Offseason.. Where did you go?!

Holy cow, it is already January and we have left our offseason home in Alaska and are getting ready for spring training! I say this every year, but it seems like the offseason goes by faster and faster.

Okay so lets rewind. Towards the end of last season Cy was promoted to the Astros AAA team, the Fresno Grizzles. They spent most of the last month of the season on the road, so I just lived out of my suitcase and met up with Cy on road trips, and then spent the time in between split between my grandparents and in laws. It was a super fun whirlwind, but I was definitely excited to be DONE for awhile after so much travel haha!

Our offseason in Alaska was wonderful and all too short, as usual. We love our time and community there. A few highlights:
- My best friend gave birth to her perfect baby girl!
- We completed our first round of Whole30 and oh my gosh it was a game changer!
- Cy spent lots and LOTS of time in the mountains hunting. The boy loves him some nature.
- I spent lots of quality time with my quilting ladies and finished several quilts! We had a wonderful time at our quilters retreat at the Second Star in Homer.

- My mom and I had so many fun lunch dates

- I accomplished some projects for my business!
- Our family came to visit!!! Cy's mom, stepdad, brother, and my sister in law all came up and spent Thanksgiving with us. It was so fun and special to have them!

- We celebrated our 3 year anniversary!
- I teamed up with my sweet friends Becky and Carol to have a booth at our local craft fairs leading up to Christmas! We had so much fun together. We have some great ideas for next year, get excited ;)
- Cy took a trip to Idaho to hunt with his dad, brother, and grandpa
- We made a trip to Texas for some of our best friends weddings! We don't get to spend nearly as much time with all of them as we would like, so we treasure the time together.

- My mom, sister Hope, and I binged watched the first season of Stranger Things together (I love to binge watch. Mom does not. LOL)

All in all, it was so full of great things and we wish it wasn't over just yet! But baseball never stops ;)

Currently we are in Idaho for a few weeks visiting my in laws and for Cy to work out and throw in preparation for spring training. After this, we will head to Dallas for a bit and then it is off to Florida for spring training!

One of my intentions for this year is to get back to more regular posts here. I love looking back on my old posts, it is like a scrapbook of sorts for me. I need to get better about documenting these memories.

Thanks for reading!
xo, Han

Moving On Up!

About 2 weeks ago Cy got promoted to the Astros AAA team in Fresno, CA! We definitely didn't see it coming and were so surprised and excited. I was actually at home with our host family watching a movie when Cy called. I figured he was calling to see if there was any leftovers from dinner he could eat rather than eating at the field lol! But surprise, he was getting moved up! After Cy got home (around 11pm) and the initial shock wore off, we got our plans together. He had a flight out to meet up with the team in Albuquerque the next morning, so we hurried and got his things packed up to hit the road. His first outing was in Fresno, and his aunt and cousins were able to make the trip!

I stayed back in Corpus for almost a week longer. For one, there is always a chance of getting moved back down lol! Two, I needed to pack up everything else and figure out my own plans. It was great to have a few days to get everything wrapped up and say goodbye to our wonderful host family. I can never express how grateful and truly blessed we have been by the amazing families that have so generously let us into their homes and lives over the past 3 seasons, and it never gets easier to say goodbye when the time comes.

After I got everything packed up, I headed north to Fort Worth to spend a couple nights with my sister at my grandparents house! It was great to get a little bit of time to visit with Haley, I haven't seen her since her wedding in March. From there, she took me to the airport and I flew to Reno to meet up with Cy!!

Most of Cy's family lives near enough to drive to Reno, so it was nice to get to see everyone and for them to be able to see him pitch. He had a GREAT outing and it was fun to have family and friends there to see it!

The team only had 7 home games left at the time Cy was promoted, so I am just meeting up with him on road trips to finish out the season. It is definitely hard to be spending more time apart than together this month, since that is not what we are used to, but thankfully it is just for a short time and offseason is just around the corner.

I was FREEZING. Definitely not in South Texas anymore!!!

I am beyond proud of how hard Cy has worked this season, and so thankful that he is able to continue his baseball career at another level up!

