Baseball in FULL SWING

Well, the Burdette family  has literally lived at the ballpark for the past two weeks. Our afternoons are like this:
 3:00 Nolan and Gracie get home
4:00 Dinner is served
5:00 Leave for the ball park
9:00 baths and bedtime

FOR REAL, this is our life right now and we are loving it, although we are very tired and Mark is going from sun up to sun down.

In the past two weeks: Gracie got the game ball for her first game.

Gracie showed the best effort and had an wonderful game. We are so proud of her!

Mason had his second season game. He was just as excited for game two as he was opening day. It is so much fun watching him become a baseball player like Nolan and Mark. Nolan was his "Brother Coach" and they both loved that.

Kade has not been forgotten this season. He loves cheering on everyone. He is the BEST fan at the park!

Nolan is enjoying getting to watch the little ones play this year. He is also still playing both league ball and travel ball. This weekend he played with the Carolina Swampcats. I was not too happy when I saw they were wearing garnet Carolina shirts with black hats. Not a Clemson fans dream uniform but Nolan made it look good. He played very well and as always I love his attitude when he plays. The little kids are going to learn so much from their big brother.

So as you can see, this is our life, literally in FULL SWING! If you want to visit with us or need us we can be found at the ballpark. I am thinking we might even forward our mail there for awhile! I hope everyone is enjoying whatever season their life is in. I know that even when I want to pull my hair out because we are never home, I wouldn't trade these days for anything. 





Opening Day

At our house, I run off a schedule. It drives Mark nuts but I think deep down he is super thankful for how well thought out every second of our lives are. Opening Day was no different; in fact I think my planning was even more over the top.

Friday we got our teams uniforms in, so I carefully packed all 12 t ball uniforms for our team in their cute brown bags. I wrote the names on each bag and “Go Rangers”! We delivered and had all of the uniforms picked up by 7:00!

For dinner I made pizza, ok I defrosted pizza. But we all sat around the table together and talked about Mason and Gracie’s first games and the fact that Nolan was going to pitch! Everyone was excited….I think Mark and I were the MOST excited! After dinner everyone had their baths and brought me their uniforms. I laid them out on the dining room table in the order they would put them on. Their hats and wrist bands were in front of their uniforms. Then it was off to bed! After everyone was tucked in I went and looked at the table and realized how our family was growing. Not in numbers but in experience. Everyone is getting older. No more babies in this house!

By 6:30 am on Saturday, everyone was up and EXCITED! Donuts for breakfast and then came getting four children ready and out the door within an hour! Nolan and Mason have a routine of how a baseball player gets dressed! I am so thankful for Nolan teaching Mason how to get everything on, tucked, and situated! Gracie was awesome getting herself ready and then letting me get her ponytail just right. In true Kari form, pictures followed before we could leave!

Opening ceremony was awesome. The teams all looked amazing, but I was partial to ours! As a team mom, I received a yellow rose from the boys. It was so sweet. Grandma and Grandpa Nowell even came to watch three Burdette’s play on the same day. We enjoyed whole morning supporting Nolan, Gracie, and Mason.

Mason and Nolan played at the same time. This was a first for us. For the past few years the whole family has supported Nolan. Mark has never missed a practice or a game. This was the first game he had to miss part of. Mason’s game was so much fun. Four and five year olds are just adorable on the baseball field! Mason hit the ball without using the tee! It was so cool to watch him play! It was also nice to have Grandma remember Kade! She brought him a bat and ball so he would have something to keep him happy!

 The second Mason’s game was over, we ran to watch the second half of Nolan’s game. He pitched! He did great at bat and is a pretty impressive batter! He is the tallest player on the field so there is no missing him! Nolan’s girlfriends mom was at the park (Mason played against her brother Buzz…they are now good buddies!) Well she came over after the tball game and sat with us and cheered Nolan on. I don’t know if Mark is ready for the girlfriend thing but it was awesome for her to get to cheer Nolan on!

As soon as Nolan’s game was over, you guessed it, we ran to Gracie’s game! She can hit! She looked amazing on the field. She was confident at the plate and has an arm too! She had the most amazing throw from the pitcher’s mound to first base. I think she liked having so many people cheering her on as she showed off her mad skills!

