Miracle League

My brother Kevin is actively involved in working with and supporting the Miracle League of Central Illinois.  They are based out of Bloomington, and he gives a lot of time to them. Alice and I decided to go down for a game on Sunday, and we learned quite a bit about this organization.  If you love kids, baseball, and helping those with special needs, this is a group for you!

There are over 100 leagues nationwide.  All are funded differently.  The Central Illinois League is in need of funding; they now play on a Pony ball field, but they're working on raising money to build a cushioned ball field.  This is a sample of the dream material:

Moving beyond the business of the league, I have to admit, I found myself choked up a lot while watching the two games I stayed for.  They were such fun, and everyone was just so happy!  Each player has a buddy, and my brother tells me the same preteens, teens, and young adults come out each Sunday to help.  Some stay for all three games.

 A buddy helps with warm-ups.

 Line up and introductions (over a PA)!

 Ayyy batter...

 A dad brings his son up to bat...

and they run to first base after a hit.

 This White Sox player is wheelchair bound, but for fielding  he comes out and scoots all over the field.  He is talented. He bats from the chair and races to the bases.

 Waiting for a pitch.

A Sox catcher tells a Yankee base runner to touch home plate.

 For most it's coach pitch.

 Safe!
Many players fun on their own, and the buddies stay with them.

 Some batters use a tee.

 Even the fans are cute--this is Cubs' player Caleb's little brother Cooper. 

He liked Alice a bit...

 Cubs vs. Red Sox

 Karen the Cub

 Not sure where she is going here, I know her mom told her not to!

 A buddy helping with a swing

 Tapping the plate for luck

 Betty, aged 72

Headed for first base after a solid hit!

Everyone hits, everyone scores.  There's a grand slam at the end of each inning!  Music is played, dancing is done, people yell and cheer!  It's summer sweetness.

The funny thing, there are kids who know the rules, and you can tell they are working to keep "real score," but they too are caught up in the joy and the chance to play ball!

iTunes Recommendations, please!

This is a simple question of the week.

I have recently won over $40 in iTunes gift cards, 

one card came from Beth and The Midwest Dairy Council,

and the other card from my friend Eric

(I picked the winner of Idol in advance).

I want some running songs for my iPhone.

I need songs from the 90s through now.

Catchy, lyric filled, make me move music.

What do you recommend?

A few days later, I only received a few comments, but they were valuable.  I "googled" running songs and came up with hundreds of suggestions.  I took some, and now I'm quite ready to run.  Okay, that last statement is a gross exaggeration!

Linked Up Fragments

Have you ever had a week that found you always thinking it was the wrong day?  For that reason enough, I am glad it's Friday.  Sigh.

*****

Serving tonight at the Byran House Silent Auction.  Bryan House is a pretty cool local charity that helps people find housing.  (And the Bryan it was named after was a friend of my son in HS.)

*****

Thank yous.  Brad called his son-in-law and left him a sing songy "Happy Birthday" message this week and he received a thank you email in return.  That touched Brad's heart.  I like it when people do nice things, don't you?

*****

We're making a Thanksgiving mix in my class today, and one of the ingredients is Bugles.  Every year, the kids tell me, "I put these on my fingers like this!"  Hello?  We invented that!

 *****

Here is my class.  I love them even though they never stop talking.

 *****

We get a week off for Thanksgiving.   A lot of staff don't like it.  I relish it.  A whole week off.  I can start running again.  And then I can stop when it's time to go back to work in ten days. (I even got some spiffy shin compression sleeves to help with the pain.)

No those aren't my legs. And yes, I stole the photo from the Zensah website.  They stole $40 from me, so I think we're equal.  Of course, if I don't get shin splints I shall apologize for expressing the extreme sticker shock I'm still feeling due to the price of these elastic tubes.

*****
My post previous to this was much better.
Much better than that post was the comment my friend Lisa made.
Click on over for her depth now that you're done with my shallow.
*****

And that is all.

For this Friday at least.

Thanks to Mrs. 4444

Little Parts of Me

Unlike many schools, today we were in session.  A few years ago, our then superintendent thought we should have school so the kids could learn about the day instead of being off and having them out shopping.