Thanks for reading!
xo, Han

Road Trip Tips & Tricks

As you may or may not know, I spend a LOT of time traveling during baseball season- most of it alone. I can't even tell you the amount of miles I have driven over the past 4 years! This season alone it is probably close to 2,000.. Not even counting air travel or spring training!

Along the way I have learned a few things that make life on the road easier, and I thought I would share!

Tulsa, OK

1. Make a plan. Life in general is better when you have a plan to work from, and travel is no different. I like to plan my packing list a few days head of time then pack the day before, so nothing gets left behind. I also make a plan for where I will make food, restroom, and fuel stops on the road. I have found that if I look up good stopping points in advance I won't have to end up using a sketchy little gas station bathroom just to find out I could have driven another 15 minutes and been at a nice clean starbucks or chickfila instead ;) 

2. Pack smart. I am a huge huge HUGE fan of packing cubes! You can get them on Amazon for pretty cheap. I like to organize by tops, pants, socks & underwear, and such. Having things separated by category helps to avoid my suitcase turning into a clothing explosion in the hotel room. As mentioned above, I like to make a thorough packing list in advance, and then pack everything except for my travel outfit and toiletries the night before. Anytime I try to pack on the day of travel, I forget things! 

3. Sleep. I am not the kind of person who can survive just fine on a lack of sleep. I *need* 8 hours. But we all know sleeping in hotels can be a struggle. Some things that help me immensely are using a sleep mask, playing white noise sounds on an app on my phone, essential oils, and bringing my own pillow. Maybe I am a diva, but I reallllyyy love my own pillow and sleep much better with it! 

4. Hydration is crucial! I can tell a huge difference in how I feel when I am dehydrated. And unfortunately, I basically don't drink any water on driving days because I like to stop as little as possible. For example, I stop just once in the middle of my 8 hour drive between Corpus and Frisco. I try to drink one full water bottle within the hour before I stop. Because of this, I am always pretty dehydrated at the end of the day! To help combat that, I try to drink extra water on the days before and after traveling. Staying hydrated helps me to feel and sleep much better in general. 

5. Bust the boredom. I don't know about you, but I just can't listen to the radio for more than an hour or two until I am bored and need something a little more stimulating. I like to use my drive time for making phone calls, and then I tune into podcasts! My favorites are anything that is true crime, right now I am loving Up and Vanished- the season finale is coming out soon and I am so anxious for it! There are TONS of podcasts on literally any subject you could possibly want to hear about, so check into that before your next trip.

6. Things to keep handy in the car: a bottle of water, advil (my neck and shoulders start hurting a few hours into a drive), protein bar or snacks, phone charger... What would you add??

Just a few things that make a difference for me! What are your road trip tips?

Spring Training 2017

Before the start of each season, players attend Spring Training. Each team has a facility, either in AZ or FL, where their entire organization gathers to train and prep for the season for a little over a month. Our spring training facility with the Astros is in West Palm beach, Florida. There are two separate "camps" at spring training for major league and minor league teams- this year Cy was invited to attend major league camp as a "non-roster invite" which is very exciting!

Cy had to report to the facility on February 14th (Happy Valentine's Day to us L O L) so we packed up where we were staying with sweet friends in Dallas and drove over a couple days before. You might be in baseball if a drive from Texas to southeast Florida is "easy" ;) In minor league camp, you can either stay in the team hotel for free with a roommate or receive a small stipend and find your own place to live. In big league camp you get your own room in the hotel, so that is where we stayed!  Reality- hotel life is nice for a short time, but by the end of our 6 weeks there I was desperate for a kitchen and home cooked meal haha. But all in all it was very nice to have that housing option!

The facility is West Palm is brand new, this was our first season there. Previously the Astros had been in Kissimmee. It was definitely exciting to get to see the facility finish being build *just* in time for the first games to start.

Linzy, Breonna, and I went to waterside yoga- super fun! 

One of my favorite Astros wives, Breonna West, was able to visit for most of the time and their room was just down the hall from ours- a baseball wife dream come true lol! We had SO much fun hanging out while the guys were at the field each day. Another highlight for me was the annual Women's Luncheon hosted by Pro Athlete Outreach and Baseball Chapel- it is always a wonderful time meeting other women and learning from those who have been in the game for years!

