Brandon the Baseball Player

Brandon wrapped up his second season for Coach Pitch baseball last week, and he had a fun season - this year with the Twins! In the chaos of the move and the summer schedules that we had, I completely forgot to register him until the day after registration had ended. We were told he wasn't going to get to play, there were tears on his end, Mom guilt on my end, and then a phone call to Leisure Services BEGGING for an exception... and after about a five-day waiting period, we were given a spot on a team! Never underestimate what a determined Mama Bear can accomplish for her cub. ;)

I just adore this stage of baseball. It's quite a step up from t-ball, with kids starting to understand the game a bit better... and fewer kids pulling grass and doing cartwheels in the outfield. ;) But scoreboards aren't kept yet, and there isn't the intensity of competition that comes later in Kid Pitch. It's a fun and relaxing way to close out our summer nights, and we were blessed with some pretty awesome weather and temperatures this season.

And our little guy is just the cutest baseball player there ever was. I love how the batter's helmets never quite fit him just right, how he'd always give us sideways glances through the fence as he'd make his way to the batting plate, how focused and driven he always looked when he was taking warm-up swings on deck, and the way he always looked so proud running from 3rd to Home.

That look through the chain link! "Stop taking pictures of me, Mommy!" ;)

He is a good little batter, never needing assistance from the tee, and always sprinting as fast as he could to make it to 1st.

This older boy really took to Brandon, helping coach him whenever he got the chance, giving him pats on the head after a good play, and high-fives after every at-bat. At one point he came up to Jaden and told him, "Your little brother's a good baseball player!" Brandon was pretty proud on the way home that evening. ;)

From April through August - not a single week off from baseball with these two. The bleachers start to get pretty uncomfortable, but I've loved our summers spent watching them play. You can always count on a bag of popcorn from Papa Tim, on Jaden sneaking into the dugout to sneak a post-game snack and on our boys having the largest cheering section every single night.

Love them!