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

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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Are You Ready?

I can never say enough about how wonderful it is to get to know women who have been in baseball much longer than I have, to learn from and lean on when things get hard or frustrating.  One such woman is Taffee, the wife of Cy's former pitching coach from the Timber Rattlers last season.  Taffee and I got to be good friends during our time in Wisconsin, and I am so thankful for all of the wisdom she has and continues to share with me and the way she immediately welcomed me and made me feel at home.

The other day, Taffee and I were chatting about our offseason and what we had been up to, when she asked if I was ready for the upcoming season.  I told her I was as ready as I would ever be, laughing since really there's no way to truly be prepared for what baseball is going to throw at us next ;)

It got me thinking about how different I feel approaching this season than I did last season.  Now that I have my first season of being a full-time traveling baseball wife under my belt, I feel so much more at ease with the quirks that come with it.  Last spring I was anxious, not knowing what to expect or how to really prepare for the season ahead.  There are SO many possibilities and unknowns, and it can be hard to wrap your head around that and let go of the need to have everything under control.

Last year we had no idea what level we would be starting at until a few days before we left spring training.  We had no idea if we would be able to find a host family once we got there.  We had no idea if I would be able to find a job.  We had no idea if there would be other wives on the team to be friends with. Lots of unknowns! Having never experienced any of it before, you can imagine how that could be rough for little newlywed me ;)

But it all turned out great, despite the stressful times and the learning curves! I learned to just roll with what each day brought, and to be content with taking each day as its own without worrying (mostly...) about the next step.  My faith plays a huge role- I truly believe that there is a purpose and an opportunity for me in every season and situation, so it is best for me to trust and embrace that. Knowing that I do NOT have to be in control of every detail is so freeing! All I have to do is embrace each day and do my best with where we are.

So going into this season, I am at peace. I know a little better what to expect (anything and everything!) what is worth getting concerned about (nothing!) and how to stay content. Although we are with a new team, which brings a whole new set of things to learn, everything has been great so far! We aren't 100% sure where we will be this season yet but we have a good idea, and either way things will be great.

So yes, I'm ready for this upcoming season. It's hard to prepare for a season when I can't really plan ahead, but it's much easier now knowing that everything will work out one way or another- just gotta roll with it :)

My Favorite ST Event

Spring training is fun. The days are shorter than the regular season, and they start in the morning instead of at night- I love that schedule! You get to see friends and meet new people. You get to hang out in a warm sunshiny state ;)

My very favorite part of spring training is the annual Women's Luncheon, put together by Lisa Weston of Baseball Chapel and Rene Taubensee of Pro Athlete Outreach. They host 3 luncheons throughout Florida, and one in Arizona. The purpose of this event is to give wives/fiancees/girlfriends a day to come together and refresh and refocus before the start of the season.Last year my sweet friend Jackie invited me, and it was so amazing to realize that there are so many other christian women in baseball who experience the same challenges that I do, and to learn and grow together!

My friend Tessa, whose husband KJ played at DBU with Cy and is now with the Yankees, drove over from Tampa for the day to come to the luncheon in Orlando with me. It was so fun to hang out!!

This year, the main speaker was Jackie Kendall. She spoke about the principles in her new book Surrender Your Junior God Badge: Every Woman's Battle with Control. This was a great message to hear, since in baseball there is SO MUCH that is beyond our control, no matter how hard we try! Each woman in attendance was gifted a copy of the book, and I am so excited to dive in and start reading it!

After lunch we had small group breakout sessions, hosted by Gari Meacham and Vicki Rose. I went to Vicki's session, I was given a copy of her book "Every Reason to Leave & Why we Chose to Stay Together" at least years luncheon and loved the chance to her her share her story in person. It is incredibly encouraging to hear personal stories from godly women who have been in baseball for decades and can teach from experience!