I have to admit I was one of the most proud moms at the ball park! It was great to have Mark coach and the three big kids shine! Having Grandma and Grandpa Nowell there was icing on the cake! Nolan also introduced the family to his girlfriend Stewart. Overall it was a great family day!

Irmo Little League put together a day that we will remember! It is fun to be a part of such a neat organization where we can hang out with our friends and family and enjoy our favorite sport.

I am not going to lie; I was worn slap out by the time we finally left the ballpark. It was a long day but all of the preparation was worth it. The day was truly perfect: perfect weather, perfect playing, and perfect time together.

Blanchard

A year and a half ago our family was forever changed. Our babysitter brought over her "friend" Ryan for my approval. He seemed like a nice enough kid. Good manners, polite, wore his hat the RIGHT WAY! We all like him but with high school courtships, we didn't think we would see him a great deal more. I am so thankful we were wrong.

Ryan has become a role model in our home. Our three boys adore him! Ryan is a high school senior and he plays baseball. (He just signed to play baseball at ALABAMA!) He has a super busy schedule but he makes time to come see his little fans as often as he can. Mark and I could not as for a better teenager for the boys to look up to, especially Nolan. Ryan has taught Nolan so much about the game this family loves so much. His patience with Nolan as he explains his nerves at the plate, why he may be off at games, his dedication, determination, and drive are all things Nolan as seen and tried to implement in his own playing.

 Last night was a really special night for us and our friendship with Ryan. He stopped by to see how Nolan had played in is weekend tournament. While he was here one of the players from his team called and said they needed the song Ryan wanted played when he walked up to bat. Ok, this song is a BIG deal. It is Ryan's senior year and he had an hour to find it. Well, since summer Mark and I have been saying that he should use a Smashing Pumpkins song but Ryan wasn't too sure about it. So last night our WHOLE FAMILY is sitting in the living rooms rattling off songs. Nolan was excited as he came up with another super cool song. We had about four songs on the list, then it was two. At 8:58 pm, two minutes before deadline to turn in his senior song, Ryan picked the Smashing Pumpkins song! Mark had a smile on his face that I typically only see when Nolan is playing ball. That look of pride and excitement. I can not wait until the night we sit together with our guys and pick out the song that helps them focus and get in the zone as they are introduced at their high school games. Last night was a great preview for our family of what we have to look forward to. I know Nolan will remember last night and refer back to it when he picks his first song!

Ryan is all the things we hope our three boys are when they grow up. His manners are old school over the top. Ma'am and sir are a constant in his vocabulary. He takes his hat off at the table, he treats his friends with respect and he respects and loves his family. He takes time for our boys, throwing with them, playing Wii with them, and just hanging out. He has given up Saturday afternoons to play wiffle ball with a 12, 4, and 2 year old.....what senior in high school does that?

Last summer when we asked Ryan to join our family at the beach, I had to of course talk to his mom and assure her he would be ok. When we were talking she asked a question that I will always remember. She asked why a 17 year old would want to go to the beach with little kids. She hasn't met my boys so that was a totally fair question. I felt confident in telling her that Ryan just loved hanging out with the boys. I will never fully understand the relationship our boys have with Ryan, but I know that I am thankful for it. I know I love the look on Mason and Kades faces as they run to the door when Ryan gets here. I even love how he has taught them to say "Roll Tide". And I can not wait to watch the boys cheer him on for his last year of high school ball!

Being at the baseball field as often as we are, we have come to know a lot of  "baseball families". This weekend it was fun to hear families talking about how Dutch Fork has a kid that has signed to play at Alabama. We love Ryan like he is one of our own and we love hearing that other people see him the same way we do!

Sunday Dinner

So I think on Sundays I am going to post a yummy dinner for your family to enjoy!


EASY Veggie Soup


In your crock pot combine:


1 large bottle of V8 original
1 can beef broth
3 cans of vegall
1 pound cooked ground turkey


mix and cook on low for 6-8 hours


Yummy veggie soup that my whole family loves. Serve with crackers or grilled cheese. Great for a rainy day like today!

