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URBANA – Every spring that Terri Sullivan has coached the Illinois softball team, there have been additions.

This year will provide the biggest yet, but it will not affect those who currently play the game.

The 11th-year Illini head coach is preparing for the birth of her first child, in about a month.

It is a happy time, as well as a challenging one for Sullivan and her husband, UI athletic administrator Shawn Wax, who is a senior associate athletic director for resource development.

Though it means she will miss some games and practices, Sullivan said, "I never question the timing of a blessing."

This year's UI squad – which opened the season Friday in Las Vegas with Sullivan in attendance – will make it easier for her to be away.

"You want to be at every game, but we have a great nucleus of players who are going after what they want and a great staff with a lot of enthusiasm," Sullivan said. "The team is determined to make this season a special one. It's a fun team to be around. There's no time to be distracted."

Double duty

Sullivan doesn't believe she needs to be Wonder Woman to handle the demands of being a mother and a Division I head coach. Her situation, she said, is no different than what is faced by thousands of others.

"Nowadays, you have women who want it all," she said. "I have friends who are lawyers, in education or public service, besides what us coaches do.

"Coaches don't clock in and clock out. It's not a 9-to-5 type of thing.

"I have a lot of friends who have families and are used to balancing things. You plan ahead, like in recruiting where you're looking three or four years ahead."

Perhaps one role will enhance the other.

"Those friends are fulfilled and may be better coaches because they are moms," Sullivan said.

Wax is pleased the climate for coaches is such that the dual roles are possible.

"What is important here is that the world of college athletics has become more receptive to this issue," he said. "We're not the first and certainly won't be the last to face the challenge of parenting and working at the same time.

"We feel fortunate to live in an era where this is much more the norm than the exception."

One trait that has always been a strength for Sullivan will become more imperative in the days and months ahead.

"I pride myself on being organized," she said.

Role model coach

If nothing else, Sullivan's pregnancy has helped lighten the mood at some practices.

"My team laughs at what I wear sometimes," she said.

She will go for comfort, not necessarily style.

"I've worn some of Shawn's shirts and they look like a nightgown on me," she said.

She hasn't cut back appreciably on her daily schedule.

"I'm pretty lucky," she said. "I feel good. I'm active at practice. The assistants ask, 'What the heck are you doing out there?' At this point (with the team), we're just fine-tuning a lot of things."

As her due date draws nearer, Sullivan will be put more into the limelight as a role model for others who may believe they need to make choices – or sacrifices. Women who are coaching, or who may be considering the profession, can follow her lead.

"You don't want to drive people away because they're not able to have a family," she said. "You want to show them you can have a great family life and success and still do your job as well."

Her players will receive the same message, regardless of what career path they seek.

"It's important for them to see if you have great support you can have it all," she said. "You can be successful in all areas of life and certainly as moms in the future."

Two jobs to love

The responsibility of raising a child, Sullivan said, won't detract from her responsibilities to her team nor will it diminish her drive.

"I don't see me losing any enthusiasm," she said. "I'm excited about being a mother. I don't have it all figured out. Taking care of my newborn will be a priority, but I love what I do.

"My makeup is to have it all. There are a lot of goals I want to accomplish. I'm only 40. I don't plan to retire soon."

Wax expects his wife's passion and exuberance to remain steadfast.

"Terri is extremely driven to bringing a championship to Illinois, and I don't see that waning any time soon," he said. "Professional goals for both of us are still the same.

"We both want to excel at what we do and both want to have a positive impact in people's lives."

If her boundless energy were to decrease, or she were to approach her job as work, Sullivan said those would be telltale signs that it's time to step away.

"If you thought you were losing enthusiasm, you'd better get out fast or you'll get run over by people who have it because it's too competitive," she said. "You pour your heart and soul into what you do, and I still have great passion for coaching and recruiting.

"You can accomplish it all, but maybe not without some headaches."

It takes teamwork

Neither Sullivan nor Wax is worried about how they will coordinate their schedules in the future.

