Game #9 - Hit & Run

Hello friends and welcome to my weekly bitch session about boys baseball.  Tonight's edition includes the coach (sitting on the bench or) standing next to the drink cooler while the team takes the field, kids not knowing where to throw the ball and no direction whatsoever. 

As I sit in my foldable chair, fuming, I am happy to observe on thing, my kid actually sitting on the bench and paying attention (for most of the game).  Good job Max, so proud of you making great choices.  OK, rant over, here are the highlights.

Max had two good hits, but was thrown out the first time and hesitated to run to first base the second time (don't worry we had a long talk about "run no matter what" in the car on the ride home).  Luckily, they called it a tie (instead of an out), and he got to run the bases.  Check out the video (yes, that's me yelling into my camera, I'm a multi-tasker).

He played left and right field and second base, well I should say, he stood in left and right field and next to the bag at second. Sometimes he even put on his glove and tried to watch the game. Rather uneventful, although he looks like he's ready.

The other team was good (or should I say well "coached"), and got 5 runs each inning.  As usual, Max claimed it a victory, so we went home happy.  Don't worry, he has another game on Wednesday night, so expect more on this topic soon.

Game #8 - That's It, Next Year I'm Coaching

Max and his team played game #8 tonight, and boy was it hot (the weather, not the game).  I say that again because, the kids get little if any direction.  It isn't uncommon for the coach to not offer any feedback before, during or after the game.  So in quiet frustration, Lant told me the above title, next year its his show.  Hopefully the boys will all be back to play together, but the coaching staff with get an upgrade. 

Any ways, Max played well getting one hit off the pitcher and another off the "t".  The pitching is a bit inconsistent for him.  Max loved playing catcher, because he got to see the ball and practiced his throwing with the other coach.  Love how the player from the yellow team wasn't as sure about Max's throwing ability! Oh well, it isn't about winning, just how you play the game (although Max is counting this one as a win of course!)

Game #7 - Holyn MVP

Game 7 for Holyn and she played awesome despite the hot temps.  She grabbed her goal early (almost immediately) and proudly wore the green jersey until her teammate scored.  She was right in there banging it out with the other team, very determined and aggressive.  She even kicked some shots away keeping the blue team from scoring.  After the game, Lant walked up to her and said "that was your best game yet"!  And Holyn beamed with pride. Way to go Holyn!!

Game #7 - Running the Bases

Max was a hitter tonight with two great at bats, and he definitely enjoyed running the bases.  The running part comes pretty naturally (thanks Dad).  He didn't have as much enthusiasm for the fielding part.  I caught him several times doing this (see below).  Oh well, he was the snack person tonight and kept the team happy with Gatorade and choco-covered granola bars. 

Indiana Jones Birthday

After much discussion and a year of hyping up the party (in Kindergarten) , we had Max's birthday celebration (a week early) at "Do It All" sports complex.  Max wanted an Indiana Jones party and knew how he wanted everything including the invitation. He asked to have his face on the invite over Indiana Jones, wanted an Indiana Jones cake (and not just any Indiana Jones cake, but one that resembled the 4th movie about the crystal skull) and dress up like Indiana Jones with the hat and jacket.  Wonder where he gets that attention to detail from?  But I have to say, he sure does look cute!

I started the cake about 2 days in advance and probably spent WAY too much time on it, but in the end he loved it.  I made the temple first, and just kept adding stuff until party time.  The kids loved the fondant snakes, rocks and leaves.(Holyn is already deciding how I will construct her masterpiece out of fondant in September.)  All in all, the kids ran around, had fun and ate the cake.  So mission accomplished, until next time.

Game #6 - Kicking and Screaming

Holyn and the Critter Gitters, played their 6th game tonight.  We almost stayed home for this one, the sky looked pretty dark and ominous at times, but stayed clear (sometimes sunny) for the game.  We found Holyn clip-on sunglasses to help keep the sun out of her eyes and she was set to play.  About midway through the game she scored a goal!  She jumped up in the air and screamed her head off (and so did we on the sidelines).  Of course I didn't get a picture of it at the time, so here she is recreating it for mom after the game. Look at that face!  To make it authentic she kicked the ball into the net too, that's my girl!

Game #6 - I love laundry

Look at these knees... baseball pants seem to be the bane of my existence lately.  All this loveliness happened before he even took the field!  I don't know about you, but apparently rolling in the dirt and wrestling gets you ready for the game.  Anyways, Max did a great job batting tonight and hit a great line drive his first attempt at bat.  He high fived the first base coach (a dad volunteering) and jumped up and down for a while.  But with the five run rule in effect, he got left on second base. Lant and Holyn joined us midway through the game (Holyn had practice again tonight).  Max played near the pitcher tonight to start and tried his best to scoop up that ball and rocket it to the firstbaseman. On his second try at bat, he hit the ball, got on base, but eventually got thrown out at third.  He did his time in the outfield next and ended the night as the thirdbaseman.  I ended the night in the laundry room.

