Take Me Out...

...to the ballgame!

We left Tuesday morning for Cleveland to watch a match-up between

and

Tucker and I dressed accordingly.
Perri doesn't get as 'into it' as we do,
plus she was mortified at the thought of us all being dressed alike.
(The stuff of a 12 year old's nightmares, ya know.)
So she wore her Little League jersey.

We got there in time to watch batting practice

and the pitchers loosening up.

Got to see Joba and Girardi sharing a quiet moment before the game began.

We weren't allowed into the area where our seats were located until 6:00 p.m.

And THAT'S when the good stuff started. :)

Here are Nick Swisher and Derek Jeter chatting while walking across the field.

And sharing a laugh before they had to get down to business.

If you know me at all, you know that these pics THRILL ME to NO END!!! :) I've been a Jeter fan since he broke into the majors and Swish is a local boy who played high school ball just 30 minutes or so from here. When he joined the Yankees, he brought an energy and a new level of cool to the Yankees dugout at a time when they needed a boost in spirit. This boy has FUN earning his paycheck!


And this is Damaso Marte. Not a fave of mine but I thought the pic turned out pretty good. ;)

Tuesday was Alex Rodriguez's birthday. And he just happened to be going for the 600th homerun of his career. So every time he was at bat, the cameras were going wild! Including mine.

Lucky for me he didn't get it because I never did get a decent pic of him. ;)

Back to Reality

I'm home and life is getting back to normal. (Whatever that is!) Vacation was WONDERFUL and relaxing and I am so grateful that we had the opportunity to do that this year. I really needed it.

We didn't come directly home from the beach, but instead returned to WV on Friday going straight to Barboursville to the WV State Little League Championship Tournament. We had three games to play, one each day Friday through Sunday. Perri started Friday's game as catcher and in the second inning, while attempting to tag a runner sliding into home, took a cleat to her right hand. It not only dislodged the ball and lost her the out (which appeared to be the most important aspect to her!) but it broke her pinky finger. :( Here is a pic of the action, just a second before the slide that did the damage:

(This picture was taken by a photographer for the Huntington Herald Dispatch and we purchased it online. Pretty good action shot, isnt' it?)

And this is what we ended up with:
Unfortunately, this was the end of Perri's Little League career. :( She is aging out of Little League and any future softball will be played for school or travel teams. Just a really sad way to end things. She insisted upon finishing the inning but then the swelling got to be too much. She will be seeing an orthopedist tomorrow morning because it appears the break is in the growth plate and may need some additional attention.

I have much to do around here today since I won't be home again tomorrow, and my posting may be sporadic over the next couple of weeks as well. Just so much to get done to prepare for a family reunion, a trip to watch my Yankees play, back to school....you get my point.

Who said summers were relaxing???

My Little Bit o' Heaven

Since Saturday I have.....

...had my toes in the sand while reading a book.
...played in the waves and ridden a boogie board.
... eaten coconut shrimp at Joe's.
...played putt-putt golf and shopped at a few tourist traps.
... eaten a home-cooked meal while looking out over the ocean.
...taken an early morning walk along the water's edge searching for shells.

This is HEAVENLY.

And I have THREE MORE DAYS OF IT!

: )

Whatever happened to...

...just being NICE?

Why is it that nowadays everyone feels they should say exactly what's on their minds no matter what effect it may have on those around them? At this (hormonal) point in my life, such behavior is really starting to get to me.

I just wasn't raised that way.

"If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all."

Amen.

But even for me that is becoming more and more difficult to do. You see, I have always pretty much kept my mouth shut and allowed the folks around me to think what they want, do as they choose and say what they please. I have been a sounding board, a shoulder to lean on, a willing listener, and dare I say it?

Even a doormat. Yes, in the past I have allowed people to walk all over me, use me and toss me aside when they were done. Mostly people that I believed to be my friends, but the opportunity was open to anyone who cared to take it and run.

I'm not saying that is a good thing, but it's how I was and I can't change the past.

However, I can do something about the present. The only problem is I'm not liking the results. And right now, I'm not liking ME very much either.

Over the past few months I have had a lot of personally...I don't want to use the word 'traumatic', even though it's the first to come to mind; it's just too strong a word...how about 'very bothersome'? Okay, a lot of personally very bothersome things happening in my life. My nerves are shot and my stomach is tied in knots most of the time.

Everyone says I take things too personally and let others get to me too easily, but I can't seem to change that. I've tried many times over the years, all to no avail. No matter how I try to adjust my thinking or attitude toward these situations, I have been completely unsuccessful. I am also the one who will go out of her way to keep from hurting someone else. I refuse to say something to someone that I wouldn't want said to me. (I won't say I have never done that, but I will say that I always try very hard to keep from it. What's the harm?)

It's just how I'm wired.

I've also been unsuccessful in convincing myself that it's okay for others to be rude and inconsiderate and hurtful just because it makes them feel better to 'let it all out'. We may all be entitled to our thoughts and feelings but no matter how you twist it, turn it or bend it...we should NOT be entitled to hurt others by spewing them like venom.

Two facts I know:
1. People are what they are. I don't expect them to change to satisfy me.
2. Everyone has their own burdens to bear and no one has an easy walk through this life.

That being said, I'd like to add this:
You can get up each morning cursing your troubles and spreading your misery to those around you like a plague. You can make rude remarks to the guy in front of you in the checkout line at Kroger when he is having trouble locating his frequent shopper discount card, because after all, you're in a hurry and he's holding up the line...or you could smile and offer him your own.

When you're busy and your child asks you a question for the third time because he can't remember or didn't hear what you said, you can yell at him for not paying attention and make him feel...small. Or you can tease him about being forgetful, give him a hug, make eye contact with him and answer him one more time. He won't forget that.

You can gripe and complain about the way someone does something that they volunteered to do in order to be helpful, or you can step up and say "I'd be happy to help you out with that" if you have the time and ability to do so, or simply "Thank you for doing this!" if you don't.

You may not have everything you want or even everything you need, but taking it out on everyone around will not only NOT change that fact, it just makes you a more miserable person. An 'attitude of gratitude' can make all the difference in the world, not only in the way you think and feel but also in the way you are perceived by those around you, and in turn, the way they will treat you in return.

I'm tired of people saying things to me that I would never in a million years even consider saying to them. All of the rudeness, the impatience, the downright meanness I see all around me is beginning to have an effect on my own attitude. I don't care much for the person I've been seeing in the mirror lately.

And I'm grateful that I can see it and know that it needs to change.