but never seemed to be picked for any of the All Star teams and when the season started were usually down at the bottom of the list for coaches picks.  Not because they weren't good players mind you but because they were not part of the "in crowd."  By that I mean that many of the Board members and their girls were friends and they would make sure their girls and their friends were on the same teams.  Of course we were not friends with anyone on the board and my girls went to different schools than the other girls so that sort of left them out.

I can remember my youngest ball player waiting anxiously for the phone to ring during the time All Stars to see if someone was going to call her to be on a team.  Sadly this didn't happen too often.  I think in all her years playing which was almost 9 years, she was picked twice.  I hated to see her dissapointment and when she would ask my why, I would always say the same thing.  I told her that unfortunatley, things aren't always done on a fair manner and not to worry, in life you want to be recognized for what you do rather than who you know.  I tried to explain that it is more important to be picked because you are a great player and deserve to be on a team rather than because you are friends with the coach's daughter or because your parents are friends with the coach.  As much as I tried, the dissapointment was still there.

She moved on from recreation ball to high school and tried out for the school softball team.  She was excited to make JV her freshman year and 2 games into the season, Varsity needed a couple girls to fill in because their players were finishing up the Soccer CIF's.  Alyssa was one of the girls that was picked to fill in on Varsity and the coach must have seen something in her and asked her to stay on for the rest of the season.  Wow!  She was so excited to be a freshman on a Varsity team.  The excitement soon turned to frustration as she was put in the outfield.  All through her rec years she pitched and played shortstop.  We explained that the difference between an OK player and a great player is what you do with the position you are given.  We told her that she needed to take what was given to her and make that the best position she could.  In time, she became a good outfielder but with so many girls on the team and her at the bottom of the grid, she wasn't seeing much playing time.  She went back and forth from Varsity to JV when needed. 

Her sophmore year, once again found her sitting much of the time on the bench due to the fact that other girls were seeing much more playing time.  She became frustrated and we encouraged her to talk to the coach to see what she needed to do to get more playing time.  He explained that she was a great player she just needed to improve on her batting.  She worked and worked and hoped that junior year would bring her more playing time.

This year the girls really worked hard all year to prepare for the season.  Alyssa started the season bouncing between left field and short stop.  Then, in the middle of the regular season, the pitcher injured her back and was told by the doctor she couldn't participate for the rest of the season.  In came the back-up pitcher for a couple games but she couldn't continue due to a neck injury.  With no other back-up pitchers, the coach, knowing Alyssa's pitching background in recreation softball, asked her if she could step in.  Eagerly, she agreed.  Now she hadn't pitched in 2 years and she struggled her first couple games.  She quickly got back in the groove and not only finished the season but is now taking us through CIF's.  We just finished the CIF Second Round and will go into Quarter Finals on Thursday.  She is doing such a fabulous job and I couldn't be prouder of her.  She's calm, having fun and doing just what she's always dreamed of doing.

I was sitting and thinking the other day and looking back at everything and then it hit me.  The girls that were the "all stars" all those years back, are either not doing much these days or not even playing anymore.  Alyssa who wanted so much to be an "all star" back then is now shining brighter than ever and at just the right time.  Her dream is to move on to college and play softball and now is the perfect time for her to be recognized for that.    This is just another reminder of how God waits for the perfect time to do His wonderful works.  We just need to remember that we don't always get what we want when we want it but we Always get what we need when we need it.

I LOVE How God Shows His Love!

Well, the season is here for high school proms.  That means shopping for dresses and shoes and that isn't always easy when girls are so picky and unsure about what they want.  Prom is Saturday the 28th so Alyssa decided she wanted to shop in LA for a dress to see if we could find something for less money.

We made plans to go on Sunday, May 1st but when we woke up it was raining.  Since we'd have to walk outdoors to shop in LA, we decided to go to the mall instead.  We looked in each store and the dresses either were too expensive, they didn't fit or they didn't like them.  (we went with 2 other girls and their moms)

We decided to check one shop that sells bridesmaids and evening gowns and Alyssa saw a dress that was on display that she loved.  It was a purple long dress and was beautiful.  I asked the sales girl about the dress and she said the only one she had in size small was in yellow.  I suggested Alyssa try it on just to see how it looked and it fit her perfectly.  She and I fell in love with the dress but 1.  They didn't have her size in purple and 2. It was way over my budget.  She sadly took off the dress and I told her I would try to find it on the Internet to see if we could find it for less.  I took a couple pictures of it with my phone and we left.  She kept telling me how much she really loved that dress and wanted it so I told her to Pray about it.  She asked what I meant and I told her that we should Pray about it and if it was God's will for her to have the dress, the money would come from somewhere or somehow we would be able to get the dress. 

I came home immediatley and started searching the internet for the dress.  I typed in the name on the dress, the model number and anything else I could think of.  I looked for 4 days and nothing.  We decided to go to Downtown LA on Saturday the 21st to see if we could all find dresses for less than the mall.  I had hoped that by some small miracle we would find the dress Alyssa wanted.