I also got to meet 3 other Astros wives at the luncheon! They were big league wives and they were beyond nice and friendly to me- I am so thankful for that! I have only met 2 other minor league wives so far, so it is such a blessing to meet women who know the ropes and welcome you in.

There are two more luncheons this year!! This weekend in Jupiter (3/18), and the following weekend in Scottsdale (3/22). If you are a baseball girl around either of those places and haven't registered for the luncheon yet, send me an email and I will get you the link!! It is SO SO good and worth going to even if you have to drive a little ;) There is more info on resources for baseball girls listed at the bottom of the "baseball" tab here on the blog.

In other news, minor league games start this weekend! I am SO excited to get to see Cy throw again :) Alsoooo, if you didn't notice I did a little update on the blog and changed up my URL and title to "Simply Hannah Sneed" to be a little more fitting, since I was a bride well over a year ago haha!

Hope you have a great week!
xo, Han

Time Flies!! Offseason Recap

on the road again!

How on earth is it spring training time already? I truly have no idea how the offseason flew by so fast. We are currently in Florida for spring training, and on the drive here we couldn't stop remarking on how it seemed like we had just barely left.

The offseason was soo good to us. We lived in Dallas with two roommates (MiLB life, y'all!) Dan and Nash, who were Cy's teammates at DBU and now play with the Indians and Blue Jays, respectively. We all had such a great time living together! Dan and Nash both have the sweetest girlfriends, so it was fun to all hang out. About a month before we left, our newlywed friends Drew and Kassie flew down to Dallas to get ready for spring training and stayed with us a bit too. It truly was SO fun having everyone together! PLUS my sister Haley was literally 4 minutes from us on campus at DBU, so we saw her pretty much every day- I couldn't ask for anything better!

Of course, by now you probably know that in November Cy got traded from the Brewers to the Astros! So that brought an exciting change to our life :) So far we are loving our new organization, and it seems to be a perfect fit for Cy.

I graduated with my Bachelors of Science in Communication Theory in December, and started working as a personal assistant shortly thereafter. This job is absolutely fantastic because it is ALL ONLINE! My bosses live in Delaware and I do all of my work remotely. Perfection!

We spent Christmas with my family in Alaska, and it was wonderful. Christmas at home is so special for me! We had a good amount of snow, which is always fun. We got to participate in Bethlehem Revisited, which is a production my parents church puts on every other year. Everyone in the church dresses up and gets into character, and they set up a huge area outside that is made to look like the streets of Bethlehem at the time Jesus was born. The community loves it! We also got to spend time with my lifelong best friend Courtney, her fiancé Dawson, and their perfect little boy (my godson) Cohen. Living away from home gets exponentially harder when you become an auntie ;)

This offseason also brought several weddings! After Christmas we headed to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho for Drew and Kassie's wedding, it was so gorgeous and SO MUCH FUN! The whole bridal party was filled with couples and best friends, so it was just a nonstop party- I wish we could do it again!

Looyenga Photography

The next weekend back in Dallas, I had the honor of doing my sweet sorority sister Chelsea's hair and makeup for her wedding. She was SUCH a gracious and joy-filled bride!

Elisabeth Carol Photography

The next two weekends were dedicated to my college roommate & bestie Sedona's bachelorette party and wedding! I did Sedona's hair and makeup for her first date with Cash our freshman year, and it was so surreal to finally be doing it again for their WEDDING! It was so much fun celebrating with our besties, Sedona's day was a dream.

Cottonwood Road Photography

Cottonwood Road Photography (via instagram)

After getting back to our normal when the month of weddings quieted down, we only had about a month left of offseason and Cy started really getting down to business with his training and prep for the season. DBU baseball had their alumni game and opening weekend before we left, and it was so much fun getting to visit with all of our college baseball crew!

My brother and sister in law came to visit the weekend before we left, and we had SO much fun just hanging out and laughing together before we all head out in different directions for the season. Jamie, Kassie, and I made a super quick trip to Magnolia Market in Waco too!