Pitching against the Mets!

It was so exciting to be able to see Cy suited up and playing with the big league team when games started! He had a couple chances to get game time and faced some great players. Mostly, it was great to be able to spend time working with the big league coaches and staff, learning some things they would like him to develop and such. I also really enjoyed spending time with the wives and girlfriends there, everyone was so kind and welcoming!

The last week of spring training is always a little wild because generally you don't find out where the team is sending you to start the season until the last minute. This year was even more exciting than usual because my sister Haley got married on March 28th! I flew home to AK on Friday, her wedding was Tuesday (also the day we found out Cy was for sure starting in Corpus), I got back to FL late Wednesday night, and we hit the road for Texas on Friday- talk about a whirlwind week! The wedding was absolutely beautiful, here is a vlog of the big day made by my brother in law and his business partner. They are professional videographers, you can see their work HERE :)

All in all, we had a great spring training! Cy got some great prep and instruction, I got to spend time with several sweet friends, and make a quick trip home to see my sister get married!

More next time on how our season has been so far, thanks for reading :)

xo, Han
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Guess who's back, back again! Catching up...

Okay so it has been approximately 37 years since I posted here. Actually like 10 months, but still... VERY overdue for an update! Here's how our offseason went :)

We wrapped up last season with a trip to the playoffs but didn't win, which meant it was time to hit the road north to Alaska for the offseason! My dad bought a truck in Dallas, so we picked it up and drove all the way home to Kenai for him. The trip though Canada was absolutely amazing- if you're into traveling at all, you 1000% must make this trip at some point. British Columbia, in particular, is beyond breathtaking, and it was just amazing to be completely surrounded by such vast, mind blowing beauty.

A little wildlife! We saw caribou, bison, and a grizzly bear along the way.

We made it!!

Our offseason in Alaska was wonderful, to say the least. It was so nice to spend that much time living near my family and best friend after so many years of living in Texas. We also loved the quality time we got to spend living alone- we are so blessed and thankful for the wonderful host families who have opened their homes to us each season, but it is really nice to be like a normal married couple and live by ourselves in the offseason lol.

I really enjoyed going to quilt group each week! We moved to AK when I was 4, and at the time both sets of grandparents lived on opposite sides of the country. Some ladies at church took my sister and I and loved us as their own grandkids, one of which being Becky Moore. She is a very gifted quilter, and made sure to teach us that skill over the years growing up. This offseason I was able to spend time with Becky and the quilting ladies and whip out a few quilts of my own! It was so wonderful to have that creative outlet as well as spending time with the wonderful ladies I get to call my friends there.

I also joined the world of direct sales with a company called SeneGence, best known for their "magic lipstick" LipSense. If you want to learn more about that, join me over at bit.ly/loveandlipstick - it has been such a fun thing for me :)

Cy spent the offseason working diligently to FINISH HIS DEGREE!! Whoop whoop! He officially graduated from DBU with a Business Management degree and a minored in Marketing. I am SO proud of him. He took an almost double course load in order to finish in December, completely online. Big thanks to DBU and Mrs. Patty Whitely for making it possible for him to finish online. It took a lot of dedication to sit down and get his classwork done each week when there was the option to be out hunting instead. This year, he is really looking forward to having more freedom with his time :)

Under my needle- a quilt for my Granny!

Family Christmas pic taken by my now brother in law Trevor Wagoner :)

Our daily drive

One of the quilts I made, a baby gift!

It was our year to spend Christmas with my in-law's in Idaho, so we got to enjoy some time visiting with them before heading south to Texas to get ready for spring training. My sister Haley got engaged over Christmas and married at the end of spring training which was also a big highlight!!  More on that later :)

My sister in law Jamie and I *love* getting all the Dutch Bros coffee we can when we visit!

We started a new tradition at Cy's moms house- the Christmas Decathlon! SO much fun. 

I am really hoping to get back into the routine of posting here more often, so keep an eye out for the next post with a recap of Spring Training- spoiler alert, Cy was invited to to Big League camp so it was really exciting!