Saturday came and 3 of us mom's and our 4 girls went to Los Angeles.  We parked our car and went into the first dress shop with high hopes.  We scanned the displays eagerly searching for the dress but no dress.  The girls all picked out dresses to try on.  The store was bustling with young girls searching for the perfect gown and the sales ladies looked rushed and frazzeled.  As Alyssa was getting her dress on I asked her how she liked it and she announced "It's OK, but I still like the other one better!"  As I was reminding her that she would have to settle for another dress as they didn't have the one she liked, the rushed sales lady stopped and asked what dress she liked.  I explained that we had seen a dress at the mall that she fell in love with but that I didn't see it in her store.  She asked what the dress looked like and I started to explain it to her when I remember the picture I had taken.  I showed her the picture and told her the name on the tag and she looked at me and said, "I have that dress!"  I said, "I didn't see it" and she said "It's not out, it's in the back, what size do you need?"  I told her I needed a small and she said "Oh, I have a small but not in yellow, I only have it in purple."  I said, "Oh God, that's the color she wants."   She walked to the back of the store and brought out the exact dress Alyssa had wanted.  She tried it on and I knew, that was the dress for her.  I asked her how much it was and she gave me a price of $40 less than the mall.  I told her that was over my budget and couldn't pay it but that my daughter really wanted that dress.  She took me over to the owner and the owner brought the price down another $20.  We told her we needed to talk to Alyssa's dad and would be back and asked if they could hold the dress.  The owner said no and hung it up on display as we walked out.  We looked and looked at all the other stores and no one carried that particular dress.  Alyssa agreed that if she got that dress she would forfeit getting new shoes so we went back to the store and the dress was no longer hanging where it was when we left.  As Alyssa and I looked at each other, the same sales lady looked at me and gave me a nod and said are you ready.  I told her the dress was gone and she whispered to me that she had put it back in the back because she knew we were coming back for it. 

I don't know what else other than God letting us know that that dress was for Alyssa!  Every time I think about it, I get emotional at how wonderful HE is!!!

I Wasn't This Way Before Kids

I am known for doing lots and lots of things but one of the things that my family and friends get a big kick out of are the funny things that happen to me without any effort on my part.  They just kind of come natural?

For instance, last week, I took my 88 year old aunt and my cousin to Jo Ann Fabric for a day of craft shopping and then we were to go to lunch.  We walked around the store and made our way to the register to pay for our stuff.  We walked to my SUV and I put our bags in the back then needed to put my aunts walker, and step stool (she is about 4' and it's hard for her to climb into the front seat) in as well.  We were all  in the car with seatbelts ready to go when I decided I wanted to see how much money I saved with my aunts "Senior" discount.  I pulled my receipt out of my wallet then reached for my glasses and couldn't seem to find them.  I looked inside my purse several times, the front of my shirt where I usually tuck them, the seat, around the floor and nothing.  As I frantically looked, my aunt asked my cousin to go back inside and see if they were at the register.  A few minutes later he walked back out with no glasses.  I was getting frustrated at this point so I unbuckled my seatbelt and walked to the back of the car and opened the hatch.  There were my glasses, a bit twisted but not broken.  Apparantley, when I was loading the car, they fell out and got caught when I closed the hatch.  I picked them up and attempted to untwist them so they were useable.  I closed the hatch, got back into the front seat, buckled up, put my glasses on then sat for a minute.  My 88 year old aunt looked over at me and asked, "What's the matter mija?"  My reply, "I can't remember what I needed my glasses for!"  After a minute, I remembered what I wanted them for and we all just started laughing.  My poor aunt looked at me like I was crazy, or sick or joking but I reassured her that this happens all the time and I wasn't like this before I had kids!

I have many moments like this and I'm sure it won't be long before I post another.

Let's Go Warriors

Well it's that time of year when our family is consumed with softball.  Each year we go into the season with high expectations for the girls but sadly, our hopes are dashed and the reality of the season moving on gets smaller and smaller with each game played.  Don't get me wrong, we have a great bunch of girls on the team but something happens between practices and games and before we know it, we are walking off the field, heads hanging down, wondering what went wrong?

This year started out like any other year.  Fresh and new with our expectations and hopes high that the girls would come through.  The first couple of games started out like all the other years, losing by barely a run or two.  Then something happened, and before we knew it, we had won 1, 2 then 3 games in a row.  Our excitement grew as we continued to play but we were cautious as the games we were winning were pre-season games and didn't count toward our actual league games.  Then the day came...our first league game and we won!  Then the second game and we blew the other team out of the water!  Wow!  the excitement was building for each game. 

Now we are 2 games away from the end of the season and we are fighting for 2nd place.  That's a long way from last.  Our girls will play one of the most important games of the season tomorrow, in La Habra, and we are hoping that they can pull it all together and win!

Alyssa started out playing right field and as the season went on, they brought her in to pitch a couple inning here and there.  Our starting pitcher, hurt her back and has been ordered not to play for the rest of the season, which has allowed Alyssa to come in as starting pitcher for half the season.  I am so proud of the job she is doing since she hasn't pitched for two years before this.  She stepped right in like she had never stopped.  She is working hard and striking them out and I really couldn't be prouder of her. 

Looking forward to a competitive game tomorrow as they are playing the team tied for 1st place.  LET'S GO WARRIORS!!!!!