Media, Football, Fame, and Faith.

After a perfect weekend away it was hard to return to the ‘real world’. I hit the ground running at 7am on Tuesday, after a midnight flight home on Monday and haven’t slowed down since. Thankfully, I don’t feel physically tired and I came back having slept more over my vacation then probably in the 2 weeks before it combined. What I have been feeling the weight of this week is emotional exhaustion.

There’s been a lot over the past 2 months I haven’t been able to share with you here, or for most of you, at all. The nature of the industry my family is part of, is that I frequently have to hold in the details. I feel blessed to have a few close friends I can trust even with the secrets, as well as a few who are in the same spot. But it’s hard for someone, like me, who wears their heart on their sleeve to pretend like nothing is going on.

I was chatting with my Mom the other day about the media. I shared a few months ago a great article that was written about my Dad towards the end of this football season. It was truly a testament to his love of the Lord, his family, and mentoring his players. After exchanging e-mails with the writer from work, I felt extremely grateful for the media who use their power for good. For truth.

After the end of the season there is always a bustle of hiring’s and firings and overall chaos in sports teams around the country. I want to pause here and say that I would never wish unemployment, moving, and public firing on anyone and my heart broke for so many people we know who experienced that this year. But what I find so horrific at times like these, is the overall disregard for the feelings of people involved in the public domain. I shared with my Mom that my experiences over the past few years have made me sad for A-list celebrities children. If it’s this tough for those of us who have to hear it ‘in season’ on the much smaller scale of the sports arena – then what must it be like for, say, President Obama’s children?

I was talking with a great coaching couple I’ve gotten to know over the past few months and they were asking me what their son (who’s a toddler now) will experience. What is it really like to be the kid of a coach? Something about that question has stuck with me in the weeks since. My memory isn’t good enough to give you my verbatim response but it went something like this…

I would never wish on any child to experience the insensitivity of sports fans. What I realize as I get older is that no criticism you will experience of yourself from peers, parents, or coworkers can scratch the surface of the hurt you feel when it’s the people you love most. The desire to defend the people you love is powerful. You feel a fierce sense of loyalty to your family and no matter how many times you stuff down that desire to defend, it never goes away. Over the years I have found that people most frequently say ‘but it’s not true anyway, so you can’t let it get to you’. Ah, yes. Truth. Too bad there aren’t any rules about the media printing the truth, huh? Or fans…there’s no cap on the false things they can say. When people say hurtful things to you, true or not doesn’t really factor in though, does it?

Worse perhaps than the media and these strangers with cameras and clipboards are the people you ‘know’. I could write a tell all book of the things people I actually know have said to me. Turns out that if your Dad has a semi-public job people think they have a right to pry into your business. That all is fair in family and football. I’ve heard it all from ‘I hope they fire your Dad’ to ‘how much does he make’ to ‘tell your Dad to call this play…hire this guy…cut so-in-so’. You’d think after so many years of this, you’d get used to it but now, twenty six years later, I’m sure that you never do.

I guess what I find most amazing is how people survive without faith. When I think about the tough side of the game, of life really, I always remember that the Lord called us into this. That his purposes are bigger than wins, loses, criticism, or glory. His plan is bigger than fame or fortune. I take a step back and realize that our rewards are in heaven and that the Lord is the ultimate defender of his people. And while this doesn’t take the sting out of the words, there is a level of peace in that. I feel grateful that each of my family members has a healthy relationship with the Lord and try though I might I can’t imagine doing life without that relationship.

When I was a kid my Mom had me memorize Psalm 91, and I’ve never forgotten it. Here are a few great verses for any of you who might have felt similarly recently:

¹⁴ “Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
¹⁵ He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

Love,

B

It's Ok Thursday.

Highlight of my week! Love these. It's ok...
...to cry when your vacation is over.
...to love your job AND love the weekends.
...to bribe yourself with diet coke to do your taxes and chores.
...to hate doing laundry. HATE!
...to be in the second month of the year and still obsessing about your goals for 2012 every day.
...to love being ahead on your reading goals (dear Goodreads, love seeing 'you're three books ahead').
...to be excited at every offer/opportunity you get via e-mail related to your blog, even if you turn most of them down.
...to read 4 books at once.
...to already have picked out another set of flights to be with your bff, 3 days after returning from your last one.
...to scrimp and save into your travel fund because it makes you giddy everytime you look at that line in your excel sheet.
...to drink diet coke with breakfast.
...and coffee.
...to put things on your to do list you've already done, just so you can check them off.
...to have a piggy bank at work you put your change in and dream of what you'll spend it on when it's full.
...to hate talking on the phone.
...to hate e-mails.
...to love face-to-face chats with your bffs.
...to wish real life involved daily nap times.
...to love twitter. LOVE!
Love,B

Scottsburg, IN.