Thanks for reading :)
xo, Han

The State of Our Season

Beautiful sunset in Springdale, AR this week

It is CRAZY that the season is just a few short weeks from ending! It feels like it has flown by so much faster than last year. We have a guaranteed spot in the playoffs because we won the first half, so we shall see how far into post-season play we will go.

I figure this would be a good time to share a little about how our season has been in general!

Hannah-
This season has been GREAT for me. I don't think I have shared much about it here, but last fall I started working as a personal/administrative assistant for two ladies who are high ranking Beachbody coaches. This has been a huge blessing for several reasons! First, it is beyond amazing to have a job where I can work remotely and be able to make money while traveling with Cy full time. Second, it is so nice to have my own tasks and responsibilities to focus on outside of baseball. I have my work, Cy has his work, we get to focus on our own things instead of all baseball on both of our brains constantly. Third, the nature of my work is SO social and community focused, which is so great for my social butterfly self! (If you're a baseball girl interested in a position like mine, shoot me an email!) Plus, I get to use a lot of practical skills and knowledge from my degree, which is great ;)

We are living with an INCREDIBLE host family (I seriously am amazed by how many truly wonderful people we have been able to live with in our past 2 seasons!!) and really they make baseball life doable. My host parents and I kind of accidentally started working out a couple months ago and now have a nightly group workout routine! It is really fun to do together, and I feel so great getting consistent exercise in- something I honestly have never really enjoyed haha.

I have been traveling a LOT. I've gone on a good majority of Cy's road trips, plus a trip home to Alaska for my best friends wedding at the beginning of August! It has been super fun but starting to wear me out, I am ready for the offseason to just be in one place for awhile!


Cy-
"This season has been good! There have definitely been some frustrating moments pitching wise because I feel like I haven't been quite as consistent as I was last season or as I am capable of. But all in all I am happy with my season. We have won a lot of games, which is always fun. I really enjoy the staff and the organization as a whole.

Our host family is awesome, makes life a lot easier. We have eaten a lot of great food and seen some fun new places this season- no complaints! It is really great to have Hannah with me full time, not everyone is able to make that work during season and I am thankful we can because it makes all the difference in the world.

This offseason is going to be good. I am excited to graduate in December and be DONE with school. Looking forward to doing manly stuff like hunting and chopping trees/firewood. Plus, getting to spend time with family and reset my mind and body to get ready for next season."


Us-
We are rapidly approaching our 2 year anniversary, which is crazy. Sometimes it feels like it was just last week that we got engaged, but at the same time it feels like we have been together forever. It's cliche but really, life is great when your spouse is your best friend! We are making lots of memories and enjoying the slightly crazy life that baseball gives us. Always an adventure ;)


So for our offseason, barring any crazy changes that baseball might bring, we are headed to ALASKA!! Yes, for real! All of the pieces just fell into place for us to spend most of our offseason up there near my family. We are really excited! I haven't been home for longer than like 3 weeks at a time since I left for college, so it will be great to spend extended quality time with our loved ones there.

Here's to the last few weeks of this season!!

xo, Hannah

So, Can You Get Me Tickets?? // Baseball FAQs

I thought it would be fun to start a new series that addresses common questions about various aspects of baseball life. There are a few things that often come up as topics of conversation amongst the baseball world, and one of them is the assumption that players get unlimited free tickets to games. The reality is... Ehhh, sort of.

In the minor leagues, players are allotted 4 spots on the "player pass list" per game. So each day when Cy gets to the field, he has to go to put my name on the pass list before it gets taken to the ticketing office a little before game time. Then when I get to the game, I go to the will-call window and they have my tickets waiting. It is super simple and easy. When we have family/friends in town, we gladly can get y'all tickets this way! Home teams are usually more flexible if Cy needs to leave more than 4 tickets, but when we are on the road if we have more than 4 people coming, he usually can ask another player to use their pass list spots if they aren't using them that day. So if we are in town and you want to come see Cy play (or just come sit and chat with me... duh!) we are so so happy to get you tickets!

