How we ended up in Branson--Part 1

Our Samantha is a sophomore (technically a junior, now) at Drake and plays softball for the Bulldogs as their starting left fielder. They made it to the championship game of the Missouri Valley conference, which is the first step towards the NCAA tournament. They played in Springfield this Saturday, so the Martens, and nine other family members, made the trip. Here is one row of us, minus Andy(taking the pic), Paul(standing up to watch and pace), Shelley's father and his wife, and Shelley's uncle & aunt(in row front of us).

Kate, Bailey, Tess, Me, Jane, Conrad, Aunt Sue, and Shelley

Samantha plays left field for the Bulldogs

Samantha made the All Tournament Team...which means the coaches voted for one player from the conference at each position.....and they chose our girl! Although this wasn't the award she wanted to bring home(she wanted the Championship!) she was honored and we were so proud!

Samantha is home now for the summer and we are thrilled to look across the street and see her car in the driveway, and I can't wait for her to wander over to our house during the summer to see what's going on....I miss when her and Bailey were too young to drive, so they just walked over to our house for a change of scenery. :)

I ask for your prayers this Thursday as our Samantha has surgery on a hip that has been bothering her for quite some time. She has played a lot of softball in her 20 years and she has torn some muscle and ligaments in her hip that cause her a lot of pain and difficult range of motion. Please pray for a successful surgery and for her recovery that will take 3-6 months, which of course she plans to do in 2-4 months.

This is why we even left our house this dreary weekend. Stay tuned for where we eventually ended up!