Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Eight

The Last of the First...

Jumping for joy and leaping for victory. Hugs, high fives, dog piles, and champagne. Those boys sure have a lot to be happy about. They’re champions. I’m just sad they’re wearing white uniforms and not gray ones. Because the Hammerheads wore gray tonight. And they don’t have anything but a completed season to be happy about. Second place just sucks. So close. Too bad close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. The winning team, taking home the Florida State League Championship trophy and those shiny rings, were the Lakeland Flying Tigers. But now that I think about it…maybe they needed those things more than we did anyways. Because Lakeland is a crummy, dingy place…and their hardware should certainly brighten the town up a bit. Maybe they can put some money into that dreaded Imperial Swan Hotel they’ve got. At least enough to hire an exterminator to clean up the cockroaches. Haha…ok, I’m being a brat. It’s just that I’m a bit frustrated and sour about the season-ending loss. Our starting pitcher went 7 shutout innings – an incredible effort - but we couldn’t find a way to score…our bats were dead. Buried. Six feet under.  We mustered only 4 hits and committed 3 errors. And the Flying Tigers won’t ever let us forget that. They took advantage of a few mistakes in the bottom of the eighth inning, scored 2 runs, and never looked back. 

Well, maybe they looked back and taunted the Hammerheads as they made their brutal walk of shame to the visiting clubhouse. Maybe they didn’t. I don’t know. But seriously? As if losing wasn’t bad enough…all our Hammerheads had to pass by the celebrating Tigers’ in order to get back to the bus. Lame.  Gosh, I felt bad. We were just so close. So so close. We only needed one more win. They needed two. And that, they achieved. Dag gummit! Sigh.

Regardless of outcome, though I’d have it another way if I could, I am still so incredibly proud of my husband, the Hammerheads, and the amazing season they put together. We are so fortunate to have been able to return to Jupiter, meet a bunch of really neat guys, and play for a Championship in our first year of professional baseball.  We LOVE this team! 

Adam learned an incredible amount over the course of these last six months. With his newly acquired knowledge and a bit of hard reflection, his second season should be even better than his first! And his first was really good!!! It’s crazy to say, especially because our first year literally just ended, but I’m already looking forward to the upcoming excitement of Spring Training, team placement, and the adventures next season will bring! Outstanding job on your first year of professional baseball, Honey! You make every single one of us so proud. 

And just to brighten the somber mood of the traveling Hammerhead posse,  3 little Marlins decided to attack the Flying Tiger on our way out of the stadium. Here they are, poking out his eyes! Haha! Yeah, take that, you Flying Tiger! And didn’t your mom teach you anything?! TIGERS DON’T FLY! Shesh.

The mommy of these handsome young men is the wife of Adam’s hitting coach here in Jupiter. She’s a travel agent…and…she JUST booked our Honeymoon!!!! Wahoo!! Something positive, has in fact, come out of today. Hooray!

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Seven

The Final Start of 2012

There I am, going at it again after a rain delay yesterday. Today was my last possible start of my first full season, and I was hoping it would be the last game of the season. As many of you know we are playing for the Florida State League Championship. Before my start tonight we were leading the series 2-1, in a best of 5 series. I threw well until the 5th inning when I ran into some command issues with my change-up, and some bad luck. the inning led off with a hit by pitch, then a walk, then a ground ball that rolled 15 ft, just out of the reach of me and my third baseman. The infield single left me in a jam, bases loaded, nobody out. I got pulled from the game and although we played well, didn't play well enough to hold off the Flying Tigers. they tied the series at 2-2 tonight. 

Another common theme I am finding with this team, is not only that they win, but that they don't do anything the easy way. We found that out again as I am not surprised this series is going to game 5. Baseball play-offs have many ups and downs, they are a part of a long season, and the other team wants to win just like we do. Our manager always says "don't expect the game to be easy, the other guys get payed too." haha there is a lot of truth to that statement. I love my job. What a great experience for Kendall and I! Let's go win a championship tomorrow! 

Today is September 11th, and when I was in 6th grade math class with Mrs. Rathbone (she was exactly how her name makes her sound) I didn't exactly understand just how terrible 9/11 was. Today there was a moment of silence before the National Anthem, I spent that time thinking about the innocent people who died, and the world we live in. I spent that time thinking about my brother, who recently was deployed to Afghanistan. I have learned as I have gotten older the importance of our armed forces,  and what this country stands for. I heard an awesome thought on a Christian Radio station this afternoon, it asked "what if you woke up tomorrow with only the things you thanked God for today?." So I spent the rest of the national anthem reflecting on how thankful I am for my God, my wife, my family, and my job. 

