Articles
Happy Mother's Day. A big sigh...
I have spent the day with boys and baseball. Nathan is playing in his first baseball tournament with the MYBA Millers. After a win in the first game this morning, they will play three games today and a total of six this weekend.
Quentin and I watched most of game 1, and then we joined the team for lunch. Quentin seems to love the Millers, and they seem to love him!
During game 2, I was able to enter some of Matthew's book fund books onto the website while Quentin napped. This how I was able to spend some time with Matthew. Looking at baseball books he would have loved and putting them on reserve so that we can read them with him in mind.
I just learned the Millers lost game 2 and are playing for 3rd place. I know Nathan and his team mates are probably disappointed, but it is a beautiful day for baseball and for moms who love their boys!
Posted by Jennifer on Sun, 13 May 2012
I have finally figured out an easy way to donate to Matthew's book fund.
Here is how much has been donated in 2011:
Thank you to all who have donated, suggested books, and most importantly gone to the library, checked out, and read the books!
Posted by Jennifer on Wed, 16 Nov 2011
As I write this in November 2011, I want to let you know that the past year and a half since my last "update" has been a very strange combination of grief and hope. By that I mean in in May of 2010, we decided to try to have another baby. Yet another life altering event, but one that would help us as we continue to re-embrace life. Skip ahead to today, and Matthew and Nathan now have a little brother. Quentin Edward Kesti was born a few days before his oldest brother's 12th birthday. The sweet little even made it to Matthew's bench party!
Posted by Jennifer on Sat, 5 Nov 2011
Susan Carr Brown, the Hennepin Country Library book purchaser working with Matthew's book fund, has placed a new order of books. Here is her note:
Just in time for opening day! These are all books about baseball.
Go Twins! :)
Here is a link to the book listings page: Matthew's Book Fund page
Also, more titles that were ordered in 2009 have been added. Take a look and maybe you will find something good to read.
Posted by Jennifer on Tue, 18 May 2010
Nathan is playing Squirt Hockey through the Minneapolis Parks this winter. It is his first time at organized hockey having only previously shot the puck around on family trips to the rink at the park.
Last week, his team (the Lynnhurst Gold team) played their first game against a team from Pearl Park. Nathan's team is a mixture of kids who have never played, some who have played before, and some who are really talented and seemed to have played a lot! The Pearl team seemed to be a stronger, more experienced team, and they really dominated on the ice. There is no official score keeping at the Squirt level, but Nathan and his friend Will assured me that they were trounced.... the final score was either 9 to 2 or 11 to 2, they weren't quite sure.
Nathan had a lot of fun. He made an assist and got to hit the puck with his stick quite a bit, and his friend Will made a goal. But the image that has stayed in my mind is from late in the game, when the "trouncing" was almost official: the coach realized there were only 5 players on the ice, and he skated over to the bench. It was on the far side of the ice from where I was sitting, but you could image that he was asking who wanted to take the 6th spot on the ice. I think all 8 players on the bench raised their sticks and asked to get back into the game.
I have been holding that image in my heart. Little boys and girls, padded and helmeted to protect them while they play, trying a new sport, getting demolished by a team more powerful than they, yet still asking, enthusiastically, to get back into the game. I, too, am playing a new game in my life without Matthew. I have the protection and love of my family and friends, knowledge that he knew he was loved, beautiful memories of his life. Yet I can feel like I am getting trounced in this game. It is still so new and so hard and I don't keep score, but I know I can struggle and not meet my goals. So this past week, as I keep trying to play the game of life, I have held the image of all those sticks in the air as the kids said, "Put me in coach!"
Posted by Jennifer on Mon, 11 Jan 2010
