Last Baseball Game

 On deck.

Getting in batting position. 

He took this part very seriously. He was methodical, precise and completely serious. 

It was like he had a checklist in his head that he completed every time. 

In this at bat he had a really good hit that got a runner home and tied the game. 

The boy at 2nd got the 3rd out though out so Jeremiah didn't get to run bases, which is his favorite thing.

In the dugout. Aaron was a helper in the dugout. 

Trying to keep thirteen 7 year olds paying attention when they are waiting for their turn to bat is quite the task.  

 The final at bat of the game and season. Jeremiah is up, 2 outs, a few kids on base, our team down 14 to 6. Jeremiah got a good hit, but was thrown out at first. That ended the season. 

 Last coach pep talk. 

With coach Bradford at the pizza party. 

Nathaniel and I sitting in the bleachers.

Well, our first baseball season is over. It was a gorgeous spring-like day with cool temps and a nice breeze. A perfect day to spend at the ball field. Jeremiah had a fun season, but I must say that I much prefer soccer. However, he had terrific coaches who focused on having fun, learning, and being good sportsmen not just on winning. The highlight of any sports season is the pizza party and trophy which now sits in its own place of honor next to the soccer trophies. Now we can take a deep breath and dive in to summer.

Opening Day

Let's just say that baseball is a big deal in our area. Big. Deal. I knew that, but I honestly had no idea. Apparently the spring baseball and softball season starts off with a parade. And opening ceremonies. With pretty much the whole town there. This is how we spent Thursday night, our introduction to the world of baseball.

 Jeremiah's team float. He and Aaron are on there somewhere. 

 This parade had lots of good candy. And since all the kids were on the floats Nathaniel got quite the stash. Seriously, he filled up my purse and there was still candy laying all over the ground.  

 All the teams from our town lined up for the opening ceremonies. 

 National anthem. Jeremiah is #5. 

 "Go Outlaws!" 

Each team had their name called and ran out to the pitchers mound. 

Running back, ready to play and full of energy.  

 Warm ups before the 1st game. 

 Jeremiah with one of his coaches. 

This coach is very thoughtful and spends a lot of time really teaching Jeremiah what to do. 

All of his coaches are good men, but this guy is exceptionally generous and kind. 

 The ball fields on a spring evening. A pretty sight really.

 On the field for his first game ever.

Nathaniel plays with a friend. There are all kinds of kids running around for him to play with.  

 Jeremiah's first at bat.

(I was so freaking nervous!)

 A hit!

 Running the bases!

 He made it to 3rd base on his first hit in his first game! 

I, who am pretty non-competitive, was actually jumping up and down yelling "Run, Jeremiah, run!"

The next batter hit him in to home. It was so exciting! However, he had to be told by his coach to go back and actually tag home plate. Oops. 

 In the dug out. 

His coach put him in as catcher after the regular catcher had to leave sick. I was so nervous! He did a great job but it was obvious he still wasn't sure about the mechanics of the game. 

The Outlaws lost their first game on Thursday night. But they played well against a team who had already played in a tournament and had some games under their belt. Last night they had another game and it was so much fun to watch! It was a really close game against a really good team and The Outlaws held their own. Even though they lost, it was only by a few points, and they obviously played much better. I could tell that Jeremiah understood more the way the game worked. 

I am still torn about how competitive this sport is. Especially at this young age. I really just want Jeremiah to have a good time. But it is obvious that there are teams, coaches, and parents who are super competitive. The majority of these kids have been playing since they were 3 years old! I am hoping that we will get to enjoy the season, that Jeremiah will learn a lot and have lots of fun. So far he really enjoys it so I think we are off to a good start. 

Baseball Season

When our kids were little we always agreed that we would only let them play 1 sport per year. We have loved being a "soccer family." Soccer down here is pretty laid back, especially in the early years.We have made many new and good friends in the community through our involvement in soccer. I love sitting out in the early fall air, chatting with my friends as we watch our kids play. But the one thing I don't like about soccer season is how busy it makes us. Being out of the house and staying up late 2-3 nights a week plus Saturdays just isn't ideal for us and we all feel it. 

This year Jeremiah begged us to play baseball. We have avoided baseball for a number of reasons; it is a more competitive sport down here, kids start playing at 3 years old, the season is longer than soccer season,   the games are more boring when the kids are younger. But this year we gave in and signed him up. He has been so excited! He has been practicing with his team (all boys who have been playing since they were 3 years old, yikes!) and learning the basics of the game. This week he got his uniform and is so excited to wear it. I think he is more excited about his uniform than he is about actually playing the game. 

Random Updates

There is so much going on around here that I don't really know what to say. On the flip side, there isn't really anything exciting going on around here so I don't really know what to say. Such is our life I guess, to us it is full and busy, but to others it is probably just normal and boring. Anyway, here are some updates:

Adoption

We had our first home visit from the social worker yesterday. No problems. We should be approved by the first week of April. After that it is just a waiting game. I have been using this time to read a lot about attachment and adoption. I know that I can never be truly prepared, but I want to at least have some knowledge to draw on when the time of placement arrives. However, doing lots of reading also has the effect of scaring me out of my mind at times. When I start getting frightened I take deep breaths and pray. Sounds cliche, but it works. Here is an excerpt from an email I sent to family about our home visit yesterday:

The boys remain excited. Their little hearts have proven to be so generous and compassionate. Today the social worker was asking them questions about what they thought it would be like to have another brother or sister and their answers were so thoughtful and encouraging. Nathaniel was so sweet, the social worker was asking what he would not like about having another child and he kept insisting, "There is just nothing I won't like! I like having lots of kids around. I want another brother really badly!" He was very insistent on explaining to her in great detail just how many toys and books and games and beds we have. It was cute. Jeremiah just stated matter of factly, "I want another brother. And God tells us to take care of orphans and share with people who don't have as much as we do. So of course we want to adopt children who don't have anyone to take care of them!" The faith and obedience of a child is a beautiful thing. 

 

Home Schooling 

We have 9 weeks of our curriculum left and 4 weeks of Math. It will feel good to be done for the year and take a nice long break. I continue to be surprised at how much I enjoy schooling the boys and how well it works for us right now. We are already thinking through curriculum and choices for next year. We will be visiting a science class that Jeremiah may attend in the fall. Nathaniel has been begging me for reading lessons and we are using the book Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons. He loves it! His letter recognition is getting better. Next year we will continue with reading and some basic math.

Baseball

Jeremiah begged us to play baseball this spring. And despite always saying that we would only be a 1 sport per year family we signed him up. His try-outs were last night. He has been assigned to a team and we start practice Thursday night. This all new territory for us. We arrived at tryouts last night with an old glove and no other gear to speak of. Most of the other kids were well provisioned with special bags to hold all their special gear. We shall see how it goes. Baseball tends to be pretty competitive around here and some of these kids have been playing since they were 3 years old. Jeremiah is excited though. He loves to practice throwing and hitting.  

Extra

We are planning on spending a few days in Philadelphia during Aaron's spring break. I am looking forward to the break and a change of scenery. 

Our time keeping our little 5 year old friend is coming to an end. Last week he didn't come to our house because his grandparents were in town and my boys missed him intensely. The 3 of them play very well together.

The weather here has been gorgeous. The boys have been spending hours and hours outside. I feel the need to spring clean and purge us of stuff. This always makes Aaron nervous.