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Little Oriole

26 Feb

There once was a little boy who loved the Baltimore Orioles. He proudly owned shirts, hats and a pennant tacked to his bedroom wall. He had a book full of only Orioles baseball cards. He loved them despite their loses but admired them even more for Cal Ripken, Jr.

Now, that little boy just doesn’t know what to do with himself knowing that his little boy will soon be suiting up for tee-ball in an Orioles uniform.

We don’t have the official shirt and hat yet but that doesn’t mean Nate doesn’t have something to wear. He was awake and dressed before we were this morning. He can hit and run pretty well for a 5-year-old but we’re still working on that tie-the-shoes skill.

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Dressed & Ready Before Anyone

Andrew really made this season’s first practice special for him. He cooked him a baseball-themed breakfast with baseball pancakes and an Orioles beer mug full of apple juice. (I think we should invest in some kid-friendly Orioles cups, right?! Maybe even a water bottle for games.)

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Baseball Breakfast (That's APPLE JUICE!)

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Batter Up for Breakfast!

After loading up on two pancakes and three small pieces of bacon, Nate had a blast at his practice. He felt that he did so well that he told me, “Looks like I’m ready for big boy baseball!” Your heart and confidence may be ready, buddy, but you still need to grow into those baseball pants. Sweet, little Oriole. Daddy is so proud.

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Batting Practice

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Loves to Play Ball!

Here’s a short clip of him getting a single. I say that he growls but it was more of a grunt. Because, you know, that’s better. Such an intense player!

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A Day for Him

6 Feb

It’s all because of her Second Grade ears. Her Second Grade mind. Her Second Grade sweetness. When her teacher made the announcement about the baseball youth camp, Nia thought about Nate. She got the paper, put it in one of the pockets of her Kitten folder and packed it away in her backpack to make sure we got it. To make sure her little brother could go to the baseball camp.

Nate loved it. He got to play ball with the high school baseball players. He got to soak up the older kids saying, “look at that little guy run/hit/field!” He got to learn from the boys wearing the high school uniform shirts. He was in his element and it showed. Andrew said the head coach even came up to him at end of the camp inquiring, “Is that your son? How old is he?” Apparently, he’d been watching Nate during all the drills and couldn’t believe how good his technique was at such a young age.

What I love most about it all is that Nate doesn’t know how cool that is. He doesn’t know a head coach from another dad. He just knows he loves to play. For him, that camp was about him and baseball. And his sister made it happen.

Warming Up

Blurry Baseball Boy

Couldn't Wait to Bat

 

Batting Practice

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Baseball Weather!

30 Jan

The months of cold, rainy and snowy weather may have kept Nate from playing baseball outside but he never really did put away all the baseball gear. He would still bring the hats, gloves and cushioned baseballs out of his room to convince Andrew to throw with him in the living room. That really wasn’t cutting it though. This weekend’s beautiful weather was just what he needed. Spring Ball can’t get here soon enough!

Swing Away!

He "Crushed" It

 

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Silly Boy

26 Oct

First, he was running around the house with his baseball glove – back and forth in the hallway and living room – diving and sliding on the floor. I suppose he was perfecting his baseball moves but it just looked painful and extreme. Then, came the cup music.

Nate made for some funny entertainment while I tried to do the dishes. I would have to stop to laugh and then to, of course, get his silly version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” on camera. Thanks for making mommy shake her head in confusion one minute and then laugh out loud the next, you silly boy.

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He cried, then I cried – in baseball

18 Oct

I thought he made it. He thought he made it. It was such an exciting sight. Cheers from both sides erupted as we all watched him take off for Third base as the Second basekid on the other team chased him. That Second basekid had to dive for Nate to even have a chance at catching our speedy number 8. Nate was almost there. I screamed and jumped. The other child dove. I screamed and jumped. “He made it! He made it!”

“You’re OUT!” The umpire’s call proved me wrong.

My arms fell to my sides. Nate stood on Third in shock. He shook his head in disbelief and sadness.  His head folded under the weight of his helmet as he was guided off the base. Tears slid down his cheeks. Tears slid down my cheeks.

I’m sorry, Buddy. I know it won’t be the last time you are disappointed on the diamond. I can only hope your little heart doesn’t break each time – for both of our sakes.

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Well, I didn’t collapse so that’s good

16 Sep

What do you call a person who participates in a three mile run/walk without weeks, days or even minutes of exercise prep and gets less than three hours of sleep the night before the race?

I must be crazy. I made it though (along with thousands of others who filled downtown Atlanta streets) and I don’t really hate my time. (45:30 or about fifteen minutes per mile.) Other than that here are some additional observations/experiences from my second attempt at a 5K.

