Basketball Season for Twinkle, Middler, and Me

A highlight of my year, and perhaps a big reason this blog is so behind, is that I was given the wonderful opportunity to be the head coach of both basketball and volleyball for our varsity girls' teams. That meant every Monday-Wednesday-Friday afternoon in the gym from November until May. It also meant wonderful time with two of my girls and the other lovely young ladies on the team. We faithfully practiced to prepare for our big February basketball tournament. Most practices involved LOTS of running, skills clinics, scrimmages, and an ongoing competition. I would divide the girls up in different ways, then give them skill competitions. They had fun working together to build points up against the other squad. What did the winning squad get? A pass on some of the lap running at the end of practice! I did not realize when I set practices up that way all of the benefits that would ensue...teamwork (with different girls on a squad at each practice), confidence in things they might never have tried (like 3 point shots), and fast practices (so they told me!).

Since this is my "Mom Blog," I can brag on my own babies. My girls were unstoppable! I LOVED coaching them and watching their performance on the court. Miss Middler simply knows how to get open and shoot under pressure. I tried to suppress my grin when I heard the other coaches yelling, "I told you to STAY ON HER!!!" when she would slip out from under them, all 5'3" of her, and put up a shot around a much taller girl. She's just the best at rebounds, too. She sticks that bum into them and grabs the ball.

And then there's Twinkle. Her naturally competitive nature, speed, and ball handling skills made her one tough point guard. I had other coaches asking me, "PLEASE tell me she's finally a senior and will be graduating!" Basically, she's a good dribbler, and she's fast. So, I told her in addition to setting up the plays and working the ball in, I wanted her to STEAL. STEAL every ball you can, I told her. And she did. Turnover after turnover frustrated our competition. CC would just say, "And there she goes again...." after she snagged the ball and found her way to a layup.

The season went fast, and we all knew this day was coming. Her last game of her favorite sport. Her last game to play with her sister by her side. Watching her play from age 13 on had come to an end. She fouled out in her last game, which was unusual for her, but she plays so aggressively that some refs start to target her, even when her steals are all ball. She sat on the bench and started to cry that she would have to miss her last few minutes of playing. I walked right up to her and said, "I'm so very proud of you in every way. I know this seems like the end of the world now, but honey, one day you'll tell your grandchildren about how Granny used to steal the ball, and then fouled out in her in last high school game." She smiled and hugged me.

After the last game, we met in the back hall and talked as a team. Most of the girls were crying, not because we lost, but because it was the end. They wanted to tell their captain, Twinkle, how much she meant to them. I think that little powwow was my favorite part of the season. It was completely spontaneous and completely from their sweet hearts, telling each other how much the season had mean to them. It was a special group of girls, and we had bonded as a team.

These are our three seniors who have all provided leadership and a solid Christian testimony to the team.

It had to end, but it sure was fun while it lasted! I'm so glad I got to be a part of it!

Sweet Cheeks on the Court

This year we were able to expand our sports program to include teams for the Middle School. This meant Sweet Cheeks got to play all three sports this year. It was so fun to watch her on the court!

 I didn't get to coach her this year, but I did have fun helping out with the scoreboard and shot clock! And of course I was a very loud cheering mom!!!

I am so proud of my girl. She had a lot of fun, and the ended up with a first place trophy in their Istanbul tournament! She made some new friends by trying something new. That's my girl!

Christmas 2018

We returned from Prague just in time for Christmas Day. The day began with opening stockings, then our traditional breakfast of egg and sausage casserole, cinnamon rolls, fruit, and cheese grits. We used mugs that we picked up at various Christmas markets for our wassail.

Even if no birthday candles could be found, the cinnamon rolls were lit for Jesus' birthday.

Little Gus (yes, a full fledged member of the family now) was happy to have us back home.

We live in a country that does not really celebrate Christmas. But I can tell you that every Christmas a couple of things happen. I find that I get a little homesick that day, just a little sad about extended family being so far away. But it is also always special. The thoughtfulness of my kids towards us and each other, and the gratefulness they show when opening gifts is a treasure to me. We woke Sweet Cheeks to a guitar rendition of "Away in a Manger" just as we have been doing for our babies every year on Christmas Day. This year she was the only one still asleep.

Some things touched me very deeply. Firstborn bought me a beautiful plaid sweater. Big Ben was handing out wads of his saved money to his sisters. Twinkle painted me tiny watercolor scenes of things that have happened in our family over the years. I mean, I just soak it all in. I am one blessed mama and wife!

It's strange to be blogging about Christmas in July, but even this brings back such good memories of a day that is low stress and simple, with a sweet exchange of gifts and time together. I love our Christmas just like it is.

Prague Adventure: Prague Walking Tour by Papa

Another thing we normally do on vacations is to NOT book the tours, but to go at it ourselves. CC found a download called "Prague Walking Tour by....such and such" so he took us on the "Prague Walking Tour by Papa." At every stop, he reminded us what tour we were on! We all began repeating it with him as the day went on.

Most of our tour was in the Jewish sector of Prague. This was the beautiful Pinkas Synagogue, dedicated to the Czech Jews in the Holocaust.

We were able to peek inside the walls of an ancient Jewish graveyard, called the Old Jewish Cemetery. The Jews were given a tiny space to bury the deceased, and by religious beliefs do not remove any old gravestones. The overcrowded cemetery had a story to tell.

This is the oldest active synagogue in Europe, completed in 1270.

We also made it into the National Museum after a two hour wait in line. It was so cold! We took turns sneaking off to a bathroom across the street....not to use the facilities, but to warm our hands under the heated hand dryer!

A place that might not be in most walking tours, but was certainly in the "Prague Walking Tour by Papa" was to see the church of John Huss. He is considered the first church reformer, as he came before Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli. He was executed in 1415 and died at the stake, praying for his enemies and refusing to recant his beliefs. This church was where the Bohemian preacher spoke to the people. I am so deeply grateful for the "real life history lessons" my children have gotten to have through our travel. I felt it was an honor to visit where he preached.

We read that this building was covered up. When they began to renovate, they found this ancient paintings had been preserved underneath.

We did some final touring of the downtown area and enjoyed the beauty all around us.

And I avoided the giant bears!

It was time to head home, so we had our one last nice Prague breakfast and headed to the airport. We had rain and snow while we were there. Also, it is our practice to walk everywhere we can. So many days we would either be wet, cold, or tired, and just ended up on our hotel rooms. We started a game of "Draw Something" which is a phone game where you are given a word, must draw it, then it sends it to someone else. We had so much fun drawing things for each other and guessing. I am the ONLY non-artist in my family, so much of the fun was just trying to figure out what I was even drawing. CC's drawings were so good, I took a screen shot of them to save them! We also played Uno except with the version taught to me by my children, taught to them by their Korean friends. It's called Korean Uno and it involves slapping certain Uno cards and being silent on others. We did see some beautiful things in Prague, and I'm glad we went. But I suppose most of the fun for me was the family time in the room.