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Take Me Out to the Skybox

There’s nothing better than a road trip to kick off summer! Last Friday, Ed came home at noon and the girls had an early dismissal from school, so we loaded up the minivan and drove to Des Moines. When Ed mentions that we’re headed to Iowa, people ask why. The simple reason is that my dad and step-mom live there. However, we are really glad to have an excuse to go to Des Moines. It has all the advantages of a big city without all the traffic. And most of the downtown parking is FREE! If you’ve ever parked your car in downtown Chicago, you know this is a BIG DEAL!

Road Trip with Kids
Not my minivan, and not Des Moines, either!

We love going to an Iowa Cubs game when we’re in town, and this year, we did it right. My dad has always wanted to rent a skybox, and this year he took the plunge and splurged on one! The ballpark is right where the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers meet. The skybox could fit up to 20 people, so my step-mom’s family came along with some family friends.

Sec Taylor Stadium
Principal Park

Lily loves watching the game with Ed, but Emmy was concerned about only one thing: how was she going to get her cotton candy if we weren’t sitting in the stands? She even took a picture of the cotton candy man with my phone!

cotton candy man

Emmy didn’t need to worry; one of the cotton candy vendors came up to the skyboxes selling cotton candy door-to-door. That’s Emmy’s kind of service! We also had a personal visit from the Cubby Bear.

Iowa Cubs mascot

But what about the game? If you’ve never been to a minor league game, they are a lot of fun. There are a lot of activities to keep the kids entertained; they shoot T-shirts out of a cannon and have other things to watch in between innings. Principal Park is such a nice stadium. Of course, we love Wrigley Field, but it’s not as clean and kid-friendly as Principal Park. As for the game itself, the ICubs scored a lot of points and won!

skybox

What a great way for us to kick off summer! How are you kicking off summer? Link up your post here, and be sure to visit our other Spinners!


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Next week: Summer Reruns During the summer months, most television shows are reruns. Share some of your favorite TV shows that you love watching, even in reruns OR “rerun” one of your favorite blog posts from the past!

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Remembering Mr. “R”

Most of the teachers I had were good teachers. My parents were very wise, and when they didn’t like one of my teachers, they didn’t let on. They taught me to respect my teachers. In a couple of situations when I had a bad teacher, I just had to work hard and try to get through the class the best I could. My parents helped me when they could, but when I almost failed trigonometry, they couldn’t do much to help me with my homework!

Fortunately, most of my teachers were very good at their job. It’s probably why I went on to become a teacher myself. Several years ago, I wrote this essay about a teacher I had in 7th grade, and I’m sharing it with you again.

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I had this teacher once. Mr. “R” was not considered a “cool” teacher. He didn’t play favorites. He taught. He showed me how to find the various innards of an earthworm, taught me math and literature, and instructed me in the fine arts. I learned about pointillism and ringing handbells. He also insisted that if we didn’t get something right, we had to try again until we did get it right. When I went up to his desk to ask him a question, he would look at me as if I should already know the answer. I was probably supposed to know the answer, but I had been daydreaming when he had given us directions. Mr. “R” was a tough teacher, which made him a good teacher. Strict, yet kind.

Mr. “R” was also the church musician and so years after I had Mr. “R” as a teacher, he was my choir director. I was able to get to know him as an adult. I always had fun rehearsing with Mr. “R”!

I still play in the handbell choir at church.
I still play in the handbell choir at church.

It was during this time that I was diagnosed with breast cancer. While I valued all the cards and letters I received, I especially treasured the letters Mr. “R” sent me. “The news of your health has haunted me for these past few days…” he wrote in his beautiful script, the same handwriting I had read long before on the papers he had graded. “Along with depressed moments during these dark days ‘have no anxiety about anything…’ Philippians 4:6.” His kind words encouraged me and gave me hope.

A few years ago, Mr. “R” passed away from cancer himself. I have kept his letters in my “cancer scrapbook,” and they bring back fond memories of him. I wonder, did he know how much his letters meant to me?

And so, Mr. “R”, I send you a much belated “Thank You” for so much encouragement during a dark time in my life. You are an inspiration to me as I strive to encourage other women who are in similar situations. I just hope I can be as encouraging to them as you were to me.

“But encourage one another daily…so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” Hebrews 3:13

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Spin Cycle at Second Blooming
Get the code in my blog’s sidebar and add it to your blog post!

Coming up on The Spin Cycle:

Week of May 25: Kicking Off Summer! Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer! Write your summer bucket list; tell us about a vacation you’re looking forward to; recommend some summer books to read.

Week of June 1: Summer Reruns During the summer months, most television shows are reruns. Share some of your favorite TV shows that you love watching, even in reruns OR “rerun” one of your favorite blog posts from the past!

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