Today we had an assembly, and it was so well done.  And my husband, former Army Chaplain Major Seaman came to be a part of it.  I was wearing red, white and blue, but he showed up with a camo shirt for me.  Putting it on made me feel like we were going steady.  Standing next to him as his wife in front of hundreds of people touched my heart.

~~~~~~~~~~

Last week I said I was going to make a wreath and I did.  If you missed Monday's post, check it out.  But if you're not up to that, here's a repeat of how it turned out without all the confessing of messing:

~~~~~~~~~~

I have a little girl who cried about sitting next to a particular student because he did gross things.  I only saw him biting his nails, but she was right with him, so I contrived of a way to move her seat.  Today I saw him eating his boogers.  So it turns out she was right.  In 14 years of teaching, this was a first. I mean, I keep a box of tissues on each table so this doesn't happen.

You'll be happy to know there is no photo available.

~~~~~~~~~~

When I pulled into the garage just now, I realized I forgot my purse.  Brought home my lunch bag, two tote bags full o' stuff, a paper cutter.  No purse.  I would like a drink with dinner.  Hoping my 51 year old tired face looks well past 21, you know?

No photo available of purse, because it's AT SCHOOL!

~~~~~~~~~~

That's all.

Really, I'm spent.

Thanks Mrs. 4444

Go read some always more interesting little bits there.

Word Art

     I am guilty of this, guilty of what I am about to bash.  I am guilty of taking words out of context, visual sound bites (now THERE's an oxymoron) to share.
     But this word art, these extractions, are getting out of hand.  I blame the lack of people's willingness to read entire books, and lately Pinterest has made it easy to find pithy quotes to share.  Pinterest spills into facebook, and in this case spills onto my blog.
     I like this quote.  It's incredibly ponder worthy...

Aurora Flowers

On Thursday, I posted some of my Louisiana plant pictures, and my flowers became jealous.  So, for the sake of harmony at home, here's a shout out about some favorite annuals and perennials right here on our very own lot.

The top photo is our impatiens.  I'm going to do so much more with these next summer. I love the way they mound.  The geraniums will be wintered.  Can I keep them alive?  (Tune in in a few months to see our basement garden/greenhouse...)

In the backyard we focused on flowers that winter themselves. so to speak.  The coreopsis were thinned and spread, and they're coming back nicely. The phlox (magenta) are new.  They grow taller than we thought, so they may have to be moved.

There's more, but these are the blooms that grab my heart and yell, "Welcome home," when I pull onto my street.

Corny, but so true!

Fragmento!

• First of all since it's Friday and this is all due to Mrs. 4444, it calls for a photo of TGIFriday's appletini from Wednesday night's "anniversary" dinner (4 years, 4 months).  Tasty, but not nearly as good as my own watermelon margarita.
• We started school yesterday with an all day meeting. I'm not a fan of meetings, neither is my behind, but I am thankful to have a job.  While it's hard to kiss summer break good-bye, summer is still here--nice and kind weather for at least another month.
• This is going to be the most challenging school year I have experienced in a number of years.  "Change is good, change is good, change is good..."  I'll take your prayers if you'd like to offer them.
• Bedtime is getting earlier as I get older. Looking at:

• My friend Kimberly has been creating some whiz-bang stuff for her daughter's college apartment. I'm not talented, nor is my son interested (well, he might be, but I haven't asked).  So I will say this about his LSU apartment...I liked his shower curtain:

• On Wednesday I went to the chick doctor.  She encouraged me in my wussy running, and then she told me she's training for the Chicago Marathon but hadn't run in over a week.  It gave me license to take that day off...and yesterday too.
• I guess I'm dreaming if I think I'll get a thank you note.  (How's that for a seemingly disconnected thought?)
• Here's our very sad, started-from-seed-by-me-I-was-so-proud, solo tomato:

• Craig's List.  Whoever he is, I love that "man."  Three big items sold this week.
• My friend is having a yard sale in a few weeks. She hopes to adopt a baby from Haiti.  Boy, that gave me reason to purge, both at home and at school.  Stuff, be gone!  A better catalyst than an episode of Hoarders!  Look out when I'm on a get-rid-of-roll!
• Found a way to avoid meetings today.  More on this later.
• Don't you just love good blog friends who share your passions?  Rebecca Jo sent this to me because our library doesn't own it!  Stacy sent me a book last month that I've already passed ahead.  Reading fiends for friends?  Can't have enough! Thanks for sharing ladies. 