Mohawk, Game #5 and Lant's Bday

Yup, Max finally got his wish.  I caved and let him get a Mohawk at his haircut this morning.  I have to admit, I gave in thinking he would hate it and would want to shave it off, but that back fired!  He does look pretty cute with it.  I let him know, he still has to behave (we'll see if that happens).

Holyn had her fifth game this evening and Boppa and Papa Jim were here cheering her on with us.  Holyn isn't overly aggressive on the field, unless provoked (just ask her brother).  She does a great job keeping up though.

On the other hand, Holyn is excellent at getting into the action and blocking kicks, keeping the other team from advancing.  Many a time, she has kicked the ball out of bounds right as her opponent was about to score.  She didn't get a goal of her own tonight, but I know she will next time.

After the game we enjoyed some Boston Cream Pie while celebrating Lant's birthday.  Let's just say he's 29 again.

Game #5 - Show Off

Max got to show off a bit tonight with Boppa and Papa Jim in the crowd.  He seemed a little cocky when we yelled "Swing hard buddy" and he replied "I AM" back to us.  He did however get a hit on the first pitch, his second time up to bat. He loves to run the bases (or run anywhere for that matter) especially when he gets to score a run. 

Max played three positions tonight: second base, along side the pitcher, and in the outfield. There isn't much (said with sarcasm) supervision on or off the field. Max's coach is there more in body than spirit.  So Mr. Max takes full advantage of his time goofing off (see picture #3).  Most of the parents yell instructions from the sidelines.  Lant tries his best not to take over, but the kids would be better off if he did!

That's all I caught before heading to Holyn's soccer practice.  At least the weather was nice and pleasant.  Holyn always has a ball at practice.  Her coach knows how to keep it fun.

Last Day of School

Finally the school year is over, and no more Kindergarten or 3rd Grade.  The kids started the year in Vincennes in mid-August, so they were ready for summer break.  I hunted down their teachers before we left, gotta have pictures for the scrapbooks.  Holyn had two teachers at Lakeshore, Mrs. Raasch (top left) and Mrs. Manowske (bottom left).  She also went to 4th grade to participate in a book club and spend time with Mrs. Krolczyk (top right).

Max's teacher, Mrs. Olstad was gone on medical leave, so we tracked down his reading teacher, Mrs. Hughes (bottom right) to say goodbye.  Max managed to give himself a huge goose egg above his eye as we were leaving (apparently he lifted up his book bag and hit himself with his metal water bottle).  We will really miss our principal, Mrs. Simon, who is moving onto another position. She is wonderful and really made us feel right at home. 

After all the pictures and a bag of ice for Max we celebrated with lunch.  We met our friends Renee and Hudson, Jeana, Landon, Ella and Lant at Applebee's.  Great job guys!!

Game #4 - A Critter Down

Lant's allergies were killing him tonight, so I took Holyn to her game (and Max stayed home to babysit).  She hustled and ran, but didn't score a goal this game.  The Critter Gritters were slightly outmatched tonight by the yellow team.  Holyn still had a great attitude about the sport.  She really loves her team and they all get along so well.  Check out this kick she made after the yellow team scored.  Love that determination on her face!
Holyn also lead her share of cheers from the bench, she definitely will be a cheerleader someday. She's got the yelling part down.
At the end of the game, Holyn blocked a shot from going into the goal, but was a bit sore from the hit.  Good thing there were snacks and ice in the cooler!  She bounced back to health after we got home.  Lant on the other hand needed antibiotics to kick his cold.

Holyn - Practice & Max - Game #4

Tonight Holyn had soccer practice and Max had a game (on opposite ends of the city). This seems to happen to us a lot on Monday nights, so we divided and conquered. Holyn and I went to soccer and she chose her outfit for the evening. I caught her popping a pose while waiting for her turn to pass the ball. I was laughing to myself when she did it and had to take a picture.  What a model!  It was another hot evening, still about 90 degrees at play time. Thankfully her coach let the girls take lots of breaks and cut out early. 

