Sunday, July 24, 2011

The End of the Baseball Season

Baseball season is finally over for us.  We played a regular season and then had the All Star season.  Most of our summer has been spent at a game or traveling to a game.  Matt and Daulton spent their time on the field and I spent my time in the stands cheering them on.  Spending this much time in the stands has given me the opportunity to observe fellow baseball parents and fans.  I have come to the conclusion that baseball parents fall into five categories.

Types of Baseball Parents

The Yeller - The Yeller yells at his kid, your kid, the coach and the umpire and disagrees with every call and every decision.  You can spot The Yeller easily because there is usually no one sitting next to them as no one wants to have their eardrums blown out.  The Yeller is also likely to get into fist fights and display the complete opposite of good sportsmanship behavior.  Avoid this type of fan at all costs.

The Pacer - The Pacer never sits down at a baseball game or any other sporting event.  They can be found pacing the sidelines and can be found giving advice to those in the dugout.  Whatever you do, do not try to get a Pacer to sit down and watch the game with you.  You both will be miserable and it will not end well.  Let the Pacer do his/her thing.  (For the record, I married a Pacer and it took some time before I realized it wasn't that he didn't want to be seen in public with me.  I no longer mind being left on the bleachers where I can chat with other parents and catch up with the grandparents.)

The Cheerleader - The Cheerleader is baseball's equivalent of the eternal optimist.  You could miss every ball that comes by you and strike out at every at bat and The Cheerleader will continue to cheer regardless of your performance.  If cheering too loud, The Cheerleader will be spotted sitting alone but can most likely be found sitting with other Cheerleaders.  The Cheerleader is also most likely to be the team mom or snack coordinator.

The Fair Weather Fan - This type of fan can only be seen when the temperature is perfect for baseball watching.  You will not see The Fair Weather Fan in rain, snow, or any temperature below 65 degrees.

The Living Vicariously - This is the worst type of baseball fan.  This fan, usually a parent, had aspirations of their own baseball domination and fell short.  So now its up to their kid to make their dreams happen.  The Living Vicariously has their child's rise to athletic stardom already mapped out and failure is not an option.  Its sad and frustrating to watch. 

Most fans fall into those categories.  Occasionally a jerk shows up.  But the good people outweigh the occasional jerk or two.  For the most part, everyone is there to cheer on the team and the boys playing the game.

This baseball season we learned that you win some and you lose some.  Its important to be a good sport and to always give it 100% effort.  

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Mix Tape

I started college right around the same time as Napster started.  I didn't realize it then, but this would set the musical background for my college experience.  Applications like Napster allowed us to have access to free music that we could download and share on the computers our parents bought us (when we weren't writing papers or homework of course).  

With an extensive library at our finger tips, my friends and I made mix tapes for everything.  Taking a shopping trip to Louisville?  Make a mix tape.  Want background music to get ready for Saturday night?  Make a mix tape. 

As we graduated and started getting married, the mix tape tradition stayed with us except now we made mix tapes to provide the background music for bachelorette parties.  The best part was, one person would create the mix and it would be a surprise for everyone else.

I still have my mix tapes but I haven't listened to them for a long time.  Until last week.  I had a crappy day at work and I didn't like anything that was playing on the radio.  So, I started digging through the CDs in my car and I found the CD from my friend Elizabeth's bachelorette party.  I put it in and my mood instantly turned around.

Every song brought back a flood of memories.  I remembered Elizabeth's bachelorette party and the crazy, fun times we had.  I flashed back to our senior year spring break trip to Panama City, Florida and all of the fun and shenanigans we got ourselves into.  The times spent talking and laughing around the sorority house went through my mind.

I miss the mix tape.  Today we have iPods and cell phones and we don't have a need for the mix tape anymore.  I can make my own playlist but its just not the same.  So, if you see me singing my heart out in my car with a big smile on my face.  Just leave me alone as I am taking a trip down memory lane.

When I say mix tape, I really mean CD.  I don't have a tape player and mix tape sounds much more nostalgic than mix CD.

 

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

30 Is Not The New 20, Its The New Me

I celebrated my 30th birthday today.  I didn't anticipate celebrating.  I anticipated a lot of moping, whining and possibly even tears.  But I didn't do any of those things.  I truly celebrated.

It didn't hurt that my husband had a little "Come to Jesus" meeting with me a few days before today.  (For those of you that don't know what a "Come to Jesus" meeting is, you clearly haven't experienced one yet.  During a "Come to Jesus" meeting, the facts are laid out on the table for you and you have a choice to make.  The right choice brings you to Jesus, aka the right choice, or the second choice brings you a lot of pain.  I have led and received many "Come to Jesus" meetings over the last 30 years.)  So yes, Matt and I had a "come to Jesus" talk and I made the choice to change my attitude.

My 20s were spent wanting.  I wanted to graduate college, have fun, buy a house, get married, have a child, etc.  I got everything I wanted and more.  But I also didn't enjoy everything I had because I was worried about fulfilling the next want.  These past 30 years have gone by quickly and I imagine the next 30 will go by even faster.  I don't want to look back 30 years from now and wish I would have been more present, worried less, or enjoyed myself more.

I have decided that my 30s will be different.  I am going to appreciate what I have instead of worrying about what I don't have.  I will live in the now instead of worrying about what's coming next.

A few months ago, I read a book called The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin.  Gretchen spent an entire year focusing on 12 areas, one area per month, that she wanted to improve upon.  While I am not going that far, the book inspired me to set some new goals for myself.  As I was discussing this post with Matt he asked me if I realize that putting my intentions on the internet means that I am now accountable for these resolutions.  Accountability is exactly what I need to succeed. 
Be present.  Put down the phone and pay attention to what's going on around me.  Spend time with people and projects that are important to me and my family.

Do something with the pictures I take. Print them. Update my picture books. Hang them up. Stop leaving them on the camera for 8 months.

Get out from behind the camera and be in more pictures. 

Capture more family pictures.

Take better care of myself. Get plenty of rest. Eat better. Exercise more. I have to take care of me first before I can take care of anyone else.

Find my clothing style.  I would love to wear yoga pants everywhere but I realize that's not socially acceptable.  Getting dressed should not be a struggle and I can stop buying clothes that aren't really me.  (I have already started this one and I have a massive Goodwill pile started.)

Find my house style. We still have the furniture I got from my cousin when I first graduated college. It works and it was free but we are ready for a change.

Keep an eye on the future, but my feet in the present.  As Matt will tell you, I have a habit of over analyzing and worrying about things that haven't happened yet or may never happen.  And that makes it hard to appreciate what's in front of me.  I think its important to plan for the future but I can find a way to balance planning for the future while still enjoying the present.
Let go of expectations.  (Click the link and read the article.  Its a game changer.)

Its not a complete list.  But its a start.  I also like that there is a lot of "me" resolutions.  I think women have a tendency to put our own needs last and as a result, our needs are usually rarely, if ever, met.  I am a very important person in my family and I have been told more than once, usually via "Come to Jesus" meeting, that I set the tone for the day and how everyone else's day is going to go.  If I don't take care of me, then I can't take care of my family.

A few weeks ago, I thought today was going to be a sad day.  Today was better than I expected and the best birthday I can remember.  We didn't do anything fancy or even out of the ordinary.  But Matt, Daulton, my family, and friends made an effort to make sure I had a great birthday.  The fact that so many people made an effort for me, is quite frankly, a very overwhelming feeling.  So overwhelming that I can only write about it as speaking the words would end in happy tears and its not pretty when I cry, so I am going to stick to writing.

My 20s were great, but I have a good feeling that my 30s are going to be even better.

 

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