All in all, our offseason was fantastic. And while it went by way too fast, I am so excited to get this next season rolling! We are in Kissimme, living with an INCREDIBLE host family, and excited to be making new friends with our new team. Cy is one of only a small handful ofpitchers invited to micro camp (super exciting!) and is enjoying it a lot, and full minor league camp will start on the 9th.

Thanks for bearing with my sporadic blogging in the offseason and keeping up with our wild life :)

kiss kiss, Hannah

If Your Heart is Hurting

During Spring Training, I had the privilege of attending a luncheon put on by Baseball Chapel and Pro Athletes Outreach for players wives. It was a fantastic, refreshing time. I learned a lot and had some great fellowship with other gals in this lifestyle! They also gave away tons of great goodies, one of which was a book! There were a few to choose from, and I ended up with "Every Reason to Leave: And Why We Chose to Stay Together" By Vicki Rose. Her book chronicles her story of how God restored her broken marriage, when she really did have every reason to leave, and shows that the effort is worth it.

I learned a lot from this book. Don't get me wrong, our marriage is great right now! But the principles Vicki shares for married couples to follow, along with the lessons she learned throughout her 35+ years of marriage, are so great to understand and prioritize. 

The Biblical truths she shares don't just apply to marriages, they apply to everyones life. I have a friend going through something really difficult right now. It sucks. It doesn't make sense. But that is life, we are thrown curveballs and have to do the best we can to handle it and persevere. Fortunately, we have a God who cares and doesn't abandon us in our darkest hours. The trials and struggles we face in life can be a beautiful opportunity for growth. If you are hurting, take some time to look up these verses and consider how they can apply to your life. 

Draw near to the Lord in your day to day life
- Pray in earnest amidst your spiritual battle (1 Chronicles 5:20)
- Pray constantly  (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
- Spend time in Gods word daily (Matthew 6:33, Joshua 1:8, Psalm 119:97)
- Pray Gods word (1 John 5:14-15)


God has promised his children:
- Righteousness and His kingdom (Matt 6:33)
- The desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4)
- Overwhelming blessings (Malachi 3:10)
- A future (Jeremiah 29:11)
- He will be near you (Psalm 145:8, James 4:8, 1 John 5:14)
- With God, all things are possible (Matthew 10:26)
- He rewards those who earnestly seek Him (Hebrews 11:6)
- He will never stop doing good to you (Jeremiah 32:40)
- When you trust Him, He will make your path straight (Proverbs 3:5-6)

If you are hurting, going through something hard, you are not alone. You are not abandoned. Take heart, you are loved. If you need some encouragement, shoot me a text or email, I would love to chat.

xo,
Hannah

Note: Obviously I am a Christian. I know not all everyone who reads my blog holds the same beliefs as me. My faith is important to me though, so I don't hesitate to share it.

Spring Training Wrap Up

We only have 3 more days in Phoenix... WHAT?! Our first Spring Training is just about over, and it has been a blast. Cy has one last outing on Sunday and on Monday everyone will head out to their team for the season.

I have had such a great time going to games and making new friends here. I finally got to visit with my "blog friend" Aubrey after 3 years of following each other online (she also designed our wedding invites!). We got together for lunch one of my first days here and a couple days later she invited me to hang out at her house while Cy was at work. I am so thankful for how she reached out and was so welcoming! Meeting other baseball wives has been SO great also! It's really fun to meet people in real life that I have been "online friends" with for the last year. The second week of ST, I had breakfast and saw Cinderella with Angie and Laura. Angie's husband Storm played in the big leagues for over a decade and is now a pitching coach with the Cubs, and Laura's fiance is an infielder with the Cubs as well. This week I also got to have some girl time with Mandy, whose boyfriend plays for the Dodgers! So fun. 

Angie brought us princess crowns to wear to Cinderella- too fun!

