MONICA: Words of Advice from a Frequent Flyer

Since the end of March, I have been flying from one destination to another at least once almost every week. This year being engaged, I have been making a major effort to split my time between wherever Marco is (which is always changing) and my hometown of Seattle to spend time with my family and close friends as much as possible before permanently moving away after we’re married next year.

So, since we all know a life in baseball means my sweet fiancé can never come visit me, I have become somewhat of a travel expert (Marco says, “self proclaimed”) and because Seattle is light-years away from just about every other city in the country, and Marco is rarely on the west coast, my travel days are generally 8+ hours long, with multiple connecting flights. Here a few things I have learned from my experiences…

Booking! 

A resource that has been really awesome for us is a site called skyscanner.com. It is perfect for last minute flyers (or all flyers for that matter), because it allows you to see all flights and airlines leaving from whatever airport you’re flying out of, so you can directly compare prices, and then book through the airline (without the annoying Priceline/Expedia guys).

Tip Here – always, always, always purchase travel insurance – just incase that “Call-Up” we’ve all been waiting for happens to come at an inconvenient time. Also, book your seats when you buy your flight! If airlines overbook, and you don’t have your assigned seat, you will be the first one out of a flight.

Airlines 
Pretty much every flight I take is booked within the same week or even sometimes the same day I pack up and leave, so we generally go with the cheapest flight available. Which means, I can tell you the ins and outs of just about every airline, so here are some things I have learned to expect when flying each one:

United: Potentially my favorite airline. I’ve always had good experiences here between the flight staff, reliability, and travel perks. Long flights include free wine (major plus), a meal, and a “digi-player.” They also have great deals on international flights incase you ever feel like a spontaneous trip to Europe (another post on that coming later!)

Delta: Another favorite. However, I have recently found that they schedule connecting flights dangerously close together. Which means you might find yourself sprinting through the airport in between flights when you land 10 minutes after your next flight begins boarding. Delta is also partnered with Alaska so you can combine mileage plans.

Alaska: My family loves Alaska, they’re definitely popular in the Northwest. However, I’ve found that if the airline messes up somehow (overbooking for example), they are not quick to apologize or accommodate for the mistake. But the “20-minute or less” guarantee to get your bags to the baggage claim is pretty awesome.

Southwest: A big favorite of anyone involved in the sports world (especially sports spouses) because they don’t charge for flight changes or cancellations, so a last minute change in plans doesn’t cost any extra. They will also wait for their checked in passengers who might be running a little late (a major plus for me). The boarding situation of choosing your own seat as you walk on the plane is still a little strange to me, but its not a big deal if you’re traveling in a party of one. Southwest also has a great credit card that you can use to rack up miles toward flights! They have promotions every once in a while where you can pick up extra miles by booking at certain times. 

US Airways/American Airlines: These two are operated by the same company, so they are essentially the same. With these, I’ve noticed that they’re really efficient with their travel days. For example, if you’re going from Washington to Florida, they wont have a connecting flight with a stop in New York (some airlines actually do this).

Frontier/Spirit Airlines: You’ll find that these are usually the cheapest options when initially booking, but I have never had a good experience on either of these airlines. They will charge you to book your seat, charge for a bag, charge for food/drinks, and charge for carry-on, charge you for every step you take on the airplane… basically I don’t have enough nickels & dimes to fly this airline. Keep away.

Travel Day -  Misc. tips for the day of travel.

I’ve found that cotton is my favorite clothing to travel in. Sounds random, but as much as I love my luon lululemon pants, cotton leggings are the comfiest for long days.  A good pair of tennis shoes and layers on top is also key.

Most people know the rule of thumb is to arrive about an hour and a half before flight time. When you’re at a smaller airport, you can cut down on that time to about an hour. And it's important to note that boarding time always starts about 5-10 minutes after it's supposed to, and you can board your flight up to about 10 minutes before scheduled take-off. Your "departure time" is actually the time the gates will close, not the time you will actually be taking off.  The flight staff will make “last boarding call" about 3 times before its really your last chance. I know this because I prefer to wait until the crazy line died down before boarding. 

If you can, fit your clothes into a carry on - even if it’s a larger one (it will save you some money). This way you can avoid the baggage drop line, and once you make it to the gate, and it’s too big to fit in the “overhead compartment,” the airline will put it with the other luggage without charging you the $25 you pay for a real checked bag. "Savvy veteran move"-Marco

Going through security, be sure to smile and make conversation with the TSA people. If you’re lucky, they will "randomly" select you to go to the TSA pre-check  line, meaning you go through security without having to take off your shoes, or remove electronics and liquids from your carry-on (much quicker - score!).