However, it is a completely different story when you get to the big leagues. Similarly to how it works for us in MiLB, big league players are allotted a small amount of specific seats in the designated "family"(players wives, kids, etc.) section (I believe 4) and a few in the "friends" section (I believe 2, I've heard these seats are generally kinda crappy). That is where the similarities end. First, it isn't so simple as writing names on the list, the player has to go through the team to coordinate the tickets. Second.... The tickets that players request to have are NOT free for them. If, for example, a player requests to have tickets left for his wife and kids, the value of those tickets are then considered "income" which the player is then taxed on out of his paycheck. Generally the player ends up paying around 40% of face value. A friend in Houston said that for them, it ends up about $30 per ticket. So by the end of the season, this can really add up!! I've heard stories of people not knowing this and then having to pay several THOUSANDS of of dollars in taxes for the tickets they gave out during the season. Crazy.

So moral of the story, big league players often don't/can't coordinate tickets for more than immediate family. Many people say that it is usually a lot better to just buy your own tickets on stub hub or whatever, because you can find good seats for much less than it costs the players to get them. Minor league games, however, are free and easy for us to get you to-  so come see us! ;)

Thanks for reading!
xo, Hannah


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All Star Break!

A few weeks ago, we got to enjoy a few days off for the All-Star break! The season is long and can get pretty exhausting, so having those few consecutive days off to relax and enjoy plenty of quality time together is SO valuable.

After finishing up the road series in Frisco on Sunday night, we immediately headed out to Athens to visit Cy's aunt. We LOVE getting out there any chance we can get- it is so peaceful and refreshing to be out in the country and spend time with family.

Tuesday morning we hit the road and headed to Fredericksburg! On the way, we stopped to have lunch at The Salt Lick BBQ in Round Rock (just north of Austin). If you recall, we ate at their original location in Driftwood on our anniversary trip last fall. So tasty!

We arrived at our Airbnb rental on a peach orchard just outside of town in the evening, and stopped by the store to grab some snacks. It was such a cute cabin, highly recommend! (click HERE to check out the listing)

The next morning, (after sleeping in laaaate) we enjoyed a tasty breakfast of cinnamon rolls and farm fresh eggs that our hosts graciously left for us before we hit the town to explore. Fredericksburg has an adorable main street lined with tons of neat little shops and restaurants! We spent most of our day just strolling through town checking things out! We stopped for a snack at the cutest little ice cream shop, Clear River- so tasty!! We headed back to the cabin to take a nap and hang out for a bit before dinner at Pasta Bella. It was very tasty!

Of course, Cy built a fire in the backyard that night, despite it being like 90 degrees outside. The man loves to build fires haha!

We enjoyed breakfast at Sunset Grill before heading back to Corpus to end our trip. It was such a low-key, relaxing couple of days for us!

Thanks for reading! Hope you are having a great week!

Baseball Wives: Meet Catherine + GIVEAWAY

*giveaway closed* 

Happy Sunday!! This week I want to introduce you to one of my absolute favorite baseball wives, Catherine Archer. Catherine and I were the lone wives who lived in Florida full-time last season when we were still with the Brewers. When Cy got traded, I cried because it meant I wouldn't be with Catherine anymore lol!! She is SO great! Keep reading to get to know her, and at the end she just might be giving a piece of her fabulous jewelry line away to one lucky reader!!

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 1. How many seasons have you been in baseball, college and pro ball?

This is our 6^th year of baseball together- holy cow. That’s a lot of baseball.

2. How did you and your hubs meet, and when did you realize that he was “the one”? 

Tristan and I met through a mutual friend my senior year of high school (I know- just a baby!) and he was a sophomore at my hometown college, where I later went as well, Tennessee Tech University. From the beginning of our relationship, I knew he was “different” or “special”, you could say, than the other guys I had dated. I wouldn’t go as far to say that I knew at 18 years old that he was “the one”, though. It wasn’t a specific moment that I knew he was the one, it was a time in our lives and in our relationship- when his professional baseball career got started. That first summer we had spent apart was the absolute worst and we both knew from then on that we didn’t want to be without each other. He’s the most selfless, humble, and loving person I know- I don’t know how I got so lucky!