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Six

The First Anniversary

On our Conley Bucket List, right at the very top, we've decided that Celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary is our greatest desire. Good news: it's up to us to see that day through! And today, we got a little bit closer to our goal! ONE YEAR down! Already. I can't believe how fast 52 weeks have gone by. 

9.10.11 is now 9.10.12

The current date may not have the same appeal, but I'm certain that today was even better than today was a year ago. I get to wake up, every morning, next to my best friend. The same sweet man who swept me off my feet on that hot Fourth of July night, married me, and whisked me away to a land far, far away. And every day since, I've found a way to love him even more than I did the day before. They say, "It just keeps getting better." Well, whoever they are, I think they're right. I really do. Because that's all it's been for us: better.

To keep the Bucket List 50 years fresh on his mind, I blew up 49 gray balloons and 1 teal balloon. Every year, one gray balloon will become 1 teal balloon until they're all teal. After that, Adam's going to have to figure out a new game plan...! Maybe for our 51st we'll just start in the opposite direction? In any case, until then, this will be our little tradition. I snuck the balloons into our hotel room this morning and he woke up just as happy as ever. Well, minus the fact that we're staying in the nastiest hotel in Lakeland. That didn't dampen the mood or anything. <----Sarcasm. HAHA. And literally, dampen. The hotel can best be described as "damp." The floor. The sheets. The air. Everything. Even the paper I was wrapping Adam's gifts in was damp. And after tonight's unexpected ending, we're happily situated in a non-damp, very dry, clean and fresh hotel. More on that later.  

While Adam slept this morning, I was up and making things happen! I knew he'd be asleep for a while...he was scheduled to pitch today and needed his rest. So after I finished with the balloons, I went down to the truck. I've been working on this project for 4 days and it finally all came together.

In 365 days, Adam and I have visited 13 states, driven 17 thousand miles, lived at 4 addresses, played 144 games, taken over 10 thousand pictures, and between it all, have said the words, "I love you" more than we could probably count. Those words don't get lost on either of us, but today, I wanted Adam to know exactly why. 

So, with 365 sticky notes, I told him.

It looked like Starburst candy attacked his truck. Every single window, even the ones in the back...covered in colorful words of praise.

Every note was numbered...ensuring there were, in fact, 365 total.

And when we finally got them all down, the stack was overwhelming. That's a lot of reasons, Babe! ;)

Together, we read the notes. We laughed. We smiled. We kissed. And flirted. He's my everything and I can't imagine life without him. I am blessed beyond my wildest dreams (and trust me, I dream big), and every day, I still can't get passed how it all came to be. The Lord is so good. And I am so grateful for His provision and Adam's heart. 

This is where I'm supposed to CAPS LOCK that Adam won the game, brought home the ring, and celebrated his first championship title. All on our anniversary. Well, clearly, caps lock isn't in use at the moment. Because tonight's game was stinkin cancelled! Deep breath. So yes, that stadium board lied! The game, was in fact, NOT tonight at 6:30. Booo. Adam and I planned to celebrate our anniversary tomorrow night because he was supposed to pitch today...and romantic doesn't happen on championship nights in cheap hotels. So, we made zero plans for tonight. Other than winning and celebrating. SO, when the game was finally cancelled after an hour and a half of delay, we were stuck on what to do! We went out for a nice dinner and then headed back to the dreaded Imperial Swan Hotel. We sat in the room for a little over an hour until the dead bug on the carpet got Adam's last nerve. The damp carpet was enough. The lid-less toilet seat and broken bathroom light just added to the experience. But the cockroach. Yeah, after seeing that thing, we were out. We packed up our bags and left the team hotel. There was no way we could spend our anniversary night in a room like that and actually feel ok about it. We drove 15 miles to the Holiday Inn, where the sheets are dry, the bed is twice the size, and the sink isn't cracked in half. The towels are also all one color of white and not brown. Haha. This, my friends, is married life in the minor leagues. Adam promised me he'd never make me stay in a place like that again...and I'm holding him to it. One of the sticky notes I wrote him, said, "You make promises and keep them..." so I know he's telling the truth :) We're comfortable, happy, and totally, completely, madly in love. 

Thank you for the best year of my life, Adam.