#33 is the Winner!

I used the number generator at 

http://www.random.org/

to select the winner from the 34 comments received, 

and 33 was selected.

Ali, that's you!

Congratulations!

You have won an Easy Canvas Prints Canvas.

Thanks to all who entered, I really wanted you all to win.

A Giveaway of an Easy Canvas Prints Canvas!

Last week I wrote about my delight over winning an 8 x 10"  
Easy Canvas Prints canvas.

Now you can win one featuring the photo of your choice!

Doing so is easy, there are three ways to enter, but you may only enter twice.
  
1) Leave a comment here telling me you  
"like" Easy Canvas Prints on facebook. 
That alone will count as one entry. 
(And then, of course, like them!)

After spending a summer with my "followers" hidden, I've added them back for this giveaway. 
They're down on the bottom of this page.

2) Become a follower of this blog, or if you already are one, 
leave a comment stating so to enter.
That will count as another entry.

An alternative to "following" is
3) Sign up for and then leave a comment to tell me you follow/subscribe to this blog by email.
See gadget in left margin.

Remember, I must have access to your email address.  So make sure I can get to you through replying to your comment, or include your email address in EACH comment.

That's it!

Rules:
Open to residents of the contiguous U.S. only
Only two entries per person allowed.
Last entry accepted Tuesday, August 16th @11:59 PM  CDT.
Comments will be numbered and winner will selected at random on Wednesday, August 17th. 
Winner will be notified via email and be put in touch with an Easy Canvas Prints rep to walk you through the oh-so-easy process!

NO Cameras at the Beach

My girlfriends did NOT want me to take my camera to the beach this morning.  So I promised them I wouldn't take any pictures of them.  I did hint that when we're in our 80s, we're going to look back and think we were hot stuff in this decade, but that didn't persuade them.

So here are my only beach/trip pictures from our 24 hour getaway:

 We talked and walked and ate and drank and sunned.  Perfect.  I love my girls.

This Just Made Me Laugh

"The minute life starts getting easier, your eyes go.  So the time you once spent looking after your kids is now spent looking for your reading glasses."

From Best Staged Plans by Claire Cook

I don't write about many books I read, and so far this quote is the best thing from this little novel.  But since the main character is a house stager and working to organize her own home, I want to start cleaning closets.

Instead, I'm off to Wisconsin...

Seriously, where are my priorities?

Posh Gym

     The last time I attempted running, I lived in my condo.  It was in a golf course community, and there was a great safe three mile running route through the neighborhood.  I started training in November by jumping rope in my little condo. Come February, I went out to run.  I loved the cold then.  In April I completely a 5K.  It was hot.  I found I don't like running when it's hot.  So I stopped.
     This neighborhood has running paths that are hot in the summer (duh) and aren't shoveled in the winter. Running/walking in the street is just not safe, so we invested in a treadmill for our "home gym."
     While I ran today, I thought I'd document where this member of the Slow Runners Club exercises.  Just promise me you won't be jealous, okay?

     Our home gym has ambient lighting--electric and daylight.  Also, please make note of the exposed wood beams:

     The designer treadmill, purchased at Le Sears, also has a fresh breeze blowing on it at all times:

That's a multi-speed fan to blow on a one-speed runner

     We have a television monitor on which I watch chick TV to pass the time. I'll tell you, running is a great way to work off aggression when a snotty mother-of-the-bride is featured:

Close captioning used out of respect for our neighbors.

     Not only do we have a treadmill, but our gym is also equipped with a stationery bike. I prefer running, but it's good to know it's there:

     And just like a fine restaurant or department store, we are proud owners of a grand piano:

  
     Nothing beats the amenities of our lower level home gym, unless you consider our upper body work-out area which includes a Hoover and two staircases!