Well my first vacation of 2012 is complete. It was perfect. In fact, I cried the whole way through the airport to board my plane because I wanted to stay longer. The month of January held many challenges and by the time I boarded my February 3rd flight for Kentucky I was sure the Lord had known I'd need a few days away when I bought that sale fare in October for this trip.

For 3 days I didn't set an alarm, workout, do chores, go to work, or feel any stress! It was amazing...and this morning several of my coworkers commented that I 'looked good and rested' upon my return.

I wanted to share a few pictures from the trip...

I arrived Friday night about 6:45, grabbed my bags and Candy I headed straight to meet the crew for dinner. It was so fun to be with Candy & Josh as well as Chris & Ellen (Ellen is in the middle of the picture above), Chad & Tyler (Candy's brother-in-laws). We ate dinner at 'The Roadhouse' where I believe I mentioned before Candy worked throughout high school and on breaks from college. Afterwards we went to 'the Hill' where the people watching is ah-mazing. Roadhouse and the Hill have quickly become two of my favorite spots and I feel like no trip to the burg would be complete without them.

Candy and I had breakfast Saturday morning at The Coffee House in their town square. This is where Candy's rehearsal dinner was held before her wedding almost a year and a half ago. I love everything about the square (think Gilmore Girls). The food is delish, the people are friendly, and having a late breakfast on a Saturday morning was divine.

Saturday night we talked some very special people into driving down to join us for dinner...

My parents! For those of you new to the blog - meet my fabulous parents Deb & Clyde. They drove down from Carmel, IN (a little over an hour drive) to take Candy, Josh, and I to dinner at 'Jeeves' in the square (of course).

Dinner was amazing. I hadn't seen my parents since Christmas and it was so nice to get a little hangout time in with them. I am so blessed to have them and to be close to both of them. It also melts my heart that they've taken such a love to my best friends and my best friends to them. I love that Candy & Josh are part of the fam. With a crazy couple of weeks in the Christensen household it was a timely encouragement to just be together (and stuff our faces).

After dinner Saturday night Chad and his friends obliged me by organizing a poker game because I was dying to play. I hung tough for a while but in the end, didn't win (we all know how much I hate to lose). But I had a blast! For those of you from cities like Tampa, I have to say the people of Scottsburg, Indiana are the friendliest! I always feel right at home and part of the family while I'm there and I LOVE it. My only wish is that they'd all come down to Tampa and let me return the favor!

A few other high lights worth sharing....

Tyler & I kept our four wheeling tradition, started on my first trip to the burg. Thankfully this time without ice!

My 'just dance' skills are vastly improved but still leaving a few things to be desired.

It get harder and harder to say goodbye as my friendships in the burg grow! I could have stayed much much longer but I feel grateful for the time I had. It meant so much to me that everyone went out of their way to spend time with me, and that they always welcome me into their lives with open arms! I'm not officially in the market for a 4th of July weekend flight to be back in the burg with my favorites.

Love,

B

Super Bowl Sunday - Flashbacks.

In honor of Super Bowl Sunday I thought it would be fun to relive the two Super Bowls I've been lucky enough to attend.

On our first Super Bowl trip the Colts beat the Chicago Bears. This picture is so old school to me now! I look wicked young (and chubby) and sweet little Ruthie!...she's now 21 and a junior in college!...

That first super bowl it literally rained the entire game. The ENTIRE game. By the end we were drenched, exhausted, and victorious! It was slightly bittersweet to beat some of our friends who were on the opposing side. But it was a certainly fun to bring home our first ring!

Our second Super Bowl we lost to the New Orleans Saints (boo) but it sure was fun to be back in Miami for the big game, again.

This is my older sister, Rachel, and I during that game...


It didn't rain, thank goodness - but I would have taken the rain and a victory over the nice weather and a loss any day. By this Super Bowl I was living in Florida so I drove down instead of flying with the families. We had a great couple of days as a family in Miami and despite the loss, managed to make it a great vacay.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday! I hope you're enjoying some 'football food' (yum) and friends. I will be rooting for Eli and the Giants today (not like any of you believed I'd root for the Pats).

Love,

B

Weekend Plans.

Happy Friday to All!

After a wicked early start to work a Cambridge Christian All Pro Dad's Day chapter meeting this morning (the highlight of my work month on many occasions), I will head out early this afternoon to depart on my first 'for fun' trip of 2012. I have lots of upcoming travel as previously mentioned on the blog and highlighted in the right column. But this is the kick off trip. Booked in November during a Southwest Sale - I've been anxiously counting down the days until now...departure day!

I will depart at 4:30 on a non stop flight only to be picked up on the flip side by my best friend, Candy! I am literally thrilled. Were headed tonight to 'the roadhouse' for a late dinner at the restaurant Candy worked in growing up in the 'burg.