I love you.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Five

The End of Year One

I guess I never gave much thought about what the 365th day of our marriage would look like. If I were to imagine it, though, I wouldn't be sick, sleep deprived, or overwhelmed. That just wouldn't be a good set up for the anniversary. Well, as much as I imagined it differently, I am, in fact, sick, sleep deprived, and feeling overwhelmed. That "bad decision" we made yesterday trickled into a very early morning. Our 3 AM bed time only gave us 4 hours of sleep, as we had to wake up at 7 AM to finish 4 more boxes of Topps cards. They were due at 8 and we had a lot to complete. Adam signed 2,700 cards. His poor hand! Ah! In assembly line fashion, I handed him the cards, he autographed them, and I put them back into the box. It was a mundane process, definitely not something either of us will miss doing, but certainly a privilege that we're grateful for. Next time, we'll just ask for a few days to complete the stacks! The man came and collected the 9 boxes of baseball cards at 10:30 AM (two and a half hours later than scheduled) and I'm sad that I may never see any of those neat things ever again! Good thing, though, I can get a personalized autograph from my handsome man whenever I want! ;) 

Immediately after the Topps man came and collected his treasures, Adam and I headed for Lakeland...TOGETHER!! The bus left last night, and because of the card deadline, Adam had to stay in Jupiter to finish them. And I'm selfishly thankful that it worked out as it did. Because riding with my man is the best way to travel. Especially when he sings. Oh, I love when he sings.

The millisecond Adam left for the field, our hotel room turned into this. Kendall Projects everywhere. I've been working for quite some time now...trying my hardest to put together the best anniversary gift I can muster for Adam and our one year. Traditionally, paper is to be given on the 1st anniversary, and of course, I stuck closely to the parameter. But it definitely took a little creativity and a lot of Pinterest to make it happen. I am SO EXCITED for the reveal and can't wait to see his face (hopefully) light up! 

This is what our hotel room currently looks like. It's hard planning an anniversary surprise on the road, but I'm doing my very best and enjoying the process...even though I'm quite sick. I had to quickly clean the room after the game ended, while Adam waited in the bathroom for me to finish! I decided that the best place to hide all of my creative energy was on the opposite side of the other bed...and with a few stern words, Adam can't see anything! 

And because of the crazy schedule...Adam and I decided tonight that we're not going to celebrate our anniversary in it's fullness, until the 11th. Booo. Here's why: Adam pitches tomorrow for the Championship! On our anniversary! You couldn't have written a better story! The Hammerheads won tonight, and are now leading the series 2-1. One more win...AND WE'RE THE FSL CHAMPIONS! With all the excitement and impossibility of a romantic day/night, Adam really wanted to wait. He wants to make sure everything's perfect, that we're not staying in the dirtiest hotel in the whole league, and that we have time to enjoy each other. I agreed. But I'm still celebrating tomorrow, no matter what! I've got a few things planned for him, and by gollie, we BETTER win!

THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY FIVE DAYS...GONE.

They've been the best of my life.

He's the best of my life.

And I'm so glad I recorded every moment of it.

Question is...

Will she record the next 365 days?

I guess you'll just have to wait and see.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Two

The FSL Divisional Champions!

By Adam

It only took 145 games to find out we were going to be playing for a Championship in 2012. I have learned a trend with this team: they win. Most of the members of our High-A affiliate, the Jupiter Hammerheads, were apart of the Greensboro Grasshoppers team when they  won it all a year ago. I have only spent half the year with this group, but had a feeling of intuition that we would find ourselves in this position. The next series is against Lakeland, an affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, beginning tomorrow night. 

There we are, celebrating again. I'll tell ya, if you want to do your best to make a nearly 7 month long season, 140+ games, travel, good hotels, bad hotels, camaraderie, animosity and relationship seem shorter, just win. This is the 3rd time this year that Jose, myself, and a few others have been on a team that clinched the playoffs, or advanced to the championship series. Winning sure does make the grind a little better, a little shorter, and wholly worth the work and sacrifice. One more celebration will mean that we won it all, and I hope that in my first full year I can say I celebrated four times, and won two rings. 

On these occasions of course pictures are needed, so naturally, Kendall felt comfortable in this situation. Pictures were taken. 

I even let Kendall on the field to take a picture with me, she even got a hand on some hardware!

