Passionately Pink...

This post was originally written 10/20/2011. I am reposting because tonight we will be celebrating my mom at my brother's baseball game! Tonight is "Pink in the Park" for the San Jose Giants and all of the players will be wearing pink jerseys. This is the story of last year's pink jersey. Original post below:

*I've told y'all a bit of this story before, but this is the entire awesome story behind the pink jersey and the pink bat and my brother's bid to remain the favorite child.

The Background...

We're into pink around my house. It's weird how, outside of my sister, I don't think any of us ever had a really strong like for pink. I was a total tom-boy growing up. I was into sports and playing outside never dresses and dolls. I don't think I had a single item in my closet that was pink. So it was interesting when our entire world turned pink in the fall of 2005.

When mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer on September 25th it was a mere days before pink was everywhere for breast cancer awareness month. It was amazing how our eyes were opened because for the first time, it hit home with us. We formed our first Race for the Cure team in 2005 and we haven't looked back! We printed pink team bracelets that year and all of our friends and family received one. It was our way of asking people to wear them and remember to pray for mom as she began the battle for her life.

My brother put that bracelet on and to this day, he has not taken it off! Our family has been changed forever. We have a fighter and survivor in our midst and we celebrate that and we will never forget what she's been through.

The Story...

Most of the MLB, for mother's day, wears pink in support of breast cancer. The major leaguers will play with pink bats and then auction them off, you'll see pink jerseys and pink batting gloves and many have the pink ribbon embroidered on their hats or jerseys. This past season, the Augusta Greenjackets wore their pink jerseys and the jerseys were auctioned off and the money was donated to the Komen Foundation. The cool part was that Taylor's start fell on the day they got to wear the pink jerseys! He talked to their manager before the jerseys went on sale and asked if his jersey could be left out of the auction. He asked if he could buy it himself as a gift for our mom since she is a survivor. And they let him!!

He gave it to her while we were in Savannah a few weeks later and she cried like a baby! Obviously his favorite child status is going nowhere! He's got that one in the bag.

A few weeks later, he was playing in Louisville and a few of the players went to the Louisville Slugger Factory. My sister and I got this email and I immediately started crying!

It wasn't long before a funny shaped (and heavy) package came in the mail and my mom received a precious gift! Again, she cried like a baby and was so grateful to receive such a treasured gift.
I absolutely LOVE that her name is beautifully engraved on that bat. She is a fighter and a survivor and she is my roll model and great inspiration. Praise God for her healing! I think it's safe to say she has made an impact on many and we never see pink without thinking of her. Keep thinking pink this October! I believe we'll find a cure soon.

There's no place like Hope!

*And my sister and I are not kidding ourselves. Taylor's got a corner on the "favorite child" market after this. Lock-stock-and-barrel. He's such a suck up! ;)