Tuesday, June 7, 2011

"Make Contact"

I received the sweetest email yesterday that really touched my heart, and so I just have to share it with you all.  The title of the email was "Something to Blog about ... thanks to Jack."  It was from my brother-in-law Stan, who is my oldest sister Kellly's husband.  Before I share more, there are a few background tidbits you might need to know about me, my family, and a certain celebrity athlete.

1) The men in my family are absolutely OBSESSED with sports.  And by obsessed, people, I mean a number of things:
  • My husband, his brothers, his father, his uncles, his cousins, my brothers-in-law (and their fathers and uncles, etc ...) can't talk about ANYTHING other than sports while in one another's presence, seriously.  (Robert's dad being a doctor and his mom being a nurse, I can occasionally engage the crowd in a little medical conversation at the dinner table, but let's just say ... this is rare during football season or MLB playoffs.)
  • My husband and my brothers-in-law wake up early EVERY Sunday before Labor Day each year (much to the chagrin of the women in their lives, as this prohibits us from vacationing at the beach that weekend every year).  On this day, they spend nearly 8 hours at a local bar to perform the very important tasks that entail the thing that gets my husband possibly more excited than almost anything else ... Fantasy Football draft.
  • Both Robert's sister-in-law Alice and I went to UNC-Chapel Hill and both Robert and his twin brother Chris went to NC State ... there are certain days during certain times of the year during certain seasons of certain sports on which Alice and I rarely talk to our spouses.  Enough said.
  • Just when I thought I'd had enough of Fantasy Football and Fantasy Baseball, Robert's little brother Matt had to go and marry the daughter of an ex-professional golfer, thus adding Fantasy Golf to our family life.  (Fantasy Golf ... yes people, it exists.)  No offense, Kelly ... it's been worth having you in the family!  =)
  • My husband and his family are OBSESSED with NY Giants football and NY Yankees baseball.  I've never honestly seen my husband quite as happy as when the Giants won the Super Bowl in 2008.  Just sayin'. 
  • If my husband is home, ESPN is on the television.  It's just pure logic.  He even turns it on to watch during the 2 minutes it takes him to put on his socks and shoes in the morning (which, uh hum, consequently causes this task to take more like 5 minutes.)  That's all I have to say about that.
  • I could go on and on, but I think you all get the picture.  And let me be clear about something (my disclaimer) if you will ... whilst I may come across as irritated by the men in my life's predilection for all things athletic, in actuality I find it quite endearing (most of the time).  On to my next point ...
2)  For those of you who aren't sports fans, there's a man named Albert Pujols out there, and he plays major league baseball for the St. Louis Cardinals.  For those of you who are familiar with his athletic prowess, let me inform you that this Albert is a star both on and off the baseball diamond.  Pujols is in fact a very influential advocate for individuals with Down Syndrome.  Shortly after marrying his wife Diedre, he adopted her daughter Isabella who has Down Syndrome.  Since then, Pujols and his wife have done momentous things for the Down Syndrome world.  By creating the Pujols Family Foundation, this family has made it their mission to promote awareness for individuals with Down Syndrome, help provide for children with disabilities and life-threatening illnesses, and improve the quality of life of impoverished children living in the Dominican Republic, where Pujols is from, and they do it all through their Faith in God.  (Their motto is "Make Contact" ... get it?)  Check out this awesome 60 Minutes segment for more on his life story.  On to my last point ...

3) My brother-in-law Stan is no stranger to individuals with special needs for he has a close family member who, like Jack, needs extra help to do the things that we all seem to take for granted.  Because of this, I have felt a recent and much stronger kinship to his family, as he and his family have to my Jack.  Stan's big heart, special bond with my special little boy, and his love for sports led him to give Jack a very thoughtful 1st birthday gift.  He thought of it all on it own, and now Jack is the proud owner of the smallest and cutest Cardinals/Pujols jersey around!

For all these reasons and more, it is not surprising that I received the following email from Stan just last night.  I hope I don't embarrass him by reposting it verbatim, but the way it is worded is so sweet, moving and endearing, and it brought many tears to my eyes.  I hope you all enjoy it too.  Just read on:
Subject: "Something to Blog about ... thanks to Jack"
Thought you might find this interesting.
Albert Pujols has been in what he might consider a slump this year.  He had not hit over 10 HR before Jack's B'day and his batting average was down compared to most years. 
I thought you should know that our Jack is now his official "Good Luck Charm".  Since Jack's B'day and the unveiling of his first MLB "Albert Pujols" jersey, Albert has been on an absolute tear.  Check out the below Pujols stats starting on the day Jack celebrated the Big #1.

Batting Average = .444 (12 for 27)   This means he basically has averaged 1 hit every other time at the plate ... thanks to Jack.
Runs Batted In (RBI) = 9   This is 9 RBI's in 7 games
Home Runs (HR) = 5   This is 5 HR's in 7 games.  Did I mention that 2 of the 5 were walk off HR's to win the game for the Cards?

Just for Reference
Major League Batting Average 2011 = .252 .... Albert is hitting .444 over his last 7 games
St. Louis Averages 1.1 HR/game in 2011 .... Albert is averaging .71/game over his last 7 games.  This is almost the team average.

Long story short .... JACK IS THE MAN and officially Albert Pujols's good luck charm ... as he is to all of us.

Happy Birthday Jack!

Stan
I mean, really .... doesn't this just melt your heart?!?!?  I have the best family in the world.  Thanks so much, Stan, for making our week!

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