Friday, June 29, 2012

play ball!

It's been a great month or so of baseball - Hamp's first real adventure in full-on ball play, with a pitcher and out-of-town games and a tournament and everything!
(ok, my first real adventure with it as well!)

As the low man (aka 8 year old) on an 8-10 year old team, he had a lot to learn and played a lot of outfield (!) but he soaked up the strategy of playing defensive baseball and got acquainted with trying to hit a pitch from a fellow youth ball player - not as easy as it seems!

As the parent, I had fun watching the team get better and cheering loudly for all their attempts and accomplishments. We had a great parent group that made it fun up in the bleachers, and great coaches ☺ that kept the team motivated and positive...
playing outfield... ready for that pop fly!?
"on deck"
listening to coach...


It was great having home games, because Gabe would come along to play at the park. He's such a good pup: he would say hello to everyone as - slobberlessly as possible - and maybe run amok for a little while until he finally wore out and just laid down for a nap!
But the main event was certainly watching Hamp play. He took it very seriously and certainly tried his very best. He didn't ever get a good hit but he was a smart batter and knew when to hold his swing. Consequently, he made it on base several times and even scored a few runs!


Yeah, I know I said he took it seriously.
I didn't mean ALL the time of course!
You can't blame an 8 year-old for dancing in outfield.... although if asked, I'm sure he would tell you he was catching an invisible fly ball or something!
And in the end... the team won the whole tournament!
They started the season 1 and 2. But they obviously gelled quickly into a pretty darn good team that could turn plays and make base hits good enough to win the rest of the season's games!
It was a great championship game - we were crazy proud of all these boys!

making headlines

The adventures of Hamp & Sam are now being syndicated worldwide via the New York Times.

Well, hyperbole aside there is a picture of the boys (sitting at the local soda fountain with their babysitter!) deep into a June 28th article on our local economy:


Monday, June 25, 2012

finish strong

Last week, our summertime adventures were intense: not only are we in the throes of the big 8-10 yr old Rec League baseball tourney (definitely more on that later!) but Hamp earned a new title: triathlete!

Oh man, what a race!
There were a dozen kids ages 7-10 that competed in the mini-triathlon... and it was exactly what we hoped it would be - a fun learning experience and a chance to show off some serious skills (in many cases, the skill was perseverance!)

Of course, the best motivator for Hamp to do anything is peer pressure. And the fact that his buddies were there Thursday morning to compete along side him was all he needed to get geared up and get in that pool!


SWIM - 50 meters
Hamp, and the rest of the 7-8 year old competition!
Go Hamp! (he's in the middle)

BIKE - 2 miles


RUN - 1/2 mile

Oh Hamp... my heart sank when he came around the back side of the running trail with tears coming down and a hand clutched to his side. I tried to encourage him to keep it up, but Dad did one step better - he jumped in and accompanied him around the last lap, all the way to the finish line. It wasn't pretty - a few angry words and lots of tears across that tape! - but he finished and had his first real lesson on dealing with a little physical pain to get to the end goal!

So just when I thought all was lost and that Hamp's disappointment at not winning the race would overshadow the fact that he finished, he was handed a cool new tee-shirt that matched those of his buddies... which in his mind's eye meant that they were ALL winners for competing and crossing that finish line!


Oh yeah, and there's another triathlete in the family, too!




So, in my 4th annual attempt at a respectable finish I managed to eke across the finish line without passing out or puking! Honestly, it's not that bad - unless you are a very poor runner like me. (check out the "running" picture above - my feet are both flat on the ground! I don't think that is how it is supposed to work...)

Anyway, I did alright until the very last part of the run - I think you can see the expression of "Oh thank god I'm almost done!" on my face - but I had to set the example for Hamp (who graciously, and a little too energetically ran across the finish line with me!) that no matter what we have to try to finish strong!



I don't know how strong I was exactly, but I was so glad I did it. And just like Hamp, I was mostly just happy to have my good friends alongside me to celebrate!


Tuesday, June 19, 2012

camping

We escaped this weekend!
Our great friends hosted all of us up at their camping site - complete with a stocked pond for fishing (or swimming, if you're a kid!!!) and plenty of gorgeous space for running about, or just sitting, if you'd rather!
Gabe was so happy in the forest!
The highlight was probably the fishing - Bailey, our resident wildlife & fishing expert was exceptionally patient and attentive to some of these first-time fishermen. 
But they certainly got the hang of it!










Everyone caught a Rainbow Trout of their own! So proud...

Once we had caught all the fish we could stand (or at least all that would bite!) the kids decided the water was better suited for playing than fishing! 

... and the mud around the pond proved to be too enticing to pass up!


Back at the campsite and all warm and dry...

Meanwhile, Gabe enjoyed getting warm and dry with a stick that was finally big enough for him!

Between setting up camp, fishing, running and swimming - it was also nice to have time to just sit around in the forest with some good food and great company!

Of course, these four don't sit still for long!
They loved having the whole forest at their disposal for various fort-building, creek-exploring, mud-creationing, and stick-collecting enjoyment!

Thanks Ann & Bailey for a great weekend!