"Parenting is more art than science," Wax said. "All parents handle things in their own unique way.

"We both realize that the future will definitely look different than the past, and we both realize that no matter what plans we have today, there is always the potential for change."

Sullivan is confident things will work out, even if she doesn't have all the answers.

"Some of it, as we go, we'll figure out," she said.

One advantage their daughter will have when she is born, Sullivan said, "is two great mentors: Shawn's daughters Courtney (eighth-grader) and Ashley (sixth-grader). You couldn't have two better mentors."

His daughters participate in athletics as well as piano, dance and other activities. Sometimes, it can be chaotic.

"Just like everyone, you try your best to juggle everything and maintain some level of balance," Wax said. "It's not easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.

"As far as adjusting as our daughter gets older, we have experience."

Additional role models will be present: the UI softball players.

"What a lucky kid to have 21 girls around with all different personalities and a lot of energy," Sullivan said.

Family first

Sullivan and her siblings were raised in a Chicago home where athletics had a position of prominence. Her father Gene was a basketball coach and athletic director at Notre Dame and Loyola universities. He is the last person to coach Loyola into the NCAA tournament (1985).

She appreciated the perks as well as the family time.

"I loved growing up in a sports family," Sullivan said. "You are exposed to a lot of great people; people with a lot of energy.

"I am who I am because of my family," she continued. "I had two wonderful parents who had a wonderful relationship but were very independent people. I come from a close-knit family but also parents who were workaholics."

From her upbringing, she learned not only about developing a strong work ethic but also about the importance of family relationships.

"It's a matter of having balance and knowing what your priorities are," she said. "Family comes first. That is always the case. You are there for each other. Our team is like family as well as the staff."

Planning a return

Sullivan isn't scheduling an extended maternity leave – not in the middle of a season and especially not in the middle of this season.

"This may be Terri's most complete team yet with solid pitching, clutch hitting, defense and strong leadership up and down the lineup," Wax said.

When given the green light, she plans to continue full speed ahead as a coach.

"I'd like to be at practices and games when I'm told I can," Sullivan said. "I don't plan on taking much time off."

Wax won't speculate on the length of her layoff but said "she thinks two weeks, and I've learned never to doubt her."

When she returns, she may not be alone.

"I'm looking forward to having the baby in the stands," she said.

She believes the best scenario is when activities and interests are shared collectively.

"More and more coaches are having families," Sullivan said, "and a big part is their family being part of what they do."

Will she lose focus, however, when coaching at third base if she hears a baby crying and realizes it's hers?

"I'm always fairly in control when difficult things are going on," she said. "Even as an athlete, when I stepped between the lines, I focused on my job no matter what is going on around me.

"When I'm down on the field, I don't hear much in the stands, and I'm very lucky to have such a great support group."

Supportive spouse

Wax plans on doing his part, whatever it might be.

"We're lucky in that we both have a working knowledge of each others' careers," he said. "I've played competitive collegiate sports (football at Illinois) and have been in this business for 15 years. I definitely understand the demands on coaches.

"Terri grew up with a dad who was a college athletic director, so she understands the business side of it all. Having that knowledge really allows us to be very supportive of each other and, if need be, we can even roll up our sleeves and lend a hand."

On occasion, Wax said, "I've dragged the infield, rolled up the tarp and shagged fly balls."

Oh, baby, what a year

Sullivan believes 2010 has the potential to be a memorable year on all fronts.

"I'd be fooling myself if I didn't say I have a lot on my mind," she said. "I'm blessed to have a lot of good things coming. The coming months will be exciting."

If she's not there to make every signal or every position change at every Illini game, she's all right with that.

"Players win games, not coaches," she said. "We've had great practices and great preparation. Maybe in the end we'll be in Oklahoma City for the (College) World Series."

The weeks ahead, Sullivan said, will be "crazy."

As the coach caught her breath, she smiled, as she does frequently. "Crazy is right up my alley," she said.