My Hero

When I was a little girl I loved dolls, Barbies, girly books, and clothes. I liked my friends to like the same thing. Imagine my intense joy when I got a step sister who was about as girly as Erin. ( That means she wasn't girly at all!) My new sister was about the same size as I was and we even wore the same size shoe. We started sharing a room every other weekend when we were little girls, maybe seven or eight.....I don't remember many years that she wasn't part of my life. Then when we were about nine, she became my full time sister, room mate, and best friend. We shared EVERYTHING. When I left for college, I think she had two outfits, since she usually just borrowed my clothes. But she missed me, I know she did because she came to the same college I did!

Obviously I am talking about Mac. I have four sisters and a brother. They are all very special to me in their own way. Mac is different. We haven't known each other since birth but it feels like we have always been together. We are still super duper NOT alike. She hates make up, talking on the phone, girl time, girly stuff, and just about everything else I love. She does however love my children and laughing, which we do every time we are together. But somehow we are identical in ways I can not describe.

SO, why is Mac my hero. Oh my gosh.....ok......hummmm.....how to even begin to put this into words. Mac is the only friend that I have always been able to count on. She has had a great deal of adversity in her life and she has always come out on top. Mac and I were a part of many different journeys but one I am so proud to say I have been a part of with her.  About ten years ago I had this bright idea to do the MS Challenge Walk. It is a 3 day 50 mile walk. Well we did it and she completed all 50 miles, I did not. Year two we did the walk again together and again she completed the walk and I did not. Year three I was a volunteer for the walk and guess what....yeah yeah yeah.....150 miles down for our girl! Year four I was getting married so I had tons of wedding stuff and you guessed it 200 miles. Year five I was pregnant with Mason so I was not there for the 250th mile. Year six I don't remember why I wasn't there but Mac said she was going to walk until there was a cure for MS. Year seven I was expecting Kade so mile 350 was checked off her list. Year eight the whole family surprised Mac for the 400th mile. That was pretty cool. Last year Mac finished her 450th mile becoming one of three I think to walk every mile for nine years! Hero......right! ( Oh there is more!)

So this year, YEAR 10 and 500 miles......PREGNANT! Well THANK GOODNESS Mac has enough common sense to NOT walk all 50 miles, but yes she is walking 8 months pregnant. Day one of year 10, she walked 12 miles!  So HERO.....I think about when I was expecting Mason and Kade. I was hardly willing to do much of anything I did not have to, let alone walk a whole whole lot. But Mac, she is a different breed. When she says she is going to do something, she does. She and baby Charlie are doing this walk and nothing, not even a lot of doctors and concerned friends are going to stop her.

So back to the whole Hero thing. I have met about a bazillion people so far. Mac is her own woman. She does not care what anyone thinks. She is secure in her own skin. She is a fighter. She never gives up and does exactly what she sets out to do. She is dedicated. She loves her family, her students, her husband, and her sweet little boy Charlie. She is doing this walk so he can enjoy his Grandpa Nowell. Mac possess something, I have yet to figure out exactly what it is, that very few people have.

When I had Mason, Mac was in the delivery room. She was there for me when I had boyfriend trouble, friend trouble, or was grounded. She was there when my first marriage failed, when I got it right the second time, when I found out I was going to be a mom. Shouldn't she be there to see my first child born?! She was also there when Kade was born. Every big event in my life, she has been there.

I can not explain how special Mac is to me. I can not explain how I know we were destined to be sisters. I can explain that I have something not many others have. I had a poster that said "chance made us sisters, hearts made us friends." That is Mac. Chance made us sisters, but she is my best friend. I have something so special in my sister Mac that I wish I could bottle and sell.....I would be beyond rich! But having her in our lives make us rich! She gives something to this family that no amount of money can buy.

Day one of this years MS Walk, she walked 12 miles while being 8 months pregnant. Day two she has already started walking again. I know this is a super rambling post but I am so proud of her. She is going to be a mom, she is happily married, she is an amazing Nationally Board Certified teachers, she is so many things......she is my hero.