We raced over to Max's game. He was playing near the pitcher when we arrived and had grabbed a line drive and threw it to 1st base, for the out. Lant said Max had a great hit and belted it into the outfield. Too bad we missed it. His next time up to bat, he had a little trouble getting a good pitch (half because the coach can't throw a strike if his life depended upon it and also because Max was a little lazy swinging the bat). He ended up hitting off the T and getting on at first. I must have jinxed him!  And yes, you guessed it, they won (well according to Max).

Game #3 - Pictures and Catcher

Today was a hot one, and of course Max had a game.  But first, there were team pictures.  I let Lant handle this one and when the team returned from group shots, he let me how Max smiled.  Needless to say, I bet you will enjoy this year's baseball cards.  I quickly asked about retakes, but Lant said to let it go.  So I'm letting it go (just stating my case).  Again, it was hot, humid and the wind stopped just in time for the kids to take the field.  Max got two hits this game and played catcher (although an older kid stood behind him to catch his misses) and short stop.  The blue team dominated and used the 5 run rule every inning.  At the end of the game, one of Max's teammates yelled "We're Unstoppable."  All the boys cheered, even the parents ('cause we got to go home)!  Max declared he loved baseball, so that's all that matters.

Game #2 - Too Much Gatorade

Game #2 for Max and this week they played in North Fond du Lac.  It was a nice field, and this time we had a fence separating us (the spectators) and the batter on deck. Max got 3 hits tonight including a one-handed grip swing (as he tells it, he had an itch and didn't have enough time to scratch and bat).  He was thrown out at first base once, was left on base another and got to run home and score the third.  He also never broke into the infield, playing right, left and center.  Thankfully he has now mastered goofy dancing and picking his nails clean. It was a hot evening, so most kids on the bench were guzzling down the Gatorade, which leads me to our main problem with the field - no bathrooms!  Lant took our star for a mid-game pee break behind the field.  Max thought this was great until I let him know its illegal to do that.  By the end of the game there lots of high fives, good games and boys doing the pee dance.

Game #3 - Fired Up!

Game #3 for Critter Force tonight, and it couldn't have been more girly, the purple team playing the pink team.  Holyn was really funny during the opening drive.  One of her teammates kicked the ball and it ricocheted off the other team and landed right in Holyn's arms.  Knowing that holding or touching the ball with your hands is a big no-no in soccer, she yells out "OH, Oh my God" and drops the ball.  Both team's parents got a laugh out of that one!  Holyn got right back in the game and scored a goal.  She even helped guard the goal when the other team threatened to score.

Our cheerleader also kept spirit strong during her time on the bench, and lead her fellow teammates.  I personally liked the chant spelling out P-U-R-P-L-E, and Fire Up (which hopefully loads on the blog!)

Game #2 - No Guts, No Glory

The Critter Force Soccer Team played their second game tonight.  Holyn started out strong, but suddenly came down with a bad stomach ache that sidelined her for a while.  Lant checked on our pro as did the coach during the first half and things didn't look good for a return. 

Much to our surprise, after halftime and a few sips of water, #3 returned to the field. She got right back to business and scored her own goal! 

Things got even better when we looked across the field and saw Holyn leading cheers during her time on the bench!  Thankfully the Critters came out on top (well, according to the girls in the purple jerseys).

Game #1 - An Innie or An Outtie?

Max had his first baseball game tonight and its apparent it will be another season like the Bad News Bears. His coach can barely throw the ball over the plate (underhanded) and each kid swings at any pitch that comes near.  Thank God they have the 5 runs and or 3 outs rule in effect.  While waiting to take his turn at bat, Lant and I overhear the conversations going on at the bench.  First, Max shows all the kids how to make fart sounds while using your armpit and hand (and then they all try it).  Wish I got a picture of that!  Next we hear "So, do you got an innie or an outtie" (and no, they were not talking about what inning they were in or how many outs they had)!  I am proud to say that at both at bats, Max hit the ball solid.  He overran first base once and got tagged out, but the second time got to run the bases and bounce over home plate.  Should be interesting... I'll keep you posted!

Singing with Feeling

Holyn had her school music program last night and did a fantastic job.  After watching the 4th and 5th grades perform for what seemed like an hour, the 2nd and 3rd grades took the stage. She was so proud of her outfit and made sure we planned it out days in advance (we think she looked pretty cute too).  Wonder who she gets that from?  We were pleased to see the songs had dance moves to accompany the lyrics, and as you can see. Holyn performed them dramatically.  Holyn also had a small speaking part, but wouldn't reveal what she said until she performed (what an artist).  After her big finish (I wish I could get the videos to load) Lant told her she sang with feeling (this is particularly funny because on Max's last report card he didn't get great marks on only one thing... "singing with feeling" in music class).  Way to go Holyn!