Tuesday night was our basketball Senior Night. This was Maris' last home regular season game of her high school career. Big fat sigh. The team always goes out to dinner before home games {a huge thank-you to Bogarts Restaurant for providing these meals each year!}
Here are our 4 seniors at dinner. I love how dressed-up, stylish and feminine they are in school on game days. Then they go into the gym locker room and come out transformed into fierce, scrappy competitive athletes. awesome.
During the game, we celebrated Cindi Simmons. Coach Simmons has been the womens basketball and volleyball coach at our high school for the last 25 years {!!} You may remember this painting I did for her at the end of volleyball season, She has been a wonderful coach, mentor, and friend to Maris and to all of her players.
We did a reception in the cafeteria after the boys game where we invited all ex-players, students, teachers and friends.
I made tiered serving platters -- some out of trophy parts, others out of foam balls, one out of a basketball net, and one out of a vase filled with miniature balls.
I painted miniature basketballs with craft paint and paint markers. {fyi -- basketballs are fantastic to paint on! They accept paint beautifully}
I made a 5 foot tall '25' covered in photos of decades of highlights of Coach Simmons many teams. This was such a fun interactive prop that brought everyone over to try to find a picture of themselves or a photo from the year they graduated.
Cindi's {proud} mom made her a special cake.
We had such fun creating this volleyball trophy tired server. Did you know you can make your own trophies?? I walked into our local trophy shop/warehouse and I was like a kid in a candy store. I WILL be going back because I now have other ideas percolating.
Maris made a special video documentary about Cindi where she interviewed past players, family members, school officials and community leaders with the help of one of her favorite teachers, Mrs. Henson. Cindi wasn't aware of the video and there were many wet eyes as well as some giggles as so many shared what she had meant in their lives.
Being able to express how much you care about someone is just the best. I was so honored to get to publicly be a part of thanking Cindi for the incredible role she has played in Maris' maturity. She has been instrumental in teaching how important relationships are both on and off the court. She has believed in Maris as a leader and given her the confidence and support so vital to a young ladies self-esteem. If you are a mama of a young girl, please consider encouraging her to be an athlete. It's life changing.
And for you other mamas who already have athletes and want to know how to make the desert stands and the giant numbers for your next sports banquet, come back tomorrow for details.
Oh, and Happy Valentines Day!!!
** for all you UNC Tarheel basketball fans, Cindi is the mom of sophomore Jackson Simmons #21 ! Not only does she coach great athletes, she births them too!! **