1991 - I'm Old

At one time in my life, softball was my passion.  (Maybe Taylei gets it from her mother as well).  I had an amazing coach, Jay H.  He taught me how to hit, how to throw and he let me be catcher, my favorite place to be on the field.  His daughter, Kym, was the pitcher and she KNEW how to throw. 

Most of my summers were spent in a cast.  I injured my right ankle while jumping on the trampoline and it didn't heal correctly.  Summer would come, I would be extra active and once again land myself in a cast.  This slowed me down (Have you ever tried to sprint in a cast?) but it didn't keep me from playing.  It did have one advantage: I only had to put on one shin guard, the other one was built in.

Mona never had a good softball team.  Jay changed that.  He believed in us and spent many hours helping us practice.  We qualified to go to the state championships and the town council even purchased us uniforms.  

State was awesome.  If my memory is correct we took 7th place and were awarded the sportsmanship trophy.  I played one year in high school but my freshly sliced arm didn't really work to well and I didn't dedicate the time I should have but I did learn a thing or two.

Tonight, we took Aysen and Kyler to Diane and Garrett's "tondo" (Kyler really wants to live with them) and I went to help with Steeler's practice.  I had so much fun -- my mitt is lost and some of these girls throw harder than I'm comfortable with when I'm wearing a foreign glove (co-ed softball injuries have made me way too fearful).

The team has a long way to go.  When they missed throws and didn't run bases how they should have we got to do push-ups and sit-ups.  "We" does mean me as well.  I'm going to be sore tomorrow.

Blast from the Past

Nothing out of the ordinary to say today so I'm sharing 

some photos from days gone by . . .

Andy - love this guy!  He KNOWS what is what and he keeps me in line.  You can see the light of Christ in his eyes.  This picture was taken at a Williams family camp out in May, 2005.  He loves his family and he even goes one step further, he loves MY family.  I'll also add he gets better and better looking.
My picture is from Halloween 2007.  We had just gotten home from trick-or-treating at Novell.  I usually try and put on a little make-up and give some effort to my hair when I'm parading around Andy's co-workers.  Is this lying and deceitfulness?  While we were waiting for our children, Andy snapped a photo or two of me.  As a side note, at Keanna's last birthday Andy was also taking pictures.  After a few minutes he handed me the camera and instructed me to take a picture of him so his attendance could be proven.  When the night was over and I was reviewing the pictures, I told Andy I would rather NOT have a history of my attendance if I was going to look that bad.  Some days Andy's photo skills are good, some days they are seriously lacking.
Taylei's picture is the oldest in this post.  It was taken in November of 2003.  We were in St. George for Thanksgiving and my goal was to take some fancy pictures of Keanna to celebrate year number 2.  She refused to cooperate in any sense of the word.  The photo shoot will go down in history as Keanna's worst ever.  On the flip side, Taylei was in a beautiful picture taking mood and the shots of her are gorgeous.  Look at those eyes and the stories they tell.
Photographing Keanna has improved in every way since age 2.  She can now smile without having her eyes closed.  She loves to be in front of the camera.  She loves bling -- glitter eyes included.  Her hair curls into perfect ringlets, ringlets that make me want to call her Goldilocks.
September, 2008 is the date behind Kyler's picture.  Kyler thinks.  He is like his father and finds a way to accomplish the task at hand.  He climbs the counters to get a treat or a drink, whatever he may be in need of.  The way he talks - so cute - even though he can't say G's, W's and a few other letters.
I'm not sure this picture could be considered the past but he hasn't been around for long.  Aysen had a few pictures taken a week or two into December.  I wanted something cute for his birth announcement.  He is growing and seems to be more and more content.  He has smiled a few times but I'm not convinced any were genuine. 

I'll end with blessed, blessed and more blessed.