Godspeed Sue!

My family lost a dear, dear friend yesterday. Sue was one of the most wonderful people I knew. I honestly can't think of a single person who didn't like Sue.

Life won't be the same without you Sue - but I'll see you again one day.

Not being THAT parent

You know the boy is playing football. Honest to God tackle football.

The first game of the season was last night. Mad Dogs lost 21-6. But, I will say this - those boys are making plays and playing real ball. The other team just has a couple of fast boys we couldn't catch. They had no idea what they were doing.   I know the score doesn't reflect the best, but I think our boys have coaches that really want to teach them the fundamentals of the game and you can really see it when they are on the field. 

Still, it was frustrating to watch. I kept cheering Cooper and his team on though. I had decided before games started, I would not yell and criticize how he played. He's only 7 years old!  And he's never played before - like most of his team!  :)

There's plenty of parents out there that are "that" parent though. I couldn't believe some of the stuff I heard. Give your kid pointers but don't be harsh.  One mom is so loud, I don't even want to sit near her.  She yells at her two boys, at the coaches, at the umpires.....she'd probably yell at me if she caught me yawking at her with my mouth wide open.  I don't like seeing the team lose either, but come on!  Coop said he had fun - no doubt he did. I could tell he was nervous lined up against a bigger boy. I could even tell he was hesitant to tackle him period. He'll learn how to handle the big boys on his own and with his coaches help. For now, I'm sticking to just cheering him on.

 

 

He looks lost doesn't he?

 

 

But in all seriousness, we make sports too easy for kids sometimes.  If you sign up for a sport, you're in.  And that's fine - but now we have leagues where no one keeps score and the rules are modified to help all the kids "succeed" - but there's times where I think that causes more damage than good.  If you sign up and play, then PLAY.  You're kidding yourself if you think the kids don't keep score.  They do.  And stop making some rules easier so Bubba can score a goal, or Sally can score a few points.  It's called practice.  You have a coach, you practice, and if you win, you win. 

 

It wasn't easy watching the Mad Dogs lose.  And seeing the score up on the score board wasn't a pleasant sight - AT ALL.  But it's real.  And now the boys and coaches have something to work on in practice.  Like how to run down a deer dressed in a football jersey. 

 

My baby is having fun.  He's learning a lot and is having some great Daddy/Son time.  I know it's my nature to be THAT parent, but for now, I'm resolved to try my best to hold her back and just ride the wave.  I'm not sure I'll succeed, but I'm trying.  :)

10 years

Celebrating ten years with my hubby!

 

I love you Alton Griggs!  I can't wait to grow old(er) with you.  

Yesterday

I remember every detail of the morning of 9/11/01. 

 

Do you? 

 

I still can't believe it's been eleven years since the terrorist attacks on our country.  So much in my life has changed in those 11 years.  But that morning when those planes hit the World Trade Centers and Pentagon and the last plane went down thanks to the bravery of those on board......I can recall vividly.  I'll never forget the feeling I had as I listened to the radio and heard the DJ say a plane had hit one the towers. 

 

And then another.  And the Pentagon.  I know it wasn't happening in my town; it wasn't happening to the people I loved the most in the world, but I was scared.  Scared that the country I love, scared that someone, SOMETHING had found our Achilles heel.  I remember watching the live footage on TV of  people trapped in the towers and crying.  I felt helpless.  And guilty - guilty because I was thankful I was in little ole SC, and not somewhere like NY.  I felt those people's pain.  I prayed - more than I've ever prayed in my life. 

 

11 years.  Even after 11 years, I still have those same emotions.  Only now I'm a mother and a wife.  When I think about the events of that day, my emotions are magnified 100x because "what if that were my child on that plane?" or "what if that were my husband in that tower?"  I can.not.even.think. about how I would handle a "last phone call to say I love you." I can barely type these words out without almost crying.  I applaud the bravery of the loved ones on the other ends of those lines and I hope I never live a day where I am tested to see if I'm that brave. 

 

It's hard to teach the kids about 9/11 without tearing up or crying.  I can see the images of people jumping out of windows and falling to their deaths.  I can see the images of the explosions as the planes hit.  I can see the images of terrified people running and not knowing where to go.  It's something that I'll never get out of my head.  Some days I'm glad - some days I wish I had never seen the horrors of that day.  My kids don't understand my feelings - can't understand why I feel so strongly about something that didn't happen to me.  But it did.  I wasn't directly affected that day, but it changed me.  It made me realize that I live in a country that is venerable just like every other country.  September 11th, 2001 made me realize that the United States was not untouchable. 

 

  I hope my kids never live through an event like the 9/11 terror attacks.  But I hope they grow up understanding the importance of remembering the day. 

 

As a country, we must NEVER forget the tragedies of that day.  NEVER forget how unprepared we were for such horrors and NEVER forget how we came together as a country and helped heal each other.  Healing that is still taking place 11 years later.  The US may never fully recover, and that may be a good thing.  We must never put ourselves in a position where something to this magnitude can happen again. 

 

Do you remember where you were on 9/11/01?  

Football days

My baby boy is playing football this year. I mean real TACKLE football.

I do not like this at all.

He, of course loves it. Even as small as he is, he loves to tackle. He's pretty good at it too. :)

O and I cheer him on at practice until the bigger boys get thrown into the mix. Then we leave. I don't think either of us can stand to see him hit the ground. So Al stays. He comes home talking football with his Daddy and sweaty. "Whole body" sweaty is what he calls it.

I love football. I just wish he was a kicker.

Birthday Celebration

Cooper wanted his birthday dinner at Rancho Grande this year. Here's some pics: