Mom: The Enthusastic, Constant, and Eternal Cheerleader

One of my jobs this summer is Supervising T-ball and Fastpitch baseball for K-2nd graders. Today was my first day and I loved every second of it. My favorite part of the whole day was in the first game. The kids each get 5 tries to hit the ball from the machine. This one boy was swinging to slow and couldn't make contact at all, then his final try came. The whole crowd was cheering for him, both teams, seeing that he was getting discouraged. I just pictured his Mom sitting on the bleachers praying that he could at least get a piece of it on his last try. Not only did he get a piece of it but he had a great hit right along the 3rd base line. He had a moment of shock, then after hearing the whole crowd yell "RUN!" He dropped the bat and took off to 1st base with a huge grin on his face. Once he made it safely to 1st he turned to his Mom on the bleachers and said, "MOM! I did it! I really did it! Did you see my hit?? I can't believe I did it!" He was jumping up and down with his fists in the air and the biggest smile on his face. What a perfect Mother's Day gift to that mom that took no planning, money, or glam. I'll admit I got a little teary-eyed.

That little boys excitement got me thinking about all those moments that I did the same thing to my Mom. I may not have yelled at her from the field but I would look to her after a good play, or even my bad ones, because I knew what I would see. I would see my Mom in the crowd giving me encouraging looks, thumbs-up and reminding me of her support, love, and motto- "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." I can't even begin to guess the number of soccer, swim, basketball, field hockey, lacrosse, percussion, viola, piano, choir, games and concerts my Mom has taken me to and supported me at. I could always count on her to be in the crowd wearing her Herndon gear next to my Dad and being my greatest cheerleader in between chatting with the other parents.

Don't mind the gremlin in the bathing suit..

I can still hear her voice in my head when I'm working to accomplish anything, whether it be a tough test (which is any test really), a run, or job interview. She's saying, "Go Annie, Go!' with her eyes exuding intensity, her voice quiet yet forceful, and her hands quenched in a tight fist punching the air.

How lucky I am to have a Mom who has been my greatest cheerleader my whole life in everything that I do. I know that my Mom is proud of me and that even when I miss a shot, don't get an A, or make mistakes she is still cheering me on and always will be. She is my greatest example of how to be encouraging and confidence instilling.

So thank you, Mom. Thanks for coming to all those games, plays, concerts, and recitals. You dealt with my procrastination, forgetfulness, and ridiculousness for many years and continue to everyday. I love you and am so proud to be Laurie Snow Turner's daughter that looks just like her.

Dog or No Dog?

Recently I have been really wanting a dog. Josh and I have been back and forth about it (ok I have been back and forth about it) for a couple months now. My good husband is just supportive and trusts me to make the decision but I'm pretty indecisive. I've been looking up dogs to rescue, taking quizzes online that tell me the best dog for our situation, researching the breeds the quizzes recommended, getting attached to dogs I find online, and even having dreams about those dogs. It's time to just make a decision and be done. My heart can't take getting attached to these dogs anymore!

So the question is, dog or no dog? Our main concerns are finding housing that allows pets while we finish our last year of school, if we are home enough to not have our poor puppy lonely, and what to do with our pup when we travel. I really think that we could figure it all out but it's a big commitment! So I'm opening up this discussion to you loyal blog readers. Any thoughts for a young couple itching for another companion? Do we just go for it or wait until our living situations are a little more stable?

To help you understand how easy it is to get attached to these pups here are a few of the dogs we are considering. How can you not get attached when they could be put down soon if they are not adopted! Look at those faces! These are all supposedly good apartment dogs, that are good with kids (ya know for the future..), and are happy, relatively easy breeds. Are they not the cutest??

 This one's name is Godzilla and is Labrador Retriever puppy. I think we'd change his name, he doesn't look like a big scary gorilla to me.

 This one's name is Hamachi and is a miniature poodle. That's as big as he gets, too cute! Currently our front runner because he doesn't shed and is a good size for our current living situations.

 This is Kiss and she is a Husky mix puppy. Probably too big and sheds too much for what we are looking for but she might not get too big by the time we move out of Provo in a year or so!

This one is Remington and he is a beagle puppy. Remington seems like a perfect name to me for this majestic, brave looking puppy. He is probably my favorite but he might shed a lot which isn't ideal. Doesn't he look so regal though? Maybe I'm crazy and have been pining over his picture for too long.