Remnant bottles from our celebration, all the liquid inside was fizzed up, and sprayed all over. A gatorade cooler was dumped on our manager, and I'm pretty sure at least a few people got hit with a cork... no one got hurt! The green bottles were genuinely champaign but the clear bottles merely impostors full of "alcohol-removed wine." Don't be fooled, I learned a lesson today I never will forget: the clear and fake bottles contain the most sinister liquid of them all. Champaign in your eye hurts, but this stuff was terrible! Again, all worth it. I could get used to this winning thing!

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-One

The Divisional Series Game 2 and Adam's Thirteenth

This photo should not come as any surprise. Neither should that gigantic tarp or those looming torrential clouds. This sight has become a thing of the season, and really, truly, I'm getting quite sick of that shiny white plastic draped over the infield. I showed up to Digital Domain Park at 5:45 this evening, grabbed my seat, and began eating my Subway sandwich before the butterflies could take claim of the space in my tummy. I was feeling good. Excited. And then something wet dropped on my head. Then another. Before I knew it, the clouds were falling and the announcer was hitting us with more bad news: a game delay. What was supposed to be a 6:35 start was now scheduled for 7:00 PM. But at 7, the tarp was still lying there. 

At 8:15, Adam finally began his pre-game bullpen. The new, official start time was now 8:35...two hours after the original start time. Sigh. 

If you look closely in this photograph, you'll notice a man watching Adam from the top of the stands. His name is Mr. Meek, and largely because of his effort, Adam now calls himself a Marlin. Stan is the Vice President of Scouting for the Marlins organization and made his way to Port St. Lucie to watch Adam pitch tonight. Back in July of last year, Adam and I met with Mr. Meek at a hotel near Bellevue, WA to discuss negotiations regarding Adam's potential contract. It was a sort of business meeting that I'd never been apart of, so naturally, I had a lot of questions for Stan. Well, he must have remembered me. Because I got a chance to sit down and talk with him for a good amount of time today. It was nice to have a regular conversation with him about life away from the business end of baseball. He's a Christian man with a lot of insight on the experiences ahead of us, and I was eager to learn whatever I could from him. Mr. Meek had many sweet things to say about my husband and was excited to hear that married life is treating the Conleys so, so well. He also told me to put some more meat on Adam. Yes sir! Coming right up! 215 by Spring Training...

The second game of the Divisional Series was called by these fellas. Umpire second from the left was behind the plate tonight, calling all of Adam's pitches. He only messed up a few times, I'd say. One of those times, though, was a potential called third strike. Instead, he called it ball four. Boooo. 

Adam pitched well tonight. Especially if you take away the first inning. He said he felt good in the first, but had trouble finding the strike zone. Two batters walked. Two struck out. It was weird. I almost cried and my anxiety almost consumed me whole. But after that, it was smooth sailing for the next 3 innings. He was frustrated when he got pulled after the fourth...but, this late in the year, his withdrawal from the game was a sign from the Marlins that they care more about his health and his future. 

His line:

4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 Ks.

The Hammerheads lost though, 2-1. Our bats just weren't alive. Somebody killed them. Tomorrow's game will determine if our boys have a shot at the championship...and that shiny ring that I'd really like to display in our Man Cave some day ;)

Oh, and shhhh...the Hammerhead Groupies shared a funnel cake during tonight's action. It was our reward for the long season. Yeah. That's it. 

Day Three Hundred and Sixty

The Division Championship Game #1

Tonight marked the beginning of Adam's first post season game. The Division Championship Game between the Mets and our home team Hammerheads began precisely at 6:35 PM...

And did not end until MIDNIGHT. Yes, that 12:00 display in the bottom right hand corner of the photo is 12:00 AM, as in, the game took FIVE AND A HALF hours to complete. And what better timing to end a game? Exactly at midnight. On the dot. As if Cincerella's carriage was waiting outside the field to turn back into a pumpkin if the game went any longer. 

You see, it all started fine and dandy with mostly clear skies and Jose on the mound. Alejandra watched as her man made plays and struck dudes out. He pitched 5 innings, allowing only one run. A pretty good outing by our friend. 

But the second Jose left the game, the clouds rushed in. Oh no. Please, not the rain. The clouds did make for a neat photo though...

And then those same clouds...well, they just let us have it. The rain came in - literally - one minute. Like it always does. One second you're dry, the next, you're sprinting for cover, praying that your hands covered enough of your hair that you don't resemble a wet mutt by the time you reach safety. In no more than 20 minutes, the field was completely drenched...standing water covering the bullpen, batter's boxes, and dugouts. The game was delayed in the top of the sixth inning. It might have been 8:00 by then. The game didn't resume again until 10:45. 

