Neighborhood Sports Brought to you by.....Matt Peterson

I'm sure I've mentioned a few times how much I love our neighborhood and ward. How about another time. Ü Matt Peterson is in our ward. Actually, he is the new Young Men's President and David is one of the advisors. (new calling). Anyway, Matt decided he was tired of paying so much money to have his kids participate in sports, so started a league of his own! What a guy! The great thing is, he has included all of us! They have a big enough family that they probably could just do family sports (between in laws, cousins, etc.) But we feel very fortunate to be included! Anyone is invited! The kids have just had a blast! There aren't a lot of people that would be so willing to give up so much time to the whole neighborhood. Thanks so much Matt!

 

David helped to coach during the tournament. But really, every team is Matt's team. It's great. We play with friends from our ward now and the other ward we attended. IT's like a big reunion! How fun is this? The right price and the right people! What more could a girl want? I love seeing my kids have fun and sharpen their skills at the same time!
Eli and Mason played on the same team. That was nice to see them play together. Eli seemed to like taking the shots from far out and was able to make some of them! He enjoys basketball.
Mason was excited to play with his brother and his friend Tait. They are a great twosome. I would steal Tait to be my son if I could. Mason is a great competitor. Glad to see him having fun.

 

 

 

 

Matt held practice on Fridays after school. He would have all the boys come together and join all the teams. This practice was great. I'm not eloquent with my words, but I"ll try to explain. He told these boys that they would need to run 10 suicides after practice. The only way to get them erased was by making free throws. Each free throw made would erase ONE suicide. That whole line of boys went and I think maybe one or 2 shots were made! The kids begged coach Matt to let them all have one more turn. They went through the lineup again and some of the kids made their shots. It got down to the last 2 boys and there were 2 suicides to run....

What do you know? The first boy.....made his shot! The boys jumped up and down and then got quiet......and then the last boy MADE HIS SHOT! They all started to cheer and jump up and down and high five each other! IT was GREAT! I loved seeing the teamwork and the determination to get that last point! Matt is a great coach and is teaching these boys such great things!
Thanks Coach Peterson! Can't wait for softball next! Ü

Love the People....NOT the game!

I love being married to an athlete. He is so handsome and I LOVE the way he moves! He makes everything look EASY and fun! I am a PROUD spectator! I really don't have that itch to get in and help the team or anything like that. I'm a great cheerleader....I'll yell and scream and just make you feel like a CHAMP! I gotta tell ya, if there was ever a WORST sport that I could play, it would be SOFTBALL! C'mon folks, I got NO eye/hand coordination....REALLY....I'm not joking! Ok...I can kinda play volleyball (not really, but kinda)....and I can play a mean game of HORSE...but when it comes to hitting a little ball with a bat, that is a JOKE! We have some friends that wanted us to play....ok....they wanted DAVID to play. But it happens to be a coed team...so I got ROPED into doing something against my better judgement. I must really love that David of mine, cuz I make a fool out of myself each and every week to help my husband have a fun time.

Truth be told, I look forward to going, because we hang out with some GREAT friends! I love the 2 hours we spend together every Friday night. I just don't look forward to being up to bat or being in the outfield. If there is ever an extra player, you can bet I'll offer to "sit this one out!" I love being in the dugout talking and holding cute babies!

Here are the Mahaffeys. They are the "owners" or whatever you call them of the team. Molly is a total sweetheart and I love her. Dave, well....he's a fun guy and a GREAT ballplayer, but a little sarcastic! Ok...alot sarcastic! Eli isn't a fan because he hears him saying rude things to me. They are all in fun, but I think it's cute that Eli is protective of me. He actually is fun and a good guy. I think I bring out that "tease" factor in people.

 

Jeff and Paula Judkins are great. Jeff is the athlete in the family. I'm glad that Paula and I can take turns striking out. At least I have a partner in crime, right? She is so fun and makes Fridays that much more fun.

 

My Davey is the pitcher. He does a great job. It's amazing to see how quick on his feet he is. He can catch some crazy balls and is having a great season! It's funny, because that's not really "his sport"...but you would never know. He is just GOOD! Ü

 

Me? Well, there you see me in all my glory...or not.....haha....I get a "A" for effort, right? The funny thing is, this night that I brought my camera, I was determined to get some pictures taken for my blog. After all, I have to get this documented! I took my camera out into the outfield so I could get a different angle for my pictures. I guess I thought I was so far out there that no one would notice that I had my camera out. Apparently, they started aiming to hit the balls out to me! C'mon people, have a little heart! Leave me alone! They started yelling "BALL!" I looked up, and saw a ball coming and dropped my camera and started to run for the ball.

I wish there was a good story at the end, like I caught the ball and saved the day, but NO....I didn't catch it, but I was told to put my camera away after that. Oh well....I'm sure they'll all be glad to see their mugs on this blog!

A little sidenote: I guess to get the game moving more quickly, before you get up to bat, you start with one ball and one strike. So, that HAS to be the reason I strike out so often. I need that last strike! Ü

 

Diana and Kimball are both athletes. That's always nice, huh? Kimball is a firefighter so he can only be there some of the games. Actually, I guess we've all taken turns missing a game or 2.

