Writers Block

I am finding that this week, I really don't have much to say. I am still reading your blogs,and hopefully I will have some ideas to talk about soon. Hope yall have a great weekend.

Done and Different

Soccer is done!

Cross Country is done!!!

Coaching for this semester is Done!

I get my life back! No more 14+ hour days!

I am excited, relieved, and sad all at the same time.

Coaching is awesome. I get to hang out with some great kids, I get to share the love of Christ with them, and I get to celebrate success with them, things I often don't get to see inside the classroom. I get to be crazy and silly, I get to laugh at how crazy and silly they are. I get to sacrifice my time for them. And it is all worth it!
My students did awesome this week!

2nd place in district for Soccer!


1st place team for Cross Country!


My 6th grader who is running in the 7th and 8th grade division got 2nd place, and 2 other kids got in the top 10!
This is a picture of my kids feet before they ran. I might have shared this before, but it is a really powerful picture for me. Look at their shoes, these are not running shoes, these are heavy high top basketball shoes. These shoes were not designed for running long distances. My kids wear these shoes because they can only afford 1 pair of shoes a year, and they don't want to waste their one pair on running shoes, they want the basketball shoes. (Yes, this is an urban school!) I keep this picture on my phone because it reminds me that it is about the equipment you have, its about how hard you work, and how hard you try. When we are at our CC meets, our kids become pretty self conscious because they look around and don't see many other kids like themselves. They see the shoes the other kids have, the Oakley sunglasses, and the high tech watches the other kids are wearing. They also notice something else, they notice that they are the minority. There have been so many times where the kids look at me and asked "Coach, where are all the brown kids?" (Our school is 90% hispanic)Or they say, "Coach, these kids are different from us." And, I can see a difference in their behavior. In the van on the way over, they are loud and laughing, but when we get out of the van and look around, they suddenly become more reserved, and quiet. So many of them are sheltered, and rarely leave their neighborhood, so at times they wide eyed, and they sit back and observe everyone else. These are the great moments of teaching and coaching for me. I get to tell them that just because they look different, or they don't have the best equipment that they are not at a disadvantage. After the race they are so different. They are more relaxed, they talk to other kids, and they are so much more comfortable with who they are. These are the great life lessons of coaching and sports, and I am so thankful that I am able to be apart of that of these kids.

I was fortunate to have some great coaches who helped me learn some really important life lessons, and I feel so fortunate to get to walk my students through that in return.

Slowing Down

Life has been going about 100 miles an hour the last month. Between work, coaching, marathon training, and life, I feel like I have been going 20 different directions. It's busy, and I like busy, I can handle that, but now I am ready for it to slow down. After Wednesday, everything will quiet down again. This weekend we had our district tournament for soccer and we got 2nd place. We lost 1st place by 1 point. UHHH. It was so disheartening. I think it was harder on me than it was for my team. I just get so competitive. While I really enjoy coaching soccer, often it is really hard for me to coach, because it makes me want to go out there and play. We also had 2 kids make the all district team, and one of them was a 6th grader who we moved up a year to play. (It is a middle school league made of 7th and 8th graders.)
I have my middle school cross country district meet this afternoon, and one more meet on Wednesday, and all of my coaching will be done for the semester.
WHEW!
I am finding that as I get older, I am less stimulated by having so many coals in the fire. I am finding that I want to do few things, but I want to do those well, rather than do a whole bunch of stuff half way.

I will post some of the pictures from the soccer tournament later tonight.

TEXAS FIGHT, TEXAS FIGHT

The eyes of Texas are upon you,
All the live long day.
The eyes of Texas are upon you,
You cannot get away.
Do not think you can escape them,
At night, or early in the morn'.
The eyes of Texas are upon you,
Till Gabriel blows his horn!

This weekend P and I went up to Austin to visit a friend and go to the UT football game. As you know, I am very passionate about my football, and the game, as well as the time with friends was awesome! I was wearing orange, and sitting with the UT fans,even though I am not a huge fan of UT. Secretly, I was going for Colorado. In my perfect world, Colorado would have won, and LSU would have beaten Florida, thus, moving Alabama to number 1 and putting LSU at number 2 in the BCS poll, but that did not happen. Its alright, my Tigers will bounce back!! GEAUX Tigers. (I am a Louisiana girl at heart!!!).
I think the biggest factor that made the weekend so great was the fact that we were in Austin. P and I really enjoy Austin, and I can see us living there. For those of you who have never been to Austin, TX, it is really a great city. Unlike Dallas or Houston, or many other big cities for that matter, Austin in not a chain, big box store kind of town. Austin is all about local. They like local artists, locally grown food, and locally owned stores. It is such a big city, with the feel of a small town. There are hundreds of hole in the wall places to eat and roof top patios where you can sit, relax, hang out with friends, and look out at the beautiful skyline. It is a really unique city, that is unlike any other.
Here are some pictures of the game.
Hope yall had a fun weekend. P got this picture of me at the end of the game.
The HUGE HUGE HUGE screen.

A picture of an older lady sitting in front of us. She was a major fan, and she was yelling and dancing the whole time!! Got a pic of her showing some longhorn love.

The TEXAS flag before the game.

My Nemesis

The gate. This is my nemesis. Here is the little dance I have to do with the gate every time I leave or come home.

Drive up to gate.

Stop Car,

Get out of car,

Open gate,

Put brick in front of gate to hold it open,

Drive through gate,

Stop Car,

Get out of car,

Close gate,

Get back in car,

Drive off.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

It is irritating on a regular basis, but when it rains, it is down right infuriating. I have to plan what I wear based on the rain. I can't wear pants after it rains because the bottoms drag on the ground, and they get ruined. Plus, I have to keep a pair of crocs in my car when it rains to open the gate because the mud messes up my work shoes. So this week it looks like I will be in skirts everyday because it has been raining her non stop. Some days, P will wake up early and run out to open the gate for me on my way to work, and that is such a great treat!

I sometimes think that I give that gate too much power. Some days, I am just miffed by it, but other days, I get so annoyed. So think of me tomorrow at 6:25 A.M. as I will be doing my little dance with the gate.

P.S. Please know that I write this with a little wink wink, a little tongue and cheek. I realize how blessed I am that I have a car that runs, a roof over my head, clothes on my back, and food in the fridge. I am blessed beyond belief, beyond what I deserve.