Dear Samantha Kaye ...

Dear Samantha Kaye,

Happy Mother’s Day. What a life it has been for us: From our first date at the ice-skating rink when we were 16, to growing up in college, to life in pro ball, and now life as married parents to two healthy, strong boys. Seeing you turn into the woman of my dreams over the years has been incredible. The day we got married I remember thinking there is no way I could love this woman any more than now and that my heart was completely full.

You were with me through everything in baseball, good and bad, demotions and failures, surgeries and struggles, you’ve always been my rock, but seeing you become mother opened a side of my heart that I didn’t even know existed. It’s a new level of love and respect you grow for someone when you witness them bear a child for you. Seeing the changes and sacrifices you have to make throughout a pregnancy is humbling. There are a lot of women that would have really struggled to go through those tough obstacles and unknowns that you did in both pregnancies, but you fought hard and stayed strong. You carried that right in to raising our boys. You do so selflessly and unwavering.

I work and play ball and get to enjoy my time with the kids because of all the groundwork you lay out for them every day. I have always loved you as my partner, but I love you even more as a mother to our boys. I understand that nobody is perfect, but you are as close as it comes to the word and I am a lucky man.

We are truly blessed to have you in our lives. We love you.

Love,

Austin, Levi, and Hayden