I'm really looking forward to some downtime, with a few of my favorite people....in what has quickly become one of my favorite places on earth. Let's just hope I can semi stick with my diet and exercise plan while away for a few days. There will be blog posts still, so you won't have to miss me too much, and I promise to have some fun photos and stories when I return as well.

In my carry on for this trip I will be taking two new books to read:

This is the 7th book in the Women's Murder Club series which many of you who have been following the blog for a while and/or are my friends on GoodReads already know about my obsession with all things JP and this series. So I picked this up from the library this week after being on hold between books 6 and 7, and will begin this while away (and possibly finish it too).

Actually both of the books I'll be traveling with this trip are by JP but #2 is a love story, not a murder mystery. Some of you may be unfamiliar with Patterson as a love story author but he's actually had several famous, non-violent novels. This one was gifted to me by a client who knows about my love of JP and reading in general.

Here's what amazon has posted about this one:

From Publishers Weekly

Unlike Patterson's Alex Cross thrillers, this sentimental tale does not translate well to audio. The plot twists seem all the more absurd when read aloud, and the audiobook's maudlin music, inserted during the story's poignant moments, is as distracting and disturbing as a TV laugh track. Jennifer, a newspaper columnist who's grieving the death of her husband, has more reason to mourn when her beloved grandmother, Sam, falls into a coma. Jennifer rushes to Sam's home in Lake Geneva,Wis., where she finds a packet of letters addressed to her. The letters detail her grandmother's life story, including an affair she had with a mysterious man. Jennifer takes comfort in the letters, and at the same time, embarks on her own romance with Brendan, an old friend. Heche's thin, mousy voice is perfect for the perpetually worried Jennifer, but she rarely varies her intonation, not even for Brendan's dialogue. Alexander does a better job as Sam, conveying the elderly woman's concern for Jennifer, but her performance isn't sufficient to elevate this flawed audiobook.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Alright well, it's about time I wrap this up and allow you all to continue with your Fridays (I'm probably working or traveling when you're reading this) but I hope you all have a great weekend.

Love,
B

It's Ok Thursday - Travel Edition.

First off, let me start by saying a one day late - welcome to February! I finished January having read 7 books (towards my goal of 50) and down 9.4 lbs (towards my 20lbs before Haiti goal). I'm feeling good about welcoming February with room in my jeans and a mind swimming with new words to be played on WWF.


I'm headed on my first vacay of 2012 TOMORROW but first let's celebrate Thursday with a little it's ok...





I'm making this week about travel because as of tomorrow - I'm outta here til Monday (you know I won't be totally disconnected, right?)


So this Thursday it's ok...


...to make all your 'beauty' appointments for the week before a trip (Tuesday - haircut Thursday - eyebrows Saturday while away - pedi)


...to over pack. Every. single. trip. (this is especially sad coming from a girl who travels almost 20 weekends a year!)


...to always plan your next trip before your current trip is over, so that you always have something to look forward too. (I've already confessed that between dieting and budgeting I've boarder line lost the will to live!)


...to feel self conscious carrying cash, even if they say you should.


...to over tip the baggage guys to make sure they won't weigh your bag (don't judge me!)


...to use the 'party seating' style of Southwest as an opportunity to sit next to the best looking guy on the plane AND...


...sleep on his shoulder (thank goodness my Dad doesn't read this!)


...to buy yourself a few new clothing items for trips, even if you don't NEED them (as long as they're in the budget).


...to baby powder your hair when you travel to keep from looking greasy upon arrival.


This next one may shock some of you but it's ok...


...to use the bathroom when the seat belt sign is on. They actually let you if you have to go REALLY bad.


...to carry your ipad AND your kindle.


...to feel like your in vacation mode from Monday til Friday on the week you leave.


...to hate basically all link ups except it's ok Thursday, where you find all your favorite people by their quirks.


Thanks Neely and Amber - I sure do love doing this.


Love,
B


...

Tampa Bloggers Meet Up.

Photo courtesy of Meghan.

If you write and/or read blogs or have a twitter account you've probably had one of those moments where you think, 'man, I wish these were my friends in real life'. Nichole and I had that moment and then realized, hey wait, we could be. We started an e-mail thread with other Tampa bloggers to see if they'd be interested in meeting up with us as well and low and behold we weren't the only ones who wanted to be friends.

We met up last Friday night at one of my personal favorites, Fly Bar. It had that feeling of a giant blind date at first but I have to say these girls are awesome! I literally left thinking 'I would hang out with them every weekend'. What I love about bloggers is that they share my love for reading, writing, photos, and fun. I'm looking forward to many more hangouts with these amazing girls in the future. In fact, I'm hosting the next Tampa Bloggers meet up!

If you're a Tampa blogger and you want in on the future action shoot me an e-mail and I'll help you get connected. So excited for new friendships!

Love,

B