T-ball!

As you know, Ethan started t-ball in May. The games have been in full swing for almost a month now. He seems to like it, though it helps that his two buddies (Andy and Christopher) are on the team.

He's also learning a lot.

Like:

When you hit the ball, you run... to first base... "that one... over there!" The "fast" part is still coming.

When you are in the outfield, there is a lot of downtime. Why not fill it up with...

• hugging your friends
• wearing your glove as a hat
• seeing how high or how far you can throw your glove
• playing the dirt
• picking grass
• tackling your friends (also bored and in the outfield with you)
• staring into space, contemplating the meaning of life (what? it could be that... or what super power Green Lantern has... same thing).

When you have to sit out an inning, it's the perfect time for hide and seek. Or jumping off the bench and onto the fence behind the batter... then seeing how far you can climb up it.

Aside from that, when he is in a position where the ball actually comes to him, like the pitcher's mound or maybe first base, he does pay attention better and is more engaged (because there is action). Obviously, it's hard at this age with the skill level they are at. But he is picking it up in bits and pieces and doing pretty well.

My favorite is when he has a good play, he looks our direction and gives us the thumb's up. I love that!

I stayed home with the twins (Oliver was sick) a couple weeks ago and Steve took Ethan to his game. When Ethan got home he was telling me about the game. He said he got "three runs and caught the ball twice!" (btw, that means it rolled to him and he picked it up) He then said, "and guess what? One of my friend's caught the ball and got someone out ON BASE! You know who he is... his name starts with a C..." I, of course, knew. I loved the way he was proud of Christopher's success. That's all part of playing a sport and I love that he is getting that. After all, that is really what this is all about... teamwork, pride in your team and yourself and having fun.

BTW, Christopher is amazing; I'm in awe of him. Heck, he can throw and hit farther than me. Not that it's saying that much since I am completely inept at baseball/softball, but he's only five years old! (oh wait, I'm not sure that makes him look as good as it actually makes me look really pathetic... sigh)

Here's some photos of our little man:

On second base... playing in the dirt.

Covering third base

He looks like a big kid there!

Hitting the ball

Running for third

Freaking cute photo of him looking over at us during the game.