UGH!!!

Migraine again last night.

What a way to ruin a perfectly good Friday night!

Vomiting and early to bed...but I feel so fortunate that I am able to fall asleep and then they go away.  I know many people who are not as lucky.

Game(s) On

It rained yesterday - pretty much all day.

There were high school games scheduled for last night but for some reason the team who was supposed to travel cancelled.  

Possibly because the weather that was forecast was much worse than the weather that actually occurred.   As I said, it just rained.

Anyway, it was decided that instead of the scheduled games, there would be a friendly little game of coaches/8th graders vs. the high school players.  Zack, of course, would never miss an opportunity to play...although he said it was actually more fun being on the bench.  I agree, it was fun to watch.

First, the girls played.

The younger set lost 31-13

Then the legends/future all stars (as they were called) played the high school boys.

I love that the coaches played too

the bench...and breaking out the wheelchair for the "old" ones

driving the lane and paying the price

Toward the end the older legends/futures all stars were losing by about 10...the refs thought that was unfair so they called a couple of bogus technical  fouls which was hilarious.

two shots for a bogus technical

It gave everyone a great laugh and the score was closer...but they still lost.

What a fun night.

I Struggle...but Occasionally it Pays Off

Raising teens is an experience.  

They seem to have their own set of acceptable rules and they usually don't look anything like the guidelines that you would have them follow.  

I think I struggle with Zack more than the other two because I play a very big part in his day to day school life (and I can hear my other two thanking God they didn't have to deal with that).  

Anyway, I see his daily interactions with those around him and I see his classmates and friends when they are hurting or being ostracized and that hurts me too.  

I try so hard to teach him that if you can't be nice to someone then don't say anything at all or walk away from the person.  

Sometimes I don't feel as if I am making any headway with him because he, of course, wants to follow the path of others and be accepted. 

But this past Saturday, God gave me a little pat on the back when I witnessed a conversation between Zack and a friend he had over.

They were discussing who the nicest person in their class was and the boy said, "I think you're the nicest boy in our class, Zack.  You're pretty nice to everyone."

YES!!!! Thank God for the small victories.

And Then There Was Pizza

Before the game started on Friday our good friends, Bill and Carey, asked us if we wanted to go to Culver's after the game.  Although I wasn't excited about adding yet another thing to my already busy day, I thought that it would be just what Zack needed to take his mind off his situation and give him something to look forward to.

I am so grateful for friends like them and feel so blessed that they have made going to some of Zack's games a priority.  He has told me how happy it makes him that they are there just for him.

Anyway, after the game was over, we discovered that the girl's and boy's basketball teams were going to Christiano's for pizza.  They were donating a certain portion of their proceeds that day to the orphans in Myanmar.  

I wasn't planning on spending $20.00 on pizza and sodas but it was worth it to see Zack so happy when an hour earlier he was falling apart - and to help the orphans in Myanmar.

He loves being around his friends

The batteries in my camera died while we were there so Bill came to the rescue again and took these pictures with his cell phone.  

Afterwards

The exact minute the buzzer sounded at the end of the game, Zack broke down in sobs.

I was thankful he was in the game for the final couple minutes or he surely would have been on the bench creating a spectacle.  

As it was, he was distracted enough by playing that he held it in until the spotlight was no longer on him.  

Brotherly hug in the gym

I was so touched to see Jon comforting his brother. They do love each other.

After the game, the team moved to the locker room where Zack gave quite an emotional speech and then they all gathered around him and chanted his name over and over.  I wish I could have been there for that.

When I walked in, he was in an embrace with one of his teammates - truly touching.

The one whose back is turned to the camera is the one who was hugging him

I was not able to get a picture of the hug but I did get great pictures of him with his coaches.

swollen, red eyes from crying

Neat story:  the bigger guy on the right has been Zack's coach for the past three years.  But the guy on the left, I graduated from high school with and he just put his kids in our school this past year. It was such a surprise to see him.

These two men have been fantastic.  Wonderful, godly role models for the boys.

The Last Game

Not an original title I know...but it tells the story.

Unless something miraculous and totally unexpected happens, this was Zack's last game at Valley Christian.  

Before the game started, they announced the team - something they have never done.  They started by announcing the 7th graders, then the non starting 8th graders, and then the starters.  They saved Zack for last...and the applause was amazing and just what he needed for his self-esteem.  Unfortunately, because of my awful camera, I was unable to get a good picture of him running through the line his teammates had formed.  I hate that camera.

Because coach started only the 8th graders and the boy who has been doing the opening tip off this year is a 7th grader, Zack was assigned to do the job.  

the other boy was at least 2 or 3 inches taller than Zack but never jumped for the ball so Zack won it easily

The game spiraled out of control quickly.  Zack had 8 points in the first quarter alone.  By halftime the lead was 31-2.  

Coach instituted the "no shooting until you have passed five times" rule for the third quarter...but even that was not working and the lead continued to build so they changed it to ten passes.

The scoreboard in the background is from the B team boys game...this was taken during warm-ups

Soon they were ahead by so much the other coach could have opted to institute the sympathy rule (down by 40 = forfeit) but after the refs explained that this was their last game and the team had many 8th graders on their team, the coach allowed the game to continue (which was nice). 

The ending score was 49-4 but they could very well have scored much more.

Yes, there were tears after the game...will post about that later.

The Last Two Games

Zack has played his final two games as a Valley Christian Warrior.  They have been filled with many ups and downs, but thankfully, mostly ups.  

I have so much to blog about and that I want to remember so I am going to break it down to several posts.

First, the Thursday night game in Manawa.  I hate that trip to Manawa.  It is so far away and in a remote region with twisty, turning back roads and, of course, it always seems to be snowing when we have to drive there.  

Then, the games run long and by the time we start for home it is at least 8:45-9:00 and we have a solid 45 minute to hour drive home.

Finally, the only place they have to eat there is an expensive Steak House or Subway. Seriously, those are the options - oh - and a gas station.  

The game itself was okay.  Zack got to play quite a bit of the game but they were just ahead by so much that it wasn't fun to watch the game itself.   But at least Zack got to play point guard for a while.  He loves to do it but rarely gets the opportunity.  The boy loves to assist more than he loves to score!

Not great defense.  Leaving Zack unattended in the back court

Zack playing point guard and being in charge!

Final score was 47-16

I have to keep reminding myself that last year they were on the losing side of most of these games so they paid their dues so to speak.