As of recent, most airlines don’t serve food (aside from the peanuts/pretzels) during flights shorter than 4.5 hours now, and they'll charge for it if they do. We all know we can't take large bottles of liquid through security, but you can take food! So I like to pack a wrap/sandwich and some dried fruit for the flight.. You can never be too sure what airport options are and it will save you some time and money.

Since I fly so much, I try to avoid asking my friends for rides to and from the airport. Taxis are expensive and an Uber can pick you up from the airport but only in a “Black Car”, which is about $50 a mile. I would suggest finding a complimentary shuttle to a nearby hotel, and then order an Uber from there.

Airports are always crazy and hectic, filled with stressed out people hustling & bustling for all sorts of reasons (sad, happy, vacation, business), so try not to stress when travel days don't go as planned. The other day, it took me 17 hours to get from Seattle to Palm Beach, Florida, because of mechanical problems, lightning storms, pilot issues, and everything else that could have possibly gone wrong. Easier said than done, but don’t forget there’s always a solution, and focus on the smiling face you'll get to see at the end of it..or in my case, a handsome man ;) All the miles & stressful hours are always worth it. 

Unfortunately, I can't tell you how to avoid over-packing… 2 years of constant traveling and I still don’t have that one mastered.

Safe travels everyone!

Xoxo

Mon

WAG of the Month: Virginia Rodgers

One of the most beautiful parts of our lives in baseball is meeting other wives and girlfriends (WAGs) who we can relate to and count on for support and understanding. We've met so many women from different backgrounds and places, and we wanted to be able to share them with you, our readers! 

Each month we will be featuring our "WAG of the Month", and have a guest post from a fellow baseball wife or girlfriend. 

This month we are featuring Mrs. Virginia Rodgers! I (Jackie) met sweet Virginia through baseball a few years ago, when our husbands played together at Arizona State. She's been a great source of support for each of us, and we're grateful to have her on this journey!

The three of us with Virginia at Jackie's wedding!

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Baseball: It Doesn't Define Us

Hey y’all! I am so excited to be the first guest blogger for the three lovely ladies that spearheaded this baseball blog masterpiece. Let’s hope my way with words is as eloquent and witty as theirs! Bear with me here.

To start, I am recently married as of 253 days ago to my hunk of a hubby, Brady Rodgers…but hey, who’s counting right? Brady and I met during both of our freshman years at Arizona State University (GO SUNDEVILS)! I joined a sorority where I met one of my best friends to this day and little did I know that this loud, big-haired, blonde girl from Texas would eventually drag me to some ASU baseball games and introduce me to my future hubby. It’s important to note here that Brady and I did not begin dating until the spring semester of our JUNIOR year. We both always knew we had chemistry, but let’s be honest…we both were focusing on the bigger picture here – baseball for him and biology for me (and maybe a couple of frogs until I got to be with my prince).

Well fortunately for Brady, his focus paid off when he was drafted as the first pick of the 3rd round in the 2012 MLB draft to his hometown team, the Houston Astros! There may or may not have been a tear shed that day…and when I say “may”, I mean there was, and when I say “tear shed”, I mean by Brady! It’s crazy to think that was 3 years ago already! Brady is currently a pitcher for the AAA Fresno Grizzlies in the Astros organization.

As for me, my biology degree is collecting dust (sorry Mom and Dad!), while I work full time in sales and marketing for a title insurance company in Houston. I moved out to Houston right after I graduated where Brady grew up so we could be together during our coveted off-seasons. I’m sure by now you have picked up on the sacrifices that come from this crazy world of baseball. Leaving my family was just about the hardest thing for me to do! Luckily, I married into a wonderful family that I get to spend a lot of time with!

Brady and I decided early on that I would stay home in Houston and work while he pursued his baseball career with me cheering him on from 1,000+ miles away. There have been many nights when I cuddle up to our sweet fur baby, Houston, and cry myself to sleep. This by no means is an easy lifestyle to handle! It takes strength, sacrifice, trust, communication, and FAITH to name a few!

When you begin your journey in professional baseball, you realize a lot of things quickly. Time apart, low pay, long days, hardly any time off, missing big milestones, etc. What you DON’T realize though, is the huge support system that comes along with this world. It’s a beautiful and inspiring thing all in itself.