And so, Alejandra and I hung out under the stadium, along with the rest of the 300 person fan base. Hamilton the Hammerhead spotted us girls and came over to flirt. At least, that's what I think his motives were. I asked him to pose for a picture with Ale, but instead, he took advantage of the moment and dipped her into a kiss! Hahhaha..sneaky little shark! 

Following Hamilton's childish antics, we found ourselves in the ladies room, away from the cold misty air and the shark's stinky costume. Ale had to wash the stench from her hands...and that turned into this. With music playing over the speakers, we had the bathroom to ourselves. A giant dance floor with no one but the empty stalls to entertain. And so...we started dancing. Alejandra took on the role of ballerina. She's very graceful, that girl. Ok, that's just a boldface lie. Ale can dance, that's for sure, but not delicately. This pose looks more like a move from taekwondo than ballet to me ;)

And then it was my turn. With all those years of gymnastics and pole vaulting under my belt, I guess I've still got something to show for it! Although, I'd be heavily deducted for those bent legs and flexed toes. Shame on me! 

In the end - rain, dancing, and delays aside - the Hammerheads came out victorious with a 3-1 win over the Mets. They scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 8th and held on to that lead. They play again tomorrow at 6:30 in Port St. Lucie. Adam will have the ball. And since it's 2:45 AM right now, he's asleep resting up for his start. I'm about to join him because being awake this late is just ridiculous. And as always...GO HAMMERHEADS! 

Day Three Hundred and Fifty-Four

The Beach Meet and Baseball Feat

Since our first hug in April, my sweet Alejandra from the country of Uruguay has become one of my dearest and closest friends. She's just...the best. An amazing woman with a quick mind and a gracious heart. I love her like a sister. And today, after four months of spending so much time with her, I finally got to meet the woman Ale calls "Mama." I felt like I was meeting a second Alejandra! They're so much alike...minus the fact that Mama doesn't speak much English. She's been in Uruguay for the past 2 months and is back and ready to tackle her English studies! She's going to start learning English and I'm going to start learning Spanish! I feel so lucky to have met Susana and can't wait to spend more time with her. Our day at the beach was a windy one...I've never seen the water so crazy here. I think it must has something to do with hurricane Isaac, but that's just a guess. And of course, since the sun hasn't been out for 3 weeks now, both Susana and I walked away with sunburns. Laaaaame. 

On to Adam's day.

The Hammerheads won tonight's game. They're in first place right now. Due to how the season is ending, after their win tonight, they only needed the second place team behind them to lose...in order to clinch their spot in post season play. And so, following their win, the boys packed into the clubhouse, turned on the computer, found the Bradenton game, and listened for their fate. Bradenton lost...and that means:

THE HAMMERHEADS MADE THE POST SEASON!

Just like the Grasshoppers in Greensboro, these boys will be playing for the Class A Championship at season's end! Get this: if Greensboro wins the championship and Jupiter does too...Adam and Jose will get BOTH championship rings! From both teams! How cool is that?! Bring home the hardware, boys!

Here, the boys are huddled around the computer, listening to the game...and preparing for their champagne shower...Notice the goggles and choice of clothing! Too funny.

The entire locker room was immediately covered in plastic wrap by the end of the Bradenton game...you can see the one table already wrapped up! The boys celebrated by pouring champagne all over each other and doing other "man things," I guess. Haha...I've never been a part of a celebration like that, so I can't really speak on their behalf. But Adam said it was really exciting and that they all had a really good time. Wahoo! 

Congratulations Jupiter Hammerheads!

And to keep the celebration going, Susana cooked us all dinner...a specialty of hers from Uruguay called, "Capeletis a la Salsa." Oh my gosh. I'm moving to Uruguay. Their food is SO GOOD! 

Day Two Hundred and Eighty

The Playoff-Spot Clinch

THE HOPPERS WON!!! CHAMPAGNE EVERYWHERE!!

Tonight, our Greensboro Grasshoppers clinched a spot in the post-season playoffs!! And it was so much fun to watch as they celebrated like CRAZY! Regardless of how they play during the second half of the season, nothing can keep them from playing for a spot in the championship game! Good job Marlin Men!!

I'm most proud of you though, Sweetheart.

I love you, so much, Adam Conley.