Volleyball Season 2018

Soon after Spring Break, it was time for our final volleyball tournament. I had the most delightful team! They worked well together and supported one another. I loved every minute of practice and games with them.

We decided to do something "new" this year and order some matching volleyball t-shirts for the season. I think they got more excited about that than anything I said to them! This was at a pep rally the school had for us.

I loved coaching with Andrea this year. She was my assistant and worked with the B team while I took the A team. She was a sweet little middle schooler at our school in Singapore. Now she's all grown up and is my colleague in Turkey. I love her to death.

Our girls dominated. We matched up with teams all over the city and even teams who came down from Istanbul. Here's Twinkle Toes with a spike.

And here's Miss Middler who is our star setter. She is like a little spider, all over the court, getting under each ball to set her teammate up for a hit.

This is BY FAR my favorite sports photo someone has ever sent me of my kids. Twinkle is diving for the ball. Yes, she got under it. Yes, we got the point.

I think that I get more stressed out coaching volleyball than basketball. I haven't yet figured out why. Ideas?

We took third place overall, and here were all the teams who placed and received trophies. It was a great tournament!

I couldn't be more proud of these girls.

This is a very special photo, and I want to include it for my memory book. This precious girl, a fellow senior and friend of Twinkle Toes', is now with Jesus. We could never have imagined that at this last tournament when we took this picture, she would pass away in a few short months. At this game, she came to tell me that her mama (a single mom, working hard to give her daughter all she could) had come to the tournament, and could she please play in the games today. I said, "Oh, you're starting today. You got this!" I get a lump in my throat when I think of that conversation. 

And I have to end with this. This was the moment of the last game I would ever coach Twinkle Toes. She has made me proud in every way since she first started dribbling, kicking, shooting soccer balls, basketballs, and volleyballs. She is extremely competitive and good in all three sports. But what sets her apart is her heart as a leader on her team. I will miss these days. So much. But I'm trying to focus on all that is good. And what is good in my heart right now is that I got to coach them during these years.

I wouldn't trade that for anything.