The 3 girls that head this blog, Allison, Jackie, and Monica – are 3 perfect examples of the blessings that come from this life. It’s so amazing to think that women from all over the country, within different organizations, all fighting for the same end result, can all be so supportive of one another. These girls and many others are my rocks. No words will ever be able to sum up the tears they have dried for me from thousands of miles away. By far, this has been the biggest blessing for me personally through this journey.

When people ask about where my husband is, I say “Oh, he is gone until September or October” and the first question I always get is “Wow, is he in the Military?”. Luckily, I can sleep at night knowing he is safe, but I figure the time apart is right under that of a Military couple. Because of that, FaceTime, Skype, Snapchat, and basically anything that allows me to see my hubby’s handsome face, are our saving graces. That and COUNTDOWNS. The beauty of a countdown to your next visit is powerful. There is something comforting about knowing the end of a long period of absence is near!

It’s not easy being newlyweds and spending 7 of the first 12 months of marriage apart. Do I ever get jealous of the couples that get to be together during the season? Of course…we always want what we can’t have, right? But everyone has a unique journey and Brady and I are putting our faith in God’s great plan. That has admittedly been the largest struggle for me so far (more on that in a second). That, plus the pressure that these men put on themselves to perform.  If you allow it, it just about takes the fun out of the game of baseball that we all grew up loving.

This season has been one of growth for Brady and myself as a couple and in our walk with Christ together. It’s so easy to lose track of what is important in the world when you are constantly hoping things go your way and get angry with God when they don’t. Why didn’t I get that win? Why didn’t I get that promotion? Why is there no run support when I pitch? The questions could go on and on. Along the way, I have learned to enjoy the ride, no matter where it leads, because where we end up will be beautiful because it’s where God intended us to be. Whether it is in the major leagues with the Astros, with another team, or back in Houston watching Brady coach as a post-baseball career, it’s important to know that baseball doesn’t define us. There will be life after baseball.

You learn to accept the peaks and valleys and understand they are there to build you up, test your character and mental strength, and most importantly, bring you closer to God. There is a quote I have come to love this season – “When you are going through difficulty and wonder where God is, remember that the teacher is always quiet during the test”. I by no means have this whole baseball life figured out, but I’m slowly learning how to manage and appreciate it with the help of my fellow wives and girlfriends (aka – WAG’s)!

But for now, I will get in bed, cuddle up to our puppy, and appreciate the glory of high socks and baseball pants from a sub-par, grainy video feed. Oh, the glamorous life of baseball! But, I wouldn’t trade it for anything!

xoxo - Virginia

ALLISON: A Mid-Season Move!

GREAT news to report from the Plutko household: Adam got promoted to AA! He had an awesome start to the season in Hi-A and we have officially relocated to Akron, OH. Here's the thing. I love baseball and I obviously love my husband even more… but moving in the middle of the season is freaking HARD and STRESSFUL. Yes, the all caps are totally necessary. Don't believe me? If you can hang with me through this [long-ish] post, you may have a little better understanding of the anxiety and complications of having to move without warning. 

Cut to: a lazy Sunday morning in Lynchburg, VA. As I was getting ready to go to the game my phone started buzzing. I looked down to see that it was Adam calling and in the three seconds that I had to process that he was calling and pick up the phone I said a quick prayer to sweet baby Jesus that A. he wasn't hurt and B. that he was getting promoted. Thankfully, it was the latter and he was home within the hour! We had the afternoon together and he drove his car to Akron, OH the next day to meet up with his new team. Most people don't realize that these moves happen THAT fast. We were lucky to even have that afternoon together before he took off. Last season we got a couple of hours (insert monkey emoji covering his eyes here) before he left for our new town.

And so began my now traditional emotional cycle that accompanies a mid-season promotion: first comes excitement, happiness and optimism for the first 24 hours which is then quickly followed by stress, anxiety and a MAD scramble.

SUNDAY: After I got the call from Adam my mind immediately went to all of the things that were going to have to be done- I mean, I had two suitcases packed by the time he got home from the field. True story. But, first things first. CALL MOM! Thankfully, I have a mom that will drop everything at any time to come and help me pack up our life and drive to a new town. She’s definitely saved the day more than once. After her flights were booked, Adam and I got to enjoy the afternoon together- a novel concept.

MONDAY: I sent Adam on his merry way up to Ohio. Thankfully, the Indians let him drive his own car up there, which was one less (VERY BIG) thing that I had to worry about moving across three states. I also had to call the owners of the gym that I was coaching at and quit my job. Happy Memorial Day to them, right? Since it did happen to be a holiday, I was forced to put off cancelling/re-starting bills, finding a new place for us to live and renting a trailer to drag our stuff around. Since all else failed… it was pool time for me. 

