Day Three Hundred and Two

People like to complain about Mondays. 

I'm not one of those people, and even though Kyle flew out today earlier than we planned, I did not complain. Because the Mets are good, and who whines about free airfare? Even though the WOD at Crossfit was a total bruiser, I did not complain. Because who whines about their last day at the gym with an amazing group of hard working, ass kicking, people? Even though I literally sold our car today, for cash on a holiday, I did not complain. Wait, okay that might be a lie. 

In the baseball world, I totally forget what day of the week it is because every day is game day. And I work every day that I'm not driving to a game. I only really know when it's Monday because it's the day after my gym is closed. Whoops. I showed up at the gym and instantly noticed the class was huge! Why could this be? Well WOD's were only running at 9 am, instead of the usual 9 am, 5 pm, 6pm and 7pm because it was a holiday. Say what?! A holiday?! Hello, Earth to me. I was in a pinch because I had to meet the purchaser of the car, who literally handed me a few stacks of hundred dollar bills. Banks aren't open on holidays! I've had an insane amount of anxiety about babysitting this cash all day long, and I will be feeling much better as soon as I roll up to Chase tomorrow morning on my way to the airport. Hallelujah! (I don't know how drug dealers do it!)

Day Three Hundred and One

The last day of this baseball season. The absolute last warm up, last game, last day. Kyle finished nicely with a .278 batting average in Port St. Lucie, and a .289 for the entire season. An impressive on base percentage of .385 and 44 stolen bases. And let it be known, we're totally okay with this finish! (I'm actually more than okay, I'm incredibly proud of this strong man, his hard work, his dedication and his accomplishments.)

Day Three Hundred

Day Three Hundred? It can't possibly be true! 

That post season time is right around the corner, and the wedding is hot on it's heels. Yahoo! 

Today was "Food Truck Day," at Tradition Field. At first thought, this sounded awfully MidWest to me. I showed up for the game a little early, not for the food, but because one of my sweet friends was planning to sing the national anthem. But low and behold, the food truck selections was entirely impressive! Meatballs, pizza, tacos, fro-yo, Hawaiian stir fry, fried chicken and other scrumptious edibles were being served out of at least eight or nine food trucks. I've honestly never seen anything like it! 

After taking in all of the tempting aromas, I hustled into the field empty handed. Thank gosh I did, because the game was cancelled due to rain and lightening so Kyle and I hurried to one of our favorite sports bars. Duffy's. There's nothing like it, anywhere else. It reminds us of our all time favorite, Caddyshack, combined with a little of our college haunt, Vahalla. We hurried because it was our first Cougar football game of the season! The Cougs put up a great fight, and even though it was a tough loss, our team is looking better than it has in years. Go COUGS!

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Nine

Introducing paleo turkey sausage bake...that was straight bomb-ski's. I've been downloading an absurd amount of paleo e-cookbooks on my Kindle, for free. I spent the entire week checking Amazon each morning for the fresh selection, and I now have at least fifteen to choose from. I know, crazy. BUT trying to move every few months with a ton of books has proved difficult, so I'm officially transitioning towards all Kindle books. Hurrah!

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Eight

Letting someone test drive a car you've practically lived out of since April is kinda tough. After all, you wanna impress 'em with the little blue beasts features and cleanliness! It's a dirty job, but you can get your tan on while you do it. 

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Seven

Today we made the oh-so difficult decision to ship Kyle's golf clubs home, in order to free up a much needed checked bag for the flights home. (We've each narrowed it down to 2 checked bags each, can I get a little love here?). I know it sounds dramatic, but it was tough for Kyle to separate with these flashy Cougar inspired clubs, and nerve wracking to think they could be "lost" just like any other shipped package. Easy fix, we bought insurance. And we found a company that would ship them for a great price, it probably helps that we live near a PGA golf village here in Port St. Lucie. Once we purchased the shipping tag, they informed us they wouldn't ship the clubs with out a hard case. Uhhhhh. We called around and most sports stores were sold out of their cheap models. Kyle suggested Craigslist (a prime example of why I'm marrying this stud muffin), and we bought one of John Uptons spare cases for $40. That has got to be some good golf juju!

Side note, Florida has this wonderful service called Road Rangers. One of the jeeps tires met a long nail on our drive to the field. A Road Ranger, named Vinny, pulled up behind us and fixed the tire for free! Yes, yes it's true. And faster than we could relay our address to AAA. Florida, you're starting to win a few more points in my book!