 

Shelly and Jason are such great friends! I just love them! Shelly is a person that brings everyone UP! She brings out the best in everyone! She is always happy and optimistic. She is quite the athlete too. My theory is that people with long hair and a ponytail are athletic. I'm sure it's not all true, but coming from a hairdresser, I just wanted to say my observation. Ü

 

Erin and Freddie are awesome! I guess Freddie and Dave Mahaffey played baseball together in highschool. I'm glad to have played just to meet these 2. I knew everyone else, but I LOVE these guys! They are so fun and both great athletes. Freddie always has to have his bag of "DILL PICKLE sunflower seeds"....ugh...sounds gross, but that's who I'll think of when I see those things.

 

Katie and Martin Winfield are some other great friends. Katie is the one who wanted to play on the team. Martin was a good sport like me. Ü Hey, misery loves company, so I was always looking for someone that was just there cuz their spouse wanted to play. Ü Poor Katie, 3 weeks in a row, the ball hit her so hard, it left huge knots and bruises on her legs. The third week she even wore shin guards, but the ball still hit RIGHT above the guard! She sat out the next week or 2....just to let them heal up. Now you see why I don't want to play?

 

The kids loved coming to the games. Even when they were 8:30 and 9:30 at night. We weren't home until 11pm. They all just loved coming and hanging out and playing with each other. So glad we have such great friends!

 

Last, but NOT least, when we did have people gone, we would call a few different people to sub. Tami is one of my favorite. They just moved into our neighborhood a few months ago and we are really enjoying them being here. Her husband Jonathan is a baseball player, but since he umpires....he's not allowed to play with us....darn....

 

So, all in all.....IF they should ask us to play again....I suppose I would say yes. NOT because I improved, not because I now love the game, but because I love being with all of these people! THanks everyone! Our team "The Mamas and Papas" was a great success!

Strawberry Delight....Gotta drive to Utah for one INGREDIENT!

 

This is one of my FAVORITE desserts! It is yummy white cake, with this cream cheese stuff in the middle and then topped with this Strawberry Gel stuff with fresh strawberries in it! Simply the best! Unfortunately, I CANNOT find Danish Dessert anywhere in Arizona! Maybe I'm shopping at the wrong stores....but I can't seem to find it!

 

I think it's funny that one state carries something, and another doesn't. So, I call my mom and ask her to bring me 10 boxes when she comes to visit...just so I can make this piece of heaven when I get the craving! Summer is coming and those strawberries will be calling!

 

MMmmmm Love it!

Girlfriends from......The Gym...yes, the Gym...

 

Life is meant to be FUN! That's what good girlfriends are all about! The funny thing is that these particular girlfriends are from somewhere I don't find especially fun. Haha...isn't that terrible? I look at this picture and see them all with their cute bodies and skinny faces and think, "hmm...maybe I should go there more." Ü It all sounds great until 4:37 am when my alarm goes off. THAT IS THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT! C'mon...what's wrong with you people? Haha....actually, it really is fun, it's just getting my mattress off my back and getting my buns there...once I'm there, I'm good.

Actually, that's kind of what a lot of things in life are like, aren't they? I think I don't have the time or energy or will to do things...and once I'm there, I'm good and then I'm glad I went. I just find myself being extra tired, so I think I need extra caffeine and chocolate to make it through the day, thus undoing all my exercise. So...my rationalization is that I should just stay in bed, so I get more rest and eat less. How's that working for me? Uh....not so well. hahaha...

In all honesty, these ladies are amazing! I'm so happy to call them friends! To me, friends are people that bring you UP and help you be the best person you can be! They are all so positive and just GREAT role models for me. We've had some fun times and I'm sad that Natalie will be moving to Boston in the summer. Her husband Anthony is in Medical School and they will be going there for his last year....Don't ask me the round that this is in Medical School cuz I'm not good at that kind of stuff. I just know he's really smart and has been in School since I've known their family.

We've had some fun times together. Anything from THE AMAZING RACE, to a IRON CHEF cook kind of thing. Lately we've had a Girl's Night Out watching a movie in a HOme Theater and then this fun lunch together. I love just being ME sometimes. I love being a mom and wife and hairdresser, etc....but sometimes it's fun to just act like I have no worries and have all the time in the world to go out to lunch and TALK, TALK, TALK! It;s total therapy and then I'm ready to go back to reality and be a better mom and wife. It's amazing what a difference a couple of hours of fun can do!

Here's to MANY more Girlfriend Shindigs! Love you guys!

Practice Makes Perfect!!!

 

I was the 2nd of 7 children, which meant that I had LOTS of experience with babies. I was babysitting at age 11. One of the downsides of having a hysterectomy at age 31 is that my kids don't have any babies in the house. So, we just "adopt" cute babies from friends and act like they are our own even for just a few hours.

This little Talan is one of our favorites! His parents (and our friends Ü) ran the RAGNAR this last weekend. My kids were so excited to be in charge of a baby for a day and a half. I love it because this gives them the practice they need! We had some of the neighbor kids over "helping" us too. Talan is such a good natured baby, so the time flew by fast! I'm so glad the kids enjoy being with babies, that will makes them such great parents one day!

As for me, I LOVE holding those cute babies, but I have to admit, they are more work than I remember. And it's amazing the amount of stuff it takes to keep them happy! So much equipment! So, I'm content to be in the spot of life that I am. I love having 3 older kids that are independent, and I don't have to feel guilty that I'm not having any more. But you can bet that I'll steal any cute baby to kiss and hold for a few minutes or hours until I'm too busy or they just want their momma back!