TUESDAY: I had to go to the leasing office and see if I could talk my way out of our (minimum term) four-month lease. FYI- I hate breaking rules/confrontation and this kind of stuff makes me break into an immediate sweat. When we signed our initial paperwork, Adam explained that there was a possibility that we wouldn’t be living there for the full four months and asked what would happen if we DID have to break the lease. Answer: lease buyout. UGH. What kind of newlywed/minor league couple has $2,000+ to spend on an apartment that they’re not even living in? Spoiler alert: almost nobody. Our compromise was that we would go ahead and pay the rent for the month of June and if they could get someone to fill the unit we would get refunded for the portion of the month that new people took over. SO, if anyone is looking for a nice 2-bedroom place in Lynchburg, LET ME KNOW!

The rest of the day was spent packing, picking up my momma from the airport and visiting the gym that I had been working at so that I could say goodbye to the group of munchkins I had been coaching for the previous five weeks.

WEDNESDAY: Here is where things really started to get crazy. Adam and I almost always have more trouble than most finding an apartment that is not only big dog friendly but that also allows German Shepherds as they are more often than not on a “breed restriction” list. Womp womp. Short-term leases are also hard to come by but are necessary during season. PS: have you ever tried to find a place to live in a town that you’ve never been to? It can be a total crapshoot. I mean, who's to know where the hood is, right? We found a place that allowed Germans but had a 6-month lease minimum and it was going to be a month and a half of rent buyout if we broke the lease. We couldn’t seem to find a better option, so we sent in an application and we were going to figure out what to do about the buyout later.

Apparently my official name change hasn’t been fully processed (after 6+ months) with the credit-checking bureau that this particular complex used so my credit check came back with a fraud alert. According to them they couldn’t confirm that I am in fact Allison Plutko, so our application was denied. Back to being homeless. Adam was running around Akron trying to work something out and I called (enter a Lebron James voiceover here) "not one, not two, not three," but SEVENTEEN apartment complexes to see if they allowed our moose dog and/or would do short-term leases. I finally struck gold on lucky number eighteen. They could do a 3-month lease (the remainder of the season) and they allowed Germans. Bingo. On top of all of this, Adam was making his AA debut that night and I was scrambling around trying to do our application before someone else got to it! 

THURSDAY: After the mad stress of the apartment hunt I figured I had to be in the clear with moving obstacles. BOY, was I wrong. After a morning of errands and cleaning the apartment, my mom and I went to pick up our U-Haul trailer to attach to my car and pack up our stuff. We got back to the apartment and loaded it up- we don’t travel with furniture or anything so it’s mostly suitcases, plastic totes, cleaning supplies etc. Easy enough, right?

Once we were finished loading up, we were going to drop off our cable/Internet equipment and that’s when disaster hit. We were leaving the parking lot when BANG! an entire side of the bracket that attached to the frame of my car (which then attached to the hitch and then to the trailer) came COMPLETELY OFF. My car was entirely immobile, we couldn’t detach the trailer, NOTHING. STUCK. NO WAY OF LEAVING VIRGINIA. Without giving you the gory details of our several lengthy and (for them) very unpleasant conversations with U-Haul customer service, my mom and I proceeded as follows: took a cab to the local U-Haul, rented a truck that was way too big but was the only thing they had available, took everything out of the trailer, transferred it in to the truck, detached the trailer from my busted hitch and finally POURED A GLASS (or three) OF WINE. 

FRIDAY: I had to have the maintenance guys at our apartment complex detach the bracket from my car since U-Haul “couldn’t because it was attached to my personal property." Don’t even get me started on that… but, the guys didn’t have the right tool to detach it completely so I had to jog to the local tool shop (remember, my car was immobile), buy the necessary part and jog back- all before 9:00am. People were honking at me, I was sweating, I was carrying tools; clearly it really was a shining moment in my life. I also had to call someone to come pick up the empty trailer since I had no way of getting this trailer back to U-Haul and I certainly wasn't going to re-attach anything to my car. Once the guys detached my busted bracket and someone had come and picked up the trailer, we did some final loading up and finally headed out. About 8 hours of Max barking at 18-wheelers later (super great since we were on interstate almost the whole way) we made it to Akron. 

The next few days included, but were not limited to: air mattress sleeping, round two of unpacking and enjoying the three days I had with my husband in our new home before he hit the road for a week. This move may have been challenging and hectic but I'm happy to do my part so that our little family can stay together during the season because as we all know, similar to baseball, all of the important things happen at home. 