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Five

And so it begins. The post season pack-a-rama and what-goes-where drama.

Side note: this process would be ten times easier if we didn't endure a trade and a promotion all in one season. Go big or go home, right?

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Four

Rain outs mean two wonderful things in my life: doubleheaders and date night! I confess, I left my laptop at the hotel and laid pool side with my Kindle for the day. With ten days left until my flight home it just felt necessary to fill up on Dan Brown and vitamin D. A huge rain storm rolled in during the late afternoon, true to summer time Florida standards! The boys game was cancelled so Kyle and I enjoyed some pre season football watching our very own Kellen Moore do work. Lee Rpy Selmons sports bar was the real winner. They had the most incredible smoked pork and baby back ribs. Nummmmm.

Day Two Hundred and Ninety Two

Well there it went folks. After two fly outs and two walks tonight, Kyle's 17 game hitting streak came to a grand close. I say grand because it's the longest hitting streak of any player in the Florida State League this season. Way to go honey, I'm so proud of all the work you've put into your bat! And speaking of bats, our agent was quick to inform us this streak may very well lead to our first endorsement! If it's a good fit, we may have a steady stream of Kyle's favorite bats...for free! At close to two hundred bucks a pop, a bat endorsement would be a blessing like none other.

In other batty news, seriously, I started cleaning out the car and packing things up for the off season. Confession: some of our belongings haven't seen daylight since Iowa or Idaho. I've tediously sorted our clothing and belongings into "chilly Pacific Northwest wear," "Sunshine state staples," and "Goodwill," piles. Because everyone and their mom knows I no longer need a Burton snowboarding jacket when I'm going to be living in Florida, Vegas or New York in the summer months. The current plan is to leave our summer clothes, my office supplies, and basic kitchen and housing items in the jeep. The jeep is going to be babysat by our dear friends and we'll be back to unload it all into our Spring Training condo early next year. Ready? Break!

PS: Anyone want a bat?

Day Two Hundred and Ninety One

Please note, Cumberland Farms has THE best icee's in all of a Florida. If you come to visit, be sure to try one!
I indulged in a celebratory treat because today marks one month until the wedding. Kyle celebrated by continuing his now 17 game hitting streak! Show off.

Day Two Hundred and Ninety

Today I received the most awesome of packages! My You Play, I Pray shirt finally arrived, yahoo! My darling fiancé even sprinted out of the locker room to deliver it to me before I pulled out of the parking lot. He is seriously the best. Kylie owns You Play, I Pray and is also a minor league baseball wife and mom. Call me crazy, but I think that has mad girl power written all over it. I have no qualms about splurging a little on things to support other MiLB families. If you want one for yourself, check out her site:

www.youplayipray.com

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Nine

Off day, off day, hallelujah it's an off day!

This post is going to be full of pictures, sorry in advance. We were both up bright and early this morning, Kyle was off to play golf at the PGA golf course and I was headed to Crossfit. As I dreaded, we did flip tires today. And more excitingly, our amazing trainer spent a good thirty minutes helping me perfect my snatch. (It's an Olympic lift people). I was back to bruised arms and blackened limbs after our tough session today. Yes that is tire grime on my face and head band!

This morning was dedicated to some intense wedding planning. Kendall is actively planning the bachelorette party, Barbara the food supplies, Veronica the decoration for the reception, Michelle the floral arrangements, Kyle the rehearsal dinner and my wonderful parents, the food. Today required bits and pieces in all of the above departments. And an unexpected surprise rolled in from Jamey, the first draft of our ceremony and vows that he has written. Wonderfully written, I might add, it took my breath away. We are so blessed to have so much help for this wedding, especially with the planning from a far. I simply can not wait. 

After finagling odds and ends for the wedding it was off to Jensen Beach where we rolled around in the waves for a good half an hour. We really enjoyed going later in the afternoon when the sun wasn't so severe and the waves were huge. A body surfers dream! Although the real surfers were not impressed with our performance. We celebrated afterwards at the New England Fish Market, which has quickly become one of our favorite restaurants. It sure was a tough day to be a paleo eater, the delicious scents from Kyle's fish and chips was pure torture! But as always, we left with bellies full and satisfied.

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Eight

Another day spent at Roger Dean Stadium, home of the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Seven

Today was Saturday, August 17th. Aka the last day for half off ribbon and floral wrap at Hobby Lobby. I've never been to Hobby Lobby before, but I have to say it's my new favorite craft store as of today. I picked up plenty of lacey ribbon and burlap material to pack away in my bags and haul across the country for the rapidly approaching big day. Can I get a cheers to traveling baseball wife life? Yahooo! 

