Not a baseball weekend

Over Memorial Day we had a baseball weekend. Jack's baseball team went to a tournament in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, one that we won 2 years ago, and went 5-0 and won a championship again. Jack had a 3-for-3 game and 5 hits in a row at one point, my score keeping proved critical in the title game (ok no just kidding about that part), and we had a great time talking and relaxing with friends while Jack ran around with teammates, Kate ran around with their siblings, and we brought home a cool trophy.

From March, when practices begin for the baseball league, through early August, when the summer season ends, we are kind of all baseball, all the time. Both kids have spring teams, with a combined 4-5 games per week, and Jack starts his travel team practices in May, so it's kind of all-consuming.

But one weekend in June, this weekend, the league hosts a high school baseball tournament. No games or practices for Jack or Kate's age groups. We were going to go camping, but it was a deadline weekend for me, so we couldn't get away.

So we went smaller. Planned a nice Sunday morning hike, figured we would take in a high school game on Saturday.

We did some yard work Saturday morning. Then Jack and I went to see a game. Mostly, though, he ran around playing whiffle ball with his friends, and I supported the league at the concessions stand. I am not sure he watched any of the games. After a couple hours, we went home.

Then he and Kate got in an argument about something, and we separated them. I pitched to Kate in the backyard (wait, I thought this was not a baseball weekend?), Emily went for a walk with Jack and Riley. When they came back, Jack had been collected by a group of friends, an evening that would involve chicken wings, ice cream, and a sleepover.

Kate never minds when she has our full attention. She set up the cushions on chairs on the back deck and we ate out there. We had corn on the cob, her favorite; she had 3 ears. Three! Followed by dessert, and then reading an old, childhood classic together, the three of us. Harold and the Purple Crayon. She read it to us, sitting between us; I think she let me read a couple of pages. Then bedtime.

The next morning I collected Jack from his sleepover, which apparently involved about 4 hours of actual sleep. He was a little out of it, and somewhat chagrined to find out we were going on a hike. But to his credit he didn't squawk too much, and we headed off to Bear Mountain, about a 45-minute drive.

Even as we were driving there, I thought, this is the kind of thing we don't do enough, and our main reason/excuse is baseball. So many weekend games and practices, we don't take the time for a family morning out.

We arrived, and Riley promptly slipped her collar and got away. Happily, after 5 minutes of chasing/calling, we re-captured her.

Beautiful day. Kate in high spirits, singing songs and leading the way. Riley sniffing and pulling excitedly. Jack fairly quiet, but interested in the cool views and rocks to climb. (Not as much as Kate: "LOOK, Jack, another big rock!") He was a little bit alseep, but kept his footing and his cool.

We climbed up a tower, scaled some rocks, followed the path. Stopped every few minutes for water, crackers, Skittles.

Jack slept in the car on the way home, and for a couple of hours that afternoon. Kate continued in her cheerful mood, having enjoyed the hike, the company, the television afterward as Emily and I exhaustedly let her relax while we unwound.

Dinner was chicken fingers, macaroni and cheese, talking about stuff we had seen and done. Not hits, wins, and losses.

Baseball will dominate our summer again. It's fun for Jack, fun and entertaining for us, mostly enjoyable for Kate. But I like to think there will be other parts to the summer. Hikes, day trips, occasional days where the bat and glove stay in the bags and we entertain ourselves with the rest the world has to offer. Because there is so much of it.