Cheers y'all! Xoxo,

AP

ALLISON: A Day in Our Baseball Life

“What you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while.” In this baseball life things change daily- shoot, things can change by the second. BUT, Adam and I are both serious creatures of habit and we try our very best to find a daily routine that works for us while we’re maneuvering the twists and turns of baseball season. It helps us to feel as normal as possible- and I use "normal" loosely here since nothing about us or our life is very "normal." 

I always have people asking me what our days look like during season (“So, what do you DO all day?”) and I thought it would be fun to give y’all a little glimpse into our life while Adam’s team is on a home-stand… AKA: the best time. What’s funny is that no matter the town we’ve lived in, this has basically been our daily routine. Did I mention that we like to create a comfort zone for ourselves?!

Life on Game Day:

7:30am- I wake up and leave a sleeping husband and dog to go get my workout in- usually at the mediocre gym that our apartment complex has. Note: the treadmill I'm using now at our complex has nowhere to set a phone/iPod etc. so I had to problem solve as you can see by the picture below. Shoutout: UCLA education. It can be so hard to leave my boys and our comfy bed every morning after staying up late but running is one of the few things that I can do in any town and helps me keep my sanity. There are worse things in life than to be addicted to than sweating, right? 

9:00am- Take a shower, wake up the hubs and we usually eat breakfast at home or sometimes we will run out to a Starbucks if we’re feeling lazy. Either way, coffee is a MUST- Adam would be happy with an intravenous caffeine drip if he could have one. SportsCenter is a staple in our morning routine as well. EST time sucks when trying to keep up with the sports world. 

10:00am- This is usually the time that we run errands if we need to. Things like grocery shopping, cleaning, laundry, paying bills etc. have to be done! Nobody tells you that when you’re an adult you pretty much ALWAYS have a to-do list in progress. Sidebar: I love to-do lists and will even write things down that I’ve already done just to get the satisfaction of crossing it off. Is that weird? Judge me, see if I care.

12:30pm- Adam usually leaves around midday to go to the field when they are at home. Yes, you’re reading that right- that is about 6 hours before game time! What a lot of people don’t realize is that even when the team is at home, we still don’t see that much of each other. There is a lot of work to be done before games to maintain strength, endurance and arm health throughout their LONG season. If Adam is starting that night, he has a few extra hours at home before heading to field since he doesn’t have to do as much pre-game work and that time is almost ALWAYS used for a snooze and a nice lunch at home.

4:00pm-8:00pm- Time for me to help out financially during season! Every town we’ve lived in I have been fortunate enough to find a local gymnastics facility that needs an extra set of coaching hands (and eyes!). I’m not going to say that I’m going to grow into a world-class coach but being in a familiar setting in an unfamiliar city provides me so much of a comfort zone and helps me keep a sense of “me” during season. (I have another post currently marinating about how important that is!) When Adam starts at home I don’t go in to the gym (or I leave early) and I’m at the game when it starts because, HELLO, supporting him is kind of why I move across the country 23 times a year. However, on days that he isn’t starting, he is either in the stands charting pitches or is in the dugout… and let’s face it, as much as I love baseball, this newlywed, minor-league family needs $$$ more than I need to watch him sit on his booty all game. 

8:00pm- A lot of the time after coaching I’ll go to the field and catch whatever is left of the game or I’ll just head home and let the beast out of his kennel, shower and do any prep-work for dinner that night- i.e. cooking brown rice which takes FOREVER. If I’m being honest, I’m probably (definitely) pouring myself a glass of wine around this time too.

11:00pm- Typically about the time we are eating dinner. I could easily eat ballpark food every night (who doesn’t love chicken strips, french fries and a good hot dog?) and Adam could eat the spread that the guys are provided post-game, but we are both pretty committed to fueling our bodies properly and making our own food. SO, that means anywhere between 10:00pm and 10:30pm is when we START cooking dinner. If we’re eating by 11 it’s considered an early night! Also, I can't sleep if I know there are dishes in the sink. My sweet husband has yet to kick his college habit of letting dishes "soak" for 24+ hours but no matter what time it is in our house, the dishes will be done one way or another.

12:00am- BEDTIME!!!

PS: This schedule is obviously for night games. When a day/morning game gets tossed into the mix, all of the sudden we're up early after staying up late the previous night and there's not enough caffeine in the world for that. 

Xoxo,
AP