One of my fellow Brewers wives Jackie spent a week visiting and we hit it off right away. We are first born, Jesus loving, communication majors and it felt like we had been friends our whole lives! I was so sad when she went home, but hopefully our guys will end up on the same team this season (we managed to not take a single picture together either, oops). While Jackie was here, we went to a Wives Luncheon hosted by Baseball Chapel and Pro Athlete Outreach. It was so refreshing to get together with a group of women who live this life and hear biblical truth to keep us grounded. At the luncheon, I finally got to meet Bess (A's) and Martha Kate (Giants), as well as many other wonderful ladies! I am so thankful for that opportunity to build relationships and community. 

Photo by Alyssa Bajenaru, wife of DBacks coach

This week we had a blissful and oh-so-rare OFF DAY!!! If you didn't know, baseball players have games every single day in season. Yes, Monday through Sunday. They get an off day about once a month, but sometimes they're actually traveling on their day off. So we decided to do it big and spend our day racing go karts and eating great food! Cy had to get something done on the truck in the morning and I went for a run, then we had lunch at the best hole in the wall BBQ place ever, Texas BBQ House. Seriously the best brisket I have ever eaten! 

Then we headed to K1 Speed and did 3 races. It was a BLAST!! I even got a little bit of road rage when some punk kept cutting me off and not letting me pass- which is illegal! But seriously it was really fun. After that, we headed to the mall so I could get a new pair of running shoes (I ended up with the Brooks Launch 2). Then we ended the day by meeting up with our sweet friend Michael Smith, who played at DBU with Cy and is now with the Angels, for dinner at Texas Roadhouse (yeah, lots of Texas haha). It was a fantastic, fun-filled day.

Now the million dollar question... Where will we go next?! Well the good news is, we found out yesterday!! The bad news is, rosters haven't been made public yet (and things could still change) so I can't say anything until it's official on Monday (I know, I'm the worst.) I promise to share all about it then :) Cy will fly out early Monday morning, and my dad is planning to fly down to PHX sometime Monday to hit the road with me early Tuesday morning. I am SO thankful he is coming to drive with me, 30+ hours of driving alone was not the most exciting prospect haha. 

The last week of Spring Training is the most stressful for families. As I have mentioned before, there are 5 levels in the minor league system, and the roster assignments aren't made until pretty much the last minute. We had a good idea of where we might end up, but anything can happen in baseball. It was pretty hectic not knowing where we would be moving in less than a week! My friend Cayte still doesn't know where they're going, and they leave Sunday.. yeah, thats in 2 days. Crazy. Someone shared this on the wives and girlfriends page and it is so hilarious and accurate.

  

It's crazy and can be stressful at times, but it sure is a fun adventure. I am so thankful that this baseball life is where God has called us to be!

Thanks for following along, I love sharing updates here!
See ya Monday ;)
xo, Hannah

Endorphins Make You Happy

                      Anyone who's seen "Legally Blonde" knows just how important exercise is ;)

image via pinterest

In the first week of Spring Training, it became painfully obvious to me that unless I really made an effort to be active, I would end up sitting around all day every day. Sitting around the hotel room, sitting around watching baseball, or sitting around driving to and from. I felt sluggish and grumpy and tired and bored. NOT GOOD. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price.Therefore honor God with your bodies." God didn't create me to sit around and do nothing, and letting myself get out of shape certainly isn't honoring to Him. So I started doing some youtube workout videos... Which were awesome, but kinda hard to really stick to a routine.

Around that same time I connected with a girl named Toni whose boyfriend plays for the Tigers. I don't know if I have mentioned this before, but the MiLB wives and girlfriends group as a whole is pretty tight. When you live such a crazy life, connecting with other women who "get it" is crucial. Anyway, Toni is a marathon runner and BeachBody coach. I mentioned to her that I was struggling to get into a routine with working out, and she encouraged me to start the Couch to 5k running program and to also join her 3 week running group (that just started today, actually!) soo I jumped in.