3. How do you make the time pass when yall are apart during road trips?
Oh, gosh… road trips **currently rolling eyes**. Im just kidding.. sort of. This year they actually aren’t that bad, at least compared to last year. This year they’re only about 5 days long (last year was 7). Shamefully, I have to say that the majority of my time is spent binge-watching Netflix and cooking. Its actually really nice to be able to sit at home all day- no makeup, hair up, sweats on. Usually while I’m watching tv I’m also working on jewelry. So road trips are definitely a good time to get lots of work done before Tristan gets home.

4. What is one thing you have learned about yourself through life in baseball?

Baseball life has taught me so much about myself, as well as life in general. Ive learned that I really, really like to be in control, which as you and all the other WAGS know, is not even a remote possibility in this lifestyle. So from that, its taught me to learn to go with the flow and trust that God will lead us in the right direction.   

5. Tell us about your sweet pup Squirrel!!!

Aw my little Squirrely. He’s just the sweetest- he’s currently curled up next to me. He’s a Heinz 57 dog- part German Shepherd, part pug, part beagle, part terrier, and probably lots of other things. We adopted him last November from (strangely enough) a pit bull rescue based out of Illinois. It’s called Player for Pits and they feature athletes who are against animal abuse. Tristan is a part of their organization and has ALWAYS wanted to adopt from them. Stephanie (the founder) and her team are amazing and go completely out of their way to rescue animals- seriously the things they do are so wonderful. When we saw Squirrel’s picture we knew we had to get him, and it was the best decision! He’s so well-mannered (besides whining at animals he sees while watching tv), the BEST cuddle buddy, and such a good traveller.

6.  Baseball certainly has its’ highs and lows, but what is one of your favorite game-related memories?

My favorite baseball-related memory is definitely the time I drove up with my mom and surprised Tristan on July 4^th 2 years ago! It was a spur of the moment trip and will always be my favorite trip my mom and I took together. When we got to the field, our seats were directly behind their dugout. I had been talking to one of the guys on the team before going up there (where they’re staying, if he can get tickets, etc.) So when we got there, he told Tristan to turn around and look in the stands and he had to do a double take before realizing it was me. His face was priceless and it was so much fun being able to surprise him.

7. What has been the most fun place you have traveled to see Tristan play?

Tristan has played in some interesting places- Helena, Montana and Appleton, Wisconsin his first two years when I wasn’t traveling, then Melbourne, Florida and now we are currently in Biloxi, Mississippi. My favorite of those definitely has to be Melbourne, FL. We were about 15 minutes from a beach near us and about 30 minutes from Cocoa Beach- so much fun! We made so many good memories during our first year traveling together, so that place will always hold a special place in my heart.

8. You are a fabulous jewelry designer, talk about how you got started and where you are at now in your biz!

Well, honestly, the whole reason Bow & Arrow is even a thing is because of Tristan. I’ve always wanted to make jewelry just as a hobby and a creative outlet. However, with college, planning a wedding, and working 2 jobs, it was impossible. So a couple months after we got married, one random night he decided we were going to Hobby Lobby and getting started on my new hobby (I made the jewelry, he just watched). In the beginning, I just made pieces for myself, my friends, and my family. After that, people from my hometown started wanting to buy some pieces and from there it just kind of took off (not without hard work, dedication, and late nights, of course). At this point, I’ve sold to customers across the country and have sold my line in over 20 boutiques. It’s actually really cool to think about. I honestly never would’ve imagined it would be where it is right now. It’s definitely not a “career job” right now, but I’m hoping one day it can be. It’s so nice to have some sort of income during baseball season, and not to mention something I enjoy doing.

9. When you go to starbucks, what is your order?

Oh, that’s tough. I almost always get an iced white chocolate mocha with skim milk and no whip just so I don’t feel completely terrible about all the calories. And if I’m feeling crazy, I might get a vanilla bean scone because why not??

10. If you had to describe yourself in 5 words, what would they be?
I’m actually really terrible at these things.. BUT, if I had to choose 5 words to describe myself, they would be: funny (sometimes goofy), creative, driven, passionate, and loyal. 

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Thank you Catherine!! Catherine has generously offered to give away a pair of these GORGEOUS earrings she just made! Use the raffle tool below to enter. Winner will be announced Friday 7/15/16! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway