A Banner Moment — Stolen By a Bohlen

Jun 10

Jun 10 A Banner Moment

I hope this comes across the way I intend it - with a genuine, humble intention, but I’ve always had this deep desire as a mom to go the extra mile. I love to sprinkle a little bit of magic on ordinary moments and turn them into something to remember. I just want the memories to feel special

For M- O-N-T-H-S I have been driving around with a roll of kraft paper in the cab of my car…I say it all the time, but one thing is for sure: my car and my purse will never be spotless! I can’t explain this phenomenon, but I do have this awareness about myself and accept it! :)

I kept meaning to use it for something, but wasn’t sure what! When I realized that Waylin was playing her last home game of the season, I came up with this idea of creating a banner for the team to run through it. Imagine busting through it to charge the field! It sounded so fun, I wanted to do it too! Haha!

I sketched out every girl’s name and number, and added some extra flair to the sides. I am so happy with how the design turned out. It was handpainted and I will not tell you how many hours I spent on it because it was A LOT. I kept telling myself, “Stevie, this is going to be ripped up, torn, broken…stop trying to make it perfect!” But, in usual fashion, I couldn’t. I had a vision in my mind and wanted it to look awesome for the girls! I wanted each girl to feel seen like this banner celebrated not just the end of the season, but who they were as a team!

I learned a lot when I chased this idea because I am not a painter like my sister. Painting is scary to me because once you hit a blank canvas with paint, it’s a commitment. And I am the biggest noncommittal person ever. I had to learn how to layer and emphasize with paint, when and when not to outline, etc. And I only had one shot!

When game day came, I was nervous about how to actually orchestrate my idea in my head! We had the coaches hold the banner and on cue, the girls were set to run through it. The girls were wide-eyed and ready to do it! It made all of us laugh when the banner didn’t break the first time!

We were all laughing about it! We tried it a second time, and they came crashing through with cheers and laughter! In that silly, sweet moment, you could feel the joy these girls were experiencing! I felt like the banner was well worth the time investment and I would do it again and again in a heartbeat!

We brought the ripped up banner home because I thought we would just throw it away in our garbage bin.

I don’t normally expose Waylin’s vulnerable moments on the internet, but I noticed she was very upset once we got home. Tears were rolling down her cheeks and she was holding onto the ripped banner not ready to let it go. When I asked her what was wrong she said, “MY MOM WORKED REALLY HARD ON THIS BANNER!” She didn’t want me to throw it away because she saw how much time and effort I put into it. It was more than a piece of paper.

She offered to tape it up and hang it on her bedroom wall! She was right that it was special. Not because I made it, bt because it gave those girls a memory that is bigger than the game. It was a moment of celebration, togetherness and of fun! And for me, it was a reminder that the extra effort, the thought and the time behind the magic matters more than we realize.