I have always hated running. Probably because the only time I ran was for conditioning in high school sports... and nobody enjoys that crap. So it's safe to say I was less than excited about starting a running plan. But I knew that it would make me feel better overall though, so it was worth it.

WELL GUESS WHAT. I'm two weeks in and I am loving it. I run 3x a week and I am starting cross training in between. When I run, I am challenging myself. I am proving to myself that I am capable of more than I give myself credit for. I have way more energy during the day, and get much better sleep at night. So I went from hating the idea of running to loving it, all I had to do was actually try.

Sweaty, happy, no-makeup face of accomplishment!

So if you're like me and don't know where to start, check out C25K. If you haven't heard of "Couch to 5k" it's a program that starts you with walking and jogging in intervals and helps you slowly build up your endurance to be able to run a full 5k. There is a free app, and you can listen to your own music and it gives you "begin walking/running" instructions at the right intervals- it couldn't be easier. I'd also love to get you in touch with Toni, she is AWESOME and so sweet, she would love to help you get on an exercise routine and even help you with figuring out nutrition and a meal plan.

Have a great Monday, my friends! Hopefully this gives you a little motivation, because every Monday could use a little more of that ;)


xo
Hannah

MiLB Married Life: ST 2015 & Making a Hotel Room a Home

Our time at Spring Training is already halfway over.... What!??! Camp breaks on April 6th, two weeks from today. I can hardly believe the time has gone by so fast!

Yesterday Cy had his first outing and it went great! He pitched two innings and was really happy with his command and ability to pitch inside like his coaches were wanting to see. Right now pitchers are on a pretty small pitch count limit in order for them to build endurance and pace themselves before the season, so he will have longer outings as time goes on. Cy pitched after 2 big leaguers (Jonathan Broxton and Jim Henderson) who came down to play in minor league games in order to get more work in, which is pretty common since big league camp is winding down and some of the guys are finishing up rehab and need to be able to pitch on their schedule, which is hard to do in big league games. (yikes that's quite the run on sentence, sorry)  It was pretty cool to see him come in and throw after guys who have been playing in the big leagues for years! Cy will pitch again in about 5 days, so he will probably have 2 or maybe 3 more Spring Training outings. And no, we don't know where they will send him to play this season and probably won't know until a few days before we actually leave here :)

So we are in Phoenix for about a month total, and are staying at an extended stay hotel. Next year, hopefully we can find an apartment, but we are content in our little hotel room! Our apartment in Dallas was pretty small, but downsizing even further to a hotel room (in a brand new city) has been a little bit of adjustment! Now that "home" is more about being together than it is about an actual place, I am doing what I can to keep some sense of familiarity no matter where we are.

First, I unpacked. It was tempting to just live out of suitcases since we aren't here very long, but hanging up clothes and getting things out of boxes really makes me feel more organized and therefore  grounded.

Second, I put our mattress topper and pillows on the bed! This seems like a lot to pack around, but space bags made it pretty easy. Making the hotel bed feel a little more like our own really helps with getting a good nights sleep. I considered putting our own sheets on the bed too, but I don't want to do the extra laundry each week for that when it costs $4 per load haha.

Third, essential oils. Every night we put lavender and wild orange essential oils in the diffuser to help relax and sleep more soundly, and having the familiar smell every night makes sleeping in new places a lot easier! Our room also had a really funky smell when we first arrived, so I had the diffuser running Purify all day to get rid of the funk in no time.

Fourth, I bought a humidifier. The air here is so stinkin DRY, and getting some moisture in the air in here just made life more pleasant in general.

Fifth, I make an effort to keep the place tidy. When you're living in a tiny space, it gets messy real fast and messy makes me cranky. I am a big fan of "a place for everything and everything in its' place" and for me that meant bringing my nightstand basket and my bathroom counter organizer. Keeping things contained and tidy is a big part of keeping my overall stress levels down, so every morning I make the bed and tidy anything that's out of place, and it makes a huge difference!

