Who Woulda Thunk ...

... that our scrappy little Tribe would be playing in the CHAMPIONSHIP game tomorrow?

After an amazing first softball season, that just kept going ... and going ... and GOING ... we are finally at the tail end. I never thought that we'd be as into it as we all were. But we ARE! We had such a fun group of parents, and great group girls who have truly united together and grown over these past few months. I'm honestly almost sad that we won't be together twice a week anymore.

What I won't miss though is the rescheduling. In fact, last week alone we had softball games planned for almost every night, after crazy Virginia storms ended up calling our first play-off game on Tuesday at the bottom of the 3rd inning. Three reschedules, two play-off games, and a LONG end-of-the-season BBQ later, and here we are!

Of course, these past almost two weeks without Matt have proven to be quite a challenge with all the schlepping and kids activities. From Riley's never ending softball coordination, to the start of the swim team season and evening practices, to Grady's horrific 24-hour puke-fest, we have had something going on EVERY single night. The worst of it is that there just isn't / aren't enough of me to go around. Much to my girls' chagrin, I can't be in more than one place at one time, which leaves me choosing one child's activity over another. I'm tired at the end of the day. I'm a bit grumpy. And meals aren't quite where they should be. Dare I admit that they're getting to know me by name at Wendy's?

With school ending on Friday, we are looking forward to taking a breather as we all need a bit of a rest from the hustle and bustle of these last few weeks. None of us have had an opportunity to decompress after our whirlwind trip to South Bend, IN. We have just been running non-stop to the bevy of activities and chaos ... that is our normal life.

Matt on the other hand is finally settling in to his new apartment in Herat, Afghanistan after spending almost a week in Kabul. He's getting over jet lag and working insane hours. We talk to him every day and the kids have even managed to sit still long enough to Skype with him on their iTouchs.

On his way to Afghanistan, Matt had an overnight in Dubai, which allowed him to have dinner with some of our dear friends who we met on our first overseas tour in Muscat, Oman. Though we keep in touch via email and Facebook, we haven't seen them since we left in 2005! What a reunion!

Like everything else with us, this week is proving insane. Thankfully, there are only ... three more days of school left, three class parties, three days I need a babysitter, two more swim practices, one more softball game, one neighborhood party, one school assembly, one horse show, one swim meet, one PTA meeting, one big a** birthday ...

... AND a partridge in a pear tree.