More baseball

The summer travel baseball schedule is in full swing. Jack had a road game Monday, a home game Tuesday, and pitching practice on Wednesday. Tidbits from each:

-we walked into the road game to see a team practicing on what appeared to be the field. "Dad, is that the team we're playing?" Jack asked, not without trepidation. The kids looked to be about 12. No Jack, our field is over there. "Oh. Whew."

-it is all a big party for Kate. She hangs out in the stands with a bunch of kids her age or 4-5 years older, eating ice cream and lollipops and whatnot. I think she notices Jack has a game going on, but it is not integral to her enjoyment. The other day she was sitting on the lap of Taylor, several years older sister of one of Jack's teammates. I suggested having that teammate join us at the pool one day next week, and Kate said, "can Taylor come too?" I said, well, maybe we will have someone within 5 years of you in age along instead.

-in the home game, Jack got drilled by a pitch. There is some debate over how well he took it, with his own mother leading the "needs to be tougher" crowd. Emily is hooked on the games and Jack's performance, including not wanting him to be in pressure situations. Final inning, us down a run, she was keeping track of when he'd be up, and noting the possibility of him making the last out. Indeed, we loaded the bases with nobody out, next two batters struck out, bringing Jack to the plate. Every parent's dream or nightmare, depending. On a 3-2 pitch, he drew a walk, tying the game. He ran down to first with joy in his face, which continued when the next batter also walked to win the game. Happy kids afterward.

-the next night was supposed to be an off night, but the coach held pitching practice for a few kids, including Jack. For this one, I didn't coach, just stood on the sidelines with other parents watching. Tough to do! Jack looked a little awkward throwing off the mound and needs more work before he pitches in a game. Later he and I practiced in the backyard and he looked a lot better. While Emily was googling pitching tips for kids, I asked Jack what was up. He said, "Coach said to throw higher." I said, No, he said HARDER. "Oh." We will work on it.

Sick, birthdays, sick, etc.

Friday was the kids' last day of school, so we collected them, hugged their teachers (Kate drew a picture captioned "I love you, Mrs. Glockenberg," with two smiling figures in it with one saying to the other, I love you!) and went to have Mexican food. But Jack was starting to get sick, and he didn't eat much and then went home and lay in bed/on the couch all weekend. So that's pretty much Jack's story.

Kate and I went to the pool. Both days. She loves to swim. Jack likes to play or throw a ball in the water. Kate likes to jump in the water, swim in a circle, climb out, and jump in again. I think she did it 300 times the last two days. Sometimes I would stand in the middle of the pool and she would swim to me, and then back. Other times I would sit on the edge and she would swim from me, and then back. Aside from forays to the playground, and shuffleboard (she CHEATS!), that was pretty much how things went.

Kate also had two birthday parties this weekend. One was apparently fine, she had a blast. The other, well, she had a minor meltdown as Emily dropped her off, another later on (leading to me and Jack having to go collect her, except she was fine then) and a third toward the end of the party, leading to Emily collecting her early. Kind of a mess. Maybe she was starting to get sick, maybe she was tired, or maybe she was just in one of those moods where she was easily upset and couldn't shake it, as happens every so often.

Sunday evening, Jack was a little better, and Kate was perfectly happy again. We sat on the deck, ate grilled chicken and corn, and it felt like a nice end to a perfect summer weekend, although it wasn't. We will try again next week.

Old friends

Last Saturday, we wnt to Yorktown to visit a friend of Jack's whose family had moved up there last summer. We were friendly with the parents, too, but it was mostly to give him a chance to see an old friend. We had done something slightly similar once before, inviting a preschool friend to a party, and that didn't go overly well...a year apart had been like forever for that friendship. So we kind of figured we would stay a couple of hours, catch up and then head home.

Instead, Jack and Brian kind of picked  up where they left off. They spent the next several hours playing with toys, sticks, video games, whatever, and then we headed to a nearby state park and we all fished, then they used a couple of metal detectors to find a bottle cap and a piece of colored glass on the beach. And then it was getting late, so we stayed for dinner, then broke out what appeared to be a limitless supply of sparklers, fired them up, and watched the kids run around waving them in the dark. While a seeming herd (flock? Gaggle?) of gray tree frogs serenaded us with their songs, and we were reminded that you don't have to drive too far out of the suburbs, which I feel like we live in even if we don't, to be in the country (which it felt like we were in even if we weren't).

Driving home, with both kids sleeping (Kate spent the day playing happily with the older brother, and fishing, and having a love-hate relationship with the sparklers), I felt better about the whole connecting with old friends thing,  not only for Jack, but for us. We went up mostly thinking it was good for Jack to see someone outside his regular group of friends, but it was a lot of fun for us, too. You get stuck in routines of doing the same things with the same people and forget about all the other things there are to do (fishing! Ordering from a different Italian restaurant!) with somebody you don't see all the time.

So anyway. Jack had fun and we had fun, and it's nice when that happens not just when you drag your kid somewhere, but when you go there because of them. The next day I got an email from the Mom saying her son "was so happy -- he thinks Jack's his good luck charm," partly because he caught three fish after not catching any before. So that was pretty nice, and we'll go back there. Maybe next time Jack will catch a fish, too.

Although I think finding the bottlecap and colored glass made up for it.

Moving on up

Kate had her Moving Up ceremony today,  which means she graduated from kindergarten. I am not sure exactly what she would have had to do to get held back, but regardless. She wore a lovely dress, and she and her classmates sang the songs she has been practicing around the house the last few weeks, and her various teachers and assistants spoke, and it was pretty nice. Jack had one two years ago, of course, but I don't remember it too well...will have to check the archives. I remember him wearing a blue striped shirt from the pictures I've chanced upon, and that he is still friends with most of the same kids. And Kate has made some nice friends the last few months, I think, so I hope she is too.

Anyway, all the parents stood around with our cameras, snapping pictures of the kids singing and waving and then getting their little diploma type things and smiling and waving some more. A friend sent a picture of Kate getting hers with a little proud smile. We took pictures with her friends and teachers and jack...nice morning. And the last moving up ceremony.

After, Kate and I went shopping and got lunch. Her choice, McDonalds. At home I mowed and she drew with sidewalk chalk. Kind of an ordinary Kate and Daddy afternoon. But fun; usually I have both kids, or neither so the one to one is nice sometimes. 

At bedtime she told me she had a nice day, then sang herself to sleep.