#WAGSinreallife

I've mentioned before that "wags" is a term used to reference wives and girlfriends of professional athletes. This week, a show called "WAGS" aired on E... It features some women who are married to or "associated with" (whatever that means) various athletes. The promos for this show talk about how it's all about fame, diamonds, black cards, glamour, and drama... Well if you know me or any other baseball wife, you know that is NOT our reality! Even in the big leagues, yeah there are certainly perks but it still is far from the lavish lifestyle that this show portrays as "normal." We aren't in this life for the perks, we are in it because we choose to support our men 100% while they work for their dreams each day because we LOVE them- not because the prospect of fame or money drives us to. My friend Deirdre said it best "...baseball is such a tiny part of our lives in the grand scheme of things. Right now it takes up a large part of what we do and who we are, but I sacrifice and support him because I love him as a human. Not as a professional baseball player."

On one hand, it's definitely funny how stupid and unrealistic the show is. On the other, it's really frustrating to be so inaccurately portrayed. An anonymous NFL wife wrote a post for Thought Catalog that talks about the discrepancies between reality and Reality TV's portraying of football culture. Baseball fiancee and owner of Home Run Sitters Ashlee Rowe wrote a post chronicling where the E show went wrong. Women across sports got upset about the stereotype that this show is reinforcing.

As a fun way to rally together and show what our reality looks like, baseball wife Alysa (check out her blog she posts tons of cool recipes and such) came up with a great idea, posting about our own experiences. Overnight, the hashtag was used by dozens of wives and girlfriends, and at this point in time has reached over 32,00 75,000 twitter users! Check out #WAGSinreallife on twitter to read our funny tidbits of life in the game.

It's amazing to see so many women come together to laugh and share stories and lessons learned from this crazy life we lead. I've said it before and I will say it again, having the support system with baseball wives and girlfriends is what makes it possible. I would be so lost if it weren't for the other women who have been in the game far longer than I have who came alongside me and showed me the ropes, with kindness and encouragement. There is no hierarchy or drama here, just genuine support.

On my sidebar and under the "Baseball" tab here on the blog, I have links to blogs written by other baseball wives/girlfriends. If you want to read about what life is really like as the spouse of a professional athlete, please take a minute to check them out! Y'all know me, and you know that while this lifestyle is a blessing and we don't take it for granted, it does have its fair share of struggles. Hopefully people will see the reality instead of the "reality" of television.

XO, Han