Way too Long...

Well, a ton has transpired since my last post. I'll try to get everyone up to date.

Matt:
Out of the blue I got a call from New York Life Retirement Services two weeks ago about a job opportunity. I interviewed with them on Monday 6/22 and everything went fantastically well. They were looking for someone with my background and were faced with some challenges that I had already experienced. It was for a role that I was actually overqualified for. However, in this crazy marketplace, I got a call back on Friday 6/26 saying they were pursuing other candidates with more experience! All in all, it was not a lost exercise. Interviews are few and far between, so there is value in learning from the process. I was not terribly excited about the opportunity and it would have been about a 1 and 1/2 hour commute...one way. We'll just have to see what tomorrow brings.

Kelly:
Kelly's been working now for a few weeks. She's adjusting well and for the most part enjoys the job and the hospital environment. We are anxiously waiting to hear the prognosis of her oldest brother's malignant tumor. We are praying that it is a very treatable form of cancer and hope to have more information by Wednesday of this week.

Derek and Jacen:
Our regular season for baseball didn't end as we had hoped. We played our worst game of the season and lost in the semi-final game. The boys took it pretty hard, but had a fantastic season. Both are playing on the summer All-Star teams representing our town. I am coaching Derek's 12U team and Jacen is playing on the 10U team. Both teams started tournament play over the past two weeks....I'll try and post regular updates to keep everyone informed.

10U
Jacen's team played in an invitational tournament the weekend of 6/19. His team went 4-0 and won the championship in dramatic fashion. They faced Kearsarge Mountain South in the final whom they had previously beaten 13-6(? - can't remember the score, but it was quite handily). In the championship game, his team was down 4-2 heading into the bottom of the 6th inning (i.e. final inning). His team scrapped back into it and tied the game 4-4. Jacen came up with 2 outs and hit a hard line drive over the center fielder's head to win the game with a walk off hit. It was one of those proud moments as a Dad. (The ironic thing is Derek did the very same thing, in the very same tournament two years prior)

Jacen's team started there Cal Ripken District tournament today in Auburn, NH. They faced Exeter and after being down 3-0 for the first 3 innings the team broke through in the fourth scoring 7 and eventually winning the game 7-4. They play again on Tuesday night....stay tuned!

12U
Derek's team started playing this weekend in Jaffrey, NH. The bottomline story is that the team performed extremely well. Game 1 was against Swanzey, NH and the team was victorious 8-1. Derek had a solo home run and pitched 2 scoreless innings. Game 2 was against a scrappy, but young Con-Val (Connecticut Valley) The bats again exploded and the team was victorious 13-0. In the championship today, the team faced the same Con-Val team and once again walked away with a convincing win. The final was 11-0.

Derek starts his Cal Ripken District play on July 9 in Hudson, NH. With the great start, we hope to have the same success.

Oh...did I forget Grady? Of course not....Grady wrapped up T-Ball a week ago. Another rite of passage complete....on to Rookie ball! Grady is going to attend Vacation Bible School at our church this week and is very much looking forward to it. He's a trooper with all the travel sports. He's very social and really gets along well with the siblings of his brothers' teammates.

Signing off for now....hoping I will get in some kind of routine to keep everyone up to date!