If you ever find yourself living a baseball gypsy life, hopefully these little tidbits are helpful ;) If you have any other questions about spring training or anything, leave me a comment!

xo,
Hannah

MiLB Married Life: Our First Spring Training

Hello from sunny Arizona! Since my last post, we packed up our apartment, put most of our things in storage, and took the long 15 hour drive to Phoenix for Spring Training. (And the blog got a facelift, hope ya like it!)

I've decided to start a little series on what married life in the minor leagues looks like for us. Obviously it is different for single guys than it is for married guys, and it's also different for couples who travel together full time than for couples who don't. So over the course of the season, I plan to give you a little look into the slightly unusual lifestyle we live on the road. If there's anything in particular you'd like to hear about, please let me know! 

If you're not super familiar with baseball, Spring Training is when all of the players in each organization gather together for practices and exhibition games before the start of the regular season. Each organization has a training complex, about half in AZ and half in Florida, where their entire group of Major and Minor League players come together to prepare for the season and determine at what level each player should start, basically. 

Generally single players stay in a team hotel, and some in apartments or rental homes (especially those whose families travel). We are staying at an extended stay hotel, we have a small kitchenette and the front desk folks are super nice! Next week I'll share more about how I'm making this hotel room a home for the month we are here :) We are located in a pretty central area, so it's generally only 20 minutes in any direction to anywhere we would want to go, which is convenient.  

This week, Cy only has to be at work from 8am to about noon. A lot of the minor league hitters don't report for another couple days, so they haven't started playing games in the afternoon yet. This means that since he is just at the field for a few hours, there is no point in me driving him over there and battling traffic back, just to go pick him up again 2 hours later. When his schedule gets a little more demanding next week, I will start taking him to work in the mornings and then have the truck to run around and keep myself occupied during the day, but for now I'm hotel-bound. I'll be honest, the first 2 days I was SO bored and pretty pitiful, but yesterday I got myself on a little schedule including some exercise and I feel so much better! Cy's routine at the field is pretty low-key right now, just basic workouts and throwing, so I'll share more about that later when they really get the ball rolling.

Here's a rough outline of what our days look like (this week, at least!)

• 7am- Wake up (even though I could sleep in, its easier to just stay on Cy's sleep schedule)
• 7:20- Cy leaves
• 7:30- I get up and make some breakfast, then get back in bed and have my Bible time, then watch some Downton Abbey
• 9:30- Get up, get dressed, make the bed, tied the kitchenette, etc.
• 10:00- Youtube workout videos! 
• 12:00- Cy comes home, fix lunches
• 1pm-5:00- Pretty much chill- read, watch tv, play board games, run to the grocery store..
• 5 or 6- Dinner: We have a small kitchenette, so we will mostly just eat here. There are lots of cool restaurants around here we want to check out though!
• 9pm- get ready for bed! We are generally asleep by 10:30

The exercise time is great for me. I'm used to being pretty active (going for walks/running intervals while Cy did his offseason throwing and workouts, just being a busy bee in general) but our hotel isn't near a residential area where I could walk and it doesn't have a gym, so doing different workouts on youtube is a good solution for me right now. I'm trying to mix it up with yoga, cardio, dance, zumba, or p90x type stuff... Literally because it keep me from being bored- I never thought I would see that day haha! Hopefully starting next week I can find a park to walk and run in or maybe a gym to take a class or something. I'm reminded every day that this baseball life is all about being flexible and going with the flow, so who knows!

The big league teams are playing games already, but we haven't gone to any. I am so looking forward to Cy's games starting and can't wait to meet some of the baseball ladies I've made online friendships with already! The baseball wives and girlfriends "network" is really awesome, it's cool to interact with other girls who are in the same crazy lifestyle and understand its nuances. 

Anyway, I'm off to do some laundry and start getting ready for dinner- tonight we are meeting up with one of Cy's former DBU teammates who plays for the Angels :)

Until next time,

Hannah