game on

we defoyds spend a lot

of time in basketball gyms this time of year.

some of you may remember 

the pitter patter feeling i get over the sound

of squeaky sneakers and bouncing basketballs.

{blog post}

it brings me way back to high school in all the best ways.

but today i want to
tell you about something that gets my heart pumping
in a very different way.

***

throughout a season we visit lots of gyms,

old & new,

and as a parent,
i hold the door for lots of players,

from home teams and away.

some of them are sweaty coming out of the gym after a game,

and some of them have their game face on as they head in for a game.

but here is the thing...

these players, teammates and their siblings 

do not say thank you.

seriously,
it's a real problem.

i did a little experiment this past sunday,

at our home gym.

of the 53 kids i held a door for before or after the game,

only 7 of them said thank you.

7.
seven.

S E V E N.

and let me tell you,

the kid wearing medway on the front of his jersey,

and defoyd on the back was NOT part of that 7.

dude,
seriously?

son,
this is not okay!

our town is in big letters on your chest,
so people know where you hail from.

and,
your last name is in capital letters on your butt,
so people know exactly who the punk kid belongs to.

me!

***

so,
let's have a little review
defoyd children,
players from medway,
competition from surrounding towns.

first,
none of you are named
kyrie irving, lebron james or stefan curry.

second,
when someone holds the door for you,
look them in the eyes and say
"thank you."

third,
this is not hard.
you can do better.
i believe in you.
good luck in your game.
i love you.

***

today is another game day,
and let me tell you,
this mom will have her door holding game face on...
i may even bring my boom box!

real life

a moment captured of brother teaching his little sister how to play the game of life.

  

i enjoyed the sweetness from the other room, peeking in just enough to snap a photo and escape before being invited to play along.

i then quietly retreated to the upstairs to take a quick shower.

not 5 minutes later, jane barges into the bathroom, crying, to tell me that she had baby boy twins, not girl twins, that she lost her job, and that bennett is a poopy face. 5 minutes later.

i then lived the real game of life - naked parenting, disciplining and consoling through a shower curtain, while shaving my legs.

where is that tile on the game of life board?

christmas instabits

we enjoyed the last of our 

christmas celebrations yesterday.

our tree is still up,

the cards are still hung

and the christmas music is still being played.

tomorrow the trimmings will begin to come down,

but in the meantime let's linger,

in the joy and the blessing that it was.

a joy and a blessing

far bigger than my "baby hands" can capture,

so i'll let these christmas instabits do it for me.

(note...the baby hand above...a yankee swap gift that keeps on giving 

in laughs and creepy greetings wherever i go!)

until next year

dear friends...

happy christmas & good tidings

to you and to yours.