Back in Action

Hi friends! It has certainly been a while. Maj and I have been keeping plenty busy getting settled and ready for the season!

As I mentioned in my last blog, after getting married on June 23^rd, we bought our first home. As many NFL players do, we decided to establish a permanent residence for off seasons and life after football, and what better place to do so than in Okla(home)a?! We spent the first couple of weeks of marriage getting all moved into our new house and figuring out how to “adult.” 😊

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Once we were all set, we returned to Texas to spend some time with our family before driving halfway across the country. We then set off for Virginia with Samajé’s truck packed full and Moose in tow. The drive was long, but it was totally worth it. My mom, sister, brother, and cousins came with us to help us get moved in, which was a huge help, and we were even able to spend a day exploring D.C.

Two days after we arrived at our apartment, Maj had to leave for the dreaded training camp. Every team’s camp is different. The Redskins conduct camp in Richmond, Virginia, about two hours away from where the usual practice facility is located. The players all stay in a hotel for the three-ish weeks until they are allowed to return home. Wives and families are allowed to visit occasionally during this period, but unfortunately I did not have time to this year.

Once he left for camp, things got a little interesting for me. I had to return to Texas with my family, but the arrangements I had made for Moose to stay in Virginia did not work out. Long story short, I ended up bringing him back to Texas with me, with no idea how I was going to get him back home. It was stressful, to say the least, but you will see in a moment that God’s got me! My mom, my sister, my brother, Moose and I all piled into my sister’s small SUV and made the 23-hour drive back to Texas, my “original” home.

The drive back was exhausting, as one would expect. By the time we had been on the road for 15 hours I was starting to question my sister’s sanity for wanting to take the hour-long detour to visit Mountain Pine, Arkansas, the Boyhood Home of Bobby Bones (our FAVORITE radio show host ever). I will never regret it though, because Bobby reposted our picture with his sign on his Instagram page. It was a pretty big deal to us fan-girls.

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Soon after I returned to Texas, I was on a plane to Hawaii for my best friend Eliana’s wedding. Luckily, my brother, his girlfriend, and one of my best friends were able to come with me so I did not have to travel alone. During the trip, we relaxed by the beach, explored Waikiki and Honolulu, and attended a luau. Eliana and Austin had the most beautiful wedding, and I got to spend time with my bonus family – a family to whom I have no blood ties, but they are family nonetheless.

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I returned once again to Texas, where I still had the problem of figuring out how I was going to get Moose back (affordably). The one car Maj and I were sharing was left in Virginia; we were planning on buying a car for me when I returned. Things worked out, though, and I ended up buying a car in Texas instead and driving back with my trooper of a friend, Lindsey. She had accompanied me to Hawaii, and less than 24 hours after returning to the mainland we were on the road for our next adventure.

As planned, we made it back to Virginia just in time to make Samajé’s first preseason game in Baltimore. Well, kind of. I had checked out the drive to Baltimore days before the game, and it was only an hour and a half away from our apartmet. Now, I have experienced bad traffic before, but Texas traffic is nothing compared to D.C. traffic. That one-and-a-half-hour drive ended up taking us FOUR. HOURS. Needless to say, we were late to the game. We managed to walk through the gates just before halftime.

When we got there, we also realized that our seats were terrible. Unlike college players, NFL players do not get free tickets to every game. (*sad face*) We can either pay for upper deck tickets through the team, which we did, or buy tickets just like normal people for away games. Luckily, I met up with my friend Lexie, whose fiancé plays for the Ravens, and we were able to sit with her in non-nosebleed seats. 😊 Maj was able to come home with me after the game, but he and Lindsey both had to leave again the next day.

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A few days later, he finally returned home for good. Camp just recently finished up, but the last part of it took place at the regular practice facility. My aunt and cousin came to visit a couple weeks ago, which was a ton of fun. Now, though, all the visitors have gone. It is just Maj, Moose, and me, 1,200 miles away from the people we are closest to.

This experience has proven to be somewhat trying so far. Life in the NFL is definitely not as “glamorous” as many think. There are challenges and worries unique to the job. We are very lucky, though. I have already met a couple of other wives, he has his teammates, and my aunt and uncle live 20 minutes away. We are blessed to have been placed on a team with so many God-centered people; we are also in a wonderful area.

So, to recap, this summer I have traveled from Oklahoma to California, back to Oklahoma, to Texas, back to Oklahoma, got married, bought a house, traveled back to Texas, back to Oklahoma, back to Texas, to Virginia, got an apartment, traveled back to Texas, to Hawaii, back to Texas, and finally back to Virginia – and Maj has been most of those places as well! It has definitely been the busiest summer of our lives, and I am sure it is just a peek of what is to come. It almost seems surreal, but here we are – time for his first NFL season to begin!

Now that things are finally “normal” for a little while, I hope to write more often to give you all a glimpse of what NFL life is like. I am so glad to be back!

<3 Meg