  • I didn’t dare to stop to tie my shoelaces. I was afraid that if I stopped for even just a few seconds, I wouldn’t be able to start again. I also thought about how tripping would slow me down as well but I justified that by telling myself my chances of tripping were slim. I would face-plant due to exhaustion before shoelaces.
  • I was double-fisting at the fitness event. I started carrying a water bottle and a sports drink bottle. I ended up throwing both half-full bottles in the garbage.
  • People seemed to walk faster for the free t-shirt at the end of the race then during the race.
  • Both older and younger walkers crushed my time. One example that stands out in my mind involves an elementary schooler who held hands with her mother as they walked and crossed the finish line. (It was really sweet.)
  • I’m going to hurt in the morning. Wait, scratch that. I’m hurting now.
  • I didn’t know you could get blisters in between your toes.
  • The smells of food cooking, something burning and the sewer are never great during a race like this.
  • There were boxes and boxes o f bananas. I also saw a few whole nanas on the ground. The event was flooded with the yellow-green fruit.
  • Walking is hard.

I’ve decided my next race will include some prep work. I want to make an improvement on my time and, more importantly, reduce my body aches.

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Better Than Turbo Jets

29 Aug

What happens when you take 100% polyester shorts and put them on an incredibly intense four-year-old? You get speed you would not expect to come from such a small body. (Go to about :30 in to see him take off.)

Nate dubs them his “fast pants” because he believes they help him run faster. He wants to wear them everywhere. We’ve even planned for it – buying one pair for almost every day of the week –

Assortment of Fast Pants

I tell him his shorts aren’t what makes him fast but he won’t hear it. Probably because he doesn’t stand still long enough for me to explain it to him.

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A Love All His Own

11 Jul

It’s hard not to pass on your love of something to your children. The same applies for your dislike of something. For example, I loved Disney movies growing up and I still do. I’m sure it played a part of Nia’s love for them. I am not a fan of the Bratz dolls. That’s probably why Nia only has two of them compared to her entire toy store aisle amount of Barbies. Andrew and I enjoyed collecting the Thomas trains for Nate. It was inevitable that it would lead to Nate’s love for the cheeky engine. There’s pretty much only one love that we didn’t pass down to our kids, Nate’s passion for baseball.

His Favorite

The little man loves this sport and it’s all his own doing. He watches it on tv. He acts like he’s pitching, catching and hitting without a ball. He wants to play all the time. He actually intensely watches the players when we take him to a game. He proudly states that he’s going to play for the Gwinnett Braves when he grows up. (He doesn’t quite understand yet that he may want to shoot for the Major League team but that’s ok.) He mimics the real players in his stances, head tilts, wind up and hat adjustment.

The only part of Nate’s passion that Andrew did influence is his love/hate for certain teams. Because Andrew’s favorite team is the Orioles, Nate loves the Orioles. Because Andrew detests the Yankees, Nate boos the Yankees. Hey, why not? The boy needs some guidance.

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Wanna Play Baseball?

7 Mar

It’s a question we’re asked over and over each day. Even after we just get finished playing catch or batting with Nate, he asks, “Momma/Daddy/Nia, wanna play baseball?”

The little man loves the game. Everything about it. He wants to bat. He wants to catch. He wants to throw. He wants to run the bases. He wants, of course, to hit a home run. Now, he’s closer to doing all of those things – on his pre-tee team.

Swing away!

The first practice was a little haphazard and dangerous – the kids kept rushing the ball when it was hit – almost ending in a pileup each time, one poor kid kept crying every time he didn’t get to the ball before the other kids and we all gasped when Nate threw the ball at the kid running the bases, hitting him in the helmet. (Luckily, the little runner didn’t even know it happened and when I apologized to his grandma she said, “That’s ok honey. That’s why we’re here. To learn.”)

Fielding

The next practice went a lot better. The coach put Nate in as the pitcher because, in pre-tee, after the batter hits, the ball gets thrown to the pitcher and then the runner has to stop. He chose Nate because he’s the only one who can catch/stop the grounders right now. (We’re so proud! It could be because he will sacrifice his body to stop the ball too – yeah.)

Daddy Coaching Son

Playing baseball is making Nate so happy. He lives to play. He wakes up and asks, “Do I play baseball today?” Before he falls asleep he asks, “Do I play baseball tomorrow?” When we tell him yes, he lets out a squeal and giggles. I hate it when we have to tell him no.

Little Ball Player

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Baseball Highlights

1 Sep

Capturing some family fun swinging away:

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