A Thorn Among Roses

holy cow... it is happening despite all the times i have sworn it wouldn't...she's graduating!  it's official bc the school is planning a graduation service! i was partially aware...don't get me wrong, but i thought we'd just enjoy all the senior nights up to now, eat some cake and she'd still be hanging tight next year. but she's graduating! see, there's a small problem...i love having p around.  she's actually fun to be with.  i love kids when they get to be teens...you all can have the diaper years!  give me a teenager and that's some good, old fashion fun! but i regress...we must continue on my meltdown...it's our final senior night coming up.  baccalaureate is planned.  graduation is planned.  and we are organizing the open house. when i was taking her senior pics, you would think that would have been a clue.  nope.  just another senior shoot. but the last college visit...and the "finding a roommate...

it happened today...she got her license.  and guess who she wanted to take on her first drive? yeps...sofia daisy. so off they went...without me...to get a poster board and stickers for a school project. {my credit card, of course}. and that officially means i am old... the upside to all this?  i have another driver to tote around the kiddos if i need it! {do you see the smile on sofia's face??}

paige is loving softball, still...i suppose that's why she still plays year-round travel ball.  i am so proud of her, though... more than just on the field, where she is steadfast... where she is a leader... where she works with full effort every single play... where she has a group of ladies she calls friends first, then teammates... and where, in the end, she does it all for the love of the game. eat. sleep. play softball. is there anything else?

it's a hard time to be a mom...especially when your baby girl is 16, a junior and dating a nice boy.   homecoming was last week...and the dance...and me and hubs thinking about doing this with 3 more girlies...and a glass of wine. for now...i think i will just lock her in the house and not let her go anywhere. how do you think that will work?

i can hardly believe i'm saying this, but paige is a junior...and it's homecoming week.  {how did i get this old?} and i'm so flipping busy, i don't even have a picture of her...this week.  i do from last week during neon-out at the football game, though. i know...mom of the year...again.

a few things that me and fam DID NOT do this week... paige DID NOT play in a softball tournament all day, head home and transform into a homecoming pretty lady saturday night. austin and paige DID NOT look really cute...and me and hubs were NOT a little, well, WOW at how big our little girl has become.  i mean, sophomore!  really?! ryan DID NOT have a convo with austin prior to him leaving with his baby girl... sofia DID NOT start screaming when she discovered that she was not part of the dance...she DID NOT start wailing and chase the car down the court. i DID NOT do 3 bootcamp workouts this week and a flipping spin class. my booty does NOT feel like i rode 327 miles on a bike.  i am NOT ready to have the body of a supermodel with all the work i put in. brooke DID NOT kick open paige's bathroom stall door at bw's the other night.  b DID NOT giggle so loud that you couldn't hear paige's screams. lipgloss can NOT solve the world's problems...i'm just saying th...

when paige was little, i could ask her "paiger, how big are you?" she would always answer, with a big smile and hand reaching as far as she could to the sky, "i this big, momma." and now...she really is that big. it has started... one of the biggest fears of all parents and adults alike.  driver's ed. and of course, she is taking the online class time...oh how things have changed. fine...she really is big enough.  problem is...i'm not sure i am!

a dugout says a lot about a team... serious players... fashion minded yet always thinking about the game... desperately hungry and thirsty... encouraging and fun! i love p's varsity team this year...the girls are just awesome.  the attitudes are amazing and the leadership of the girls, on and off the field has been fab.  this group of girls has it together. they are serious when they need to be... always supportive, team buidling, encouraging and FUN!!! they are pretty much rocking my stinking face off.  just gotta say...

with softball season in full swing, there's a lot of time we as a family spend at the fields.  if paige isn't playing, brooke and jada might be...and even when none of our girlies are playing, we go and watch our friends teams play...we're weird like that. anyway, here's a week in pics of what we did...including paige's bday... do fans get any stinking cuter than this??? i mean, really!!! getting runs scored and winning games... having family dinners, field side... along with some special treats {aka sour punch straws} with friends... fielding fly balls... playing at the fields while paiger plays... spending your 15th bday watching a friend's softball game...with your teammates and family... and remembering the best pie in the world is from the most famous and never to be overestimated, stacy london's derby pie...made especially for paige on her bday {thanks stacy}... and as much as paige loves softball, london's derby pie is a very, very close...

...but it sure does make the ride home better! last night was p's first varsity conference softball game...there was some pressure, i'm not gonna lie. she would never admit it, but conference games, well, they bring some extra pressure. but our lady shamrocks came out and kicked some conference butt!  it was fun to watch...and after coming back in the 6th from a 0-1 to winning the game 8-1, it was awesome! {that's p sliding into the catcher at home...and still making the play. oh yeah} and to make things better...today is p's 15th bday. so starting off with a conference win was the perfect gift for her. hard for me to believe that my paige was actually born...she was soooo late, i swore she would go to college in utero.  i tried walking her out. i tried eating burritos. i tried everything...she was more than content to stay right where she was...but the bean burritos finally paid off and she decided to come and eat some taco bell on her own... {my fav pic of her as ...

what a weekend ahead...it's basically no sleep and softball! paige has a tourney that is an overnighter all weekend, so our first game is at 5:30 am...which means us there at 4:30am, and leaving home at 3:45am...seriously!  it's too early to play anything if starbucks isn't open...i'm just saying. but tonight i get to go and hang with my fab SIL, allison, at her place...can't wait!  then, of course, it will be bed and SOFTBALL! the question of the day on aloha friday is...well, a great one, i gotta say!!! would you rather be a rich person or a smart one... i'm gonna go with good ole soloman on this one and go smart bc well, with my fab brains, i'm so gonna do more. besides, that rich crap hasn't worked for donald trump so well...i mean, have you seen the guy's hair?  he could def use some wisdom! it's all good...i don't mind.  love the girls. love softball. now...let's go!!! {an who is up for that aloha view? sign me up!}

yep...i allowed it. i never allow it. but paige had a photography project...steps and motion and so, i thought i'd be the cool mom and let the jumping beans...jump! it was kinda fun just being the mom...the director...the laughing lady on the side while paige did the work. and i also found a little self portrait of paige too! she might kill me, but its still cute!! Hosted by Cecily and Lolli

sometimes i see the uber love my girlies have for each other...when they aren't tattling and fighting and vying for their own time and attention. it must be hard being one of four girlies...and we try really hard to do "special time" with each girl each week, but sometimes it doesn't happen. sometimes momma needs her "special time" instead. anywho...the other day i went to the gym and paige was watching sofia. i get home to this beautiful site... a big sister loving on her baby sister, cuddling and just being "sisters". it gives me hope that some day they will really like each other. like, maybe they'll meet at starbucks and chat and tell all the stories about how bad of a momma i was and why they need counseling...but they'll like each other.

softball call out meeting was today at the high school... and so i can smell the brick dustin the air. ok, so we have been in year round travel all this time, but this is p's chance to make the varsity softball team...as a freshman. it will be hard. it will be a challenge. but she'll do her best...and it's all for the love of the game.