Homerun King

Every player is allowed to cross home plate and "score" in t-ball. Today Keagan was the last batter, and as the last batter he is allowed to round the bases and cross home for a homerun. He was pretty proud of himself for hitting not one but three "home runs"!

Big Hit

Running to second base

Lapping a player between second and third

Crossing Home

Rounding third

Hartland Orchard

For the third year in a row we made the drive out west on I-66 to Hartland Orchard to pick apples. This year it was cooler so there were fewer bugs buzzing around our faces; there were fewer people so we found an apple picker tool for Evan; and there were hundreds of apples on the tree so I am now tasked with the job of making apple pies. Evan, the connoisseur of apples, was more than pleased to make the trip. The boy can name more varieties of apples than most adults, and because he usually eats one to two apples a day, making the hour long drive to the orchard to buy bushels of apples is actually our way of stretching the dollar as much as a past time. 

Keagan climbed every tree he could find and practiced his baseball skills with every apple thrown to us on the ground. On our walk to the farmhouse, the horses were placed in the stable prepared for their daily brushing. All three of them had covers around their eyes to keep the flies out, and Keagan declared, "Look, Evan! The horses have underwear wrapped around their heads!"

Are You Ready for Some Football?

If the Cowboys are playing, then we are all ready for some football. However, Evan takes the prize. He has the helmet, the boxer shorts, and the couch. Like a real man, he is ready for some Monday Night Football!

But there is only so long you can sit and watch a game. Sometimes you just have to get up off that couch and play the game with your little brother.

Burning Question

Evan: Mom, is heaven really built on a cloud?
Me: No, I don't think so, but no one knows for sure.
Evan: Well, I am pretty sure that George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Michael Jackson could tell us.
Me (trying to hold back laughter): Really, why is that?
Evan: (Big sigh) Because they're dead!
Me: Well, just because you die doesn't mean that you go to heaven.
Evan: Oh, yeah! Well, then I guess Abraham Lincoln and George Washington know what it's like.
Me: Why those two?
Evan: Because I am pretty sure that they knew God, but Michael Jackson..... I don't know.... He wore that glove all that time and did that dancing....

Ice, Ice Baby!

Team Icebergs had another win today. Yes, that's right. Team Icebergs. Keagan created that name last week, and the other seven kids were so utterly confused by such a name for their team, they just weren't able to articulate any other suggestions. So today we arrived at the game cheering, "Go Icebergs!" I guess it is better than Rainbow Unicorns; someone blogged last week that her daughter's team has this catchy name. And we aren't the Bald Eagles, another fabulous name to yell out while standing on the sidelines and another real name used by my friend's team. 

Keagan scored eight goals, and the other team scored nothing. They were obviously frustrated with the results and so they began what any other five year old boy would do in the same situation: trash talking. And one little boy had some pretty cut-throat words like, "You're going down!" When this statement was directed at Keagan, he retorted with, "You don't know who you are talking to." Later he told me, "Mom, he said that to me and I got angry. I scored on him and looked at him and said, 'You don't want to make me angry again.' He then added, "I don't think he will say that again."

Weekend Sports: Update #4

No lost purple socks this weekend. So on Friday evening I didn't waste any time looking for uniforms pieces that don't exist. Instead, I pulled out Evan's mouth guard for flag football because today was his skills camp, and I decided I would get it rinsed off and into his carry case so it would be ready for our early departure on Saturday morning. I was really proud of myself for having everything together and ready to go, and then I was almost knocked over when I stumbled across the words "personal fitting" on the back of the mouth guard package. I read closer and realized a simple rinsing really required a pan of boiling water, a cup of ice water, and then a mouth cast in plastic. All of this at 9:00. So I pulled Evan out of bed and we began the multi-step process of a personal fitting. We had to repeat steps 1-5 several times to get it just right, but I guess it fits just fine now because Evan wore that thing all day, even while walking the aisles of the commissary this afternoon.

Soccer: Team United
Evan's soccer game was probably the most exciting of any game we have ever played, and we had to leave after the first quarter to take Keagan to his t-ball game. Evan had a goal and two fine cross field passes, and I was really upset that we didn't get to stay and watch the rest of the game. I am hoping for a re-match later in the season.

T-Ball: Rockies vs Astros
This game made me realize that when given the option I should have requested Keagan's placement on team Astros. That coach was awesome and I should have known that any team with a Texas name would be the team of choice. Instead, I made the flippant and erroneous statement, "They all are the same to me. Place Keagan on any team." Keagan played one inning before we had to leave yet again to take Evan to football.

Keagan fields the ball and prepares to throw to first base.

Keagan and Coach Scott high five after an out at first base.

Football: Skills Clinic
Evan said it was great fun, but I don't know how much he really learned. I found him daintly holding the football and running in circles around the cones. However, when it was time to scrimmage, he made two "tackles" (I know you don't tackle in flag football but "he removed two flags" doesn't sound nearly as impressive).

All of this driving back and forth, and I realized that if I have a husband that must work on weekends, then I need a grandma / grandpa to help out with the transportation of the children.

 

Weekend Sports Update

I am highly organized. Extremely organized. But as I prepared for our weekend of games Friday night, I had a breakdown and couldn't find any purple t-ball socks. I looked high and low. I finally asked Keagan if it would be okay if he wore the black ones from last season's soccer games. He reminded me that he didn't have purple socks because he was never issued purple socks. I don't know if I was relieved that he wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb at today's pictures, or if I was upset for spending half an hour looking for socks that didn't exist. Anyway, it is only week two and I feel my brain slowly frying. Here's the weekend update:

T-Ball: Rockies vs Yankees
We arrived to the game today at game time, and it was not because of my lack of planning. It is because my dear son Evan really preferred to watch Saturday morning cartoons. I coaxed him upstairs with the threat of sitting out during his own soccer game, and then I found him fifteen minutes later reading a Ben10 comic book. I pushed him out of the front door with socks hanging off his big toes, his jersey sitting on his right shoulder, and soccer cleats in hand. In other words, he was half nude. By my standards that was running behind, but luckily we play for a team that has a very relaxed approach to coaching / playing t-ball. We got to the game and Keagan said in a very adult voice, "Sorry, for being late, Coach. We had some problems with the older brother." 

No score is kept but Keagan had a great hit to center field. He didn't just hit a grounder that the pitcher watched roll between his legs; he actually hit it up in the air and it landed on the tip of the outfield. By the second inning, Keagan learned to play his position and his position only. After fielding every hit in the first inning (whether hit to third, second, or center field it made no difference), Coach Scott persuaded him to stay in his "zone." However, he still prefers to race the batter to first instead of throwing the runner out. In Keagan's case, he is actually guaranteed the out if he runs the ball to first.

Evan left the game asking me if I would sign him up for baseball, too. Sorry, Baby, I draw the line at three sporting events per kid because as I think I mentioned before, my brain is looking to explode.

Soccer: United vs Team White
This game was so one-sided that we only played three full quarters,the opposing team played with a goalie, the opposing team played five players (instead of four), and our coach had Evan and the other three players stand still while the opposing team scored its one and only point. I think the ball crossed the mid-field line five times in the entire game. Even with ear infection number 465, Evan had a great game. 

Which brings me to my latest observation. I am afraid that this new med, anti-biotic ear drops, is no longer as effective as it was when we first used them about twenty ear infections ago. This week it took almost three days to stop the bleeding when it usually only takes one dose. I have no idea what we will do if they continue because there are just so many medicines invented to cure bleeding ears. And I am pretty sure that we have tried them all.