Kyle's dad and brother are still in town, but sadly, today marks the last day of their vacation stay. After conquering Hobby Lobby, the boys picked me up in their flashy Mustang and we zipped off to Jupiter, home of the Jupiter Hammerheads and my favorite Mrs. Conley. The drive to celebrity hot spot Jupiter from our home in Port St. Lucie is about thirty minutes. (Just another perk of the Florida State League...it's all in Florida!) The game tonight was at Roger Dean Field, which is shared by both the Marlins and Cardinals. I took the opprotunity to buy my first Marlin's gear here, the field that both of our Marlin's friends Adam Conley and Alex Burg, have played during their careers. It also happened to be half off day at the shop (it's destiny, right?) so I had to pick up a matching tank for Kendall.

After the game we were off to our new favorite Floridian restaurant chain, Duffy's Sports Bar. Duffy's is much like the feel of our home town Capone's but with exceptional food at great prices. We had a wonderful dinner followed by deep fried cheesecake (wow) and key lime pie to share. Nummy!

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Six

Today marked the second day of my sneaky vacation while Kyle's dad and brother were in town. In good local Florida spirit I took them to Jensen beach to enjoy the sun and waves. It was a gorgeous day, the temperature of the water was in the mid eighties. The waves were rockier than usual and the mild rip tide flag was up, but it made for some great body surfing. After a healthy amount of beach lounging we enjoyed lunch at Kyle and I's favorite local restaurant, the New England Fish Market. We devoured fish dip, lobster mac n cheese, raw oysters, lobster bisque, fish and chips, shrimp tacos and crab cakes. (Yes, yes, today was my weekly paleo cheat day). 

We had double family fun in the stands this evening. My great Aunt Modine, my second cousin Cory and his girlfriend Shoo, came to the game tonight. My great Aunt Mo and Uncle Hep (Pappy) live in Orlando so it's really a short trip down the turn pike for them. Uncle Hep wasn't feeling all too well, so he didn't make it tonight. But it's been wonderful to be close by to family on this adventure. They're an absolute delight to spend time with, and they adore Kyle. Kyle met Aunt Mo for the first time tonight and thought she was just "adorable." He is such a sucker for my family, I absolutely love it.

 

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Five

This trip is a vacation for Kyle's dad and brother, but today marked the start of a short vacation for me as well! After dropping Kyle off at the field, I met Tony and Jay at Duffy's the local fun house joint. They have arcade games, bowling, batting cages and mine and Jay's favorite, putt putt golf. We played like little kids and got a little more competitive for the putt putt golf and batting cages. Once we had exhausted all of our fun house options, we were on the move to the Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce. The museum is the only nation wide that honors the history of the Navy SEAL's. We surveyed the boats, helicopters and monuments from all era's of the United States history. And it was pretty awesome!

 Fort Pierce Beach

Batting cages

  

A huge recon boat at the Navy Seals Museum (I'm in this photo...somewhere!)

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Four

Baseball games are so much sweeter when my fiance's number one fan club is watching with me.

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Three

Today marks 39 days until the wedding.

Oh me, oh my.

It was also tire flip Tuesday at the PSL Crossfit gym this morning. I haven't flipped a tire since my glory days at my folks farm. Today was a challenge, the trainer pushed me to flip the heaviest tire for my rounds today. By the time it was all over with, I was covered in black grit from head to toe, and sweating like crazy. My fiancé couldn't get over how tarnished I looked, so he took a photo for my dear Crossfit PIC and wonderful friend, Kendall.

Kyle's brother and father flew in today for a small vacation stay. We're so excited to spend some quality time with them and they're excited to finally get a taste of the Mets!

Day Two Hundred and Eighty Two

Another homer today. Nothing more exciting than back to back homers in our life at the moment. 

Day Two Hundred and Eight One

Holy homer!

Anyone who knows my fiancé knows he's not a power guy. Well, until this season apparently. Today's game dragged on and on, in the unbearable Florida sun. We're talking four and a half hours of baseball in ninety degree plus heat. We're also talking twelve innings of baseball. And then Kyle walked up to the plate, and bonked a nice fastball right over the right field fence. What just happened!? His fourth homer this season.

He makes it look so easy.

Fortunately it was booster night, they rewarded him with a beer and brownies. Aren't they sweet? We sure do love the Mets.