The Gentry World: It's Red Sox Time in Tennessee!!!

Time for a little warm-ups

Last Saturday, Grace had her first t-ball game!! I'm not sure who was more excited.....Grace or me and Matt!! We had a perfect weather for the game: warm but a little overcast. We loaded Grace up with carbs and were off to the fields with our Big League Chew.
You might notice that Grace is the only kid without a hat on. The previous practice we had 30mph winds and I thought it was a better idea to keep Anna at home. Coach Jimmy handed the hats out at practice and Grace and Matt came home without one. No problem......she'll have one for her next game!
Before the game started, the Red Sox got to take the field for a bit of practice. We got more videos than pictures but one word that comes to mind is HILARIOUS!!!! I'm sure Matt will have a video put together soon. And for those of you who aren't on Facebook.......well GET THERE so you can see it!

Pre-game pep talk

Each game consists of two innings or one hour.....whichever comes first. Each player gets to bat twice and they play a different position while fielding. Grace seemed to grasp more aspects of the game on Saturday and she certainly made her mommy proud! The first time she walked up to the plate you can only guess what happened......WATERWORKS!!!! Serves me right for always making fun of my mom! Thank God for sunglasses!!! She just looked SO little with her gigantic, pink helmet on! She took a big swing AND hit the tee. No problem. She took another big swing AND hit the tee again. Ok, third time is the charm, right?? She took another big swing AND SHE HIT IT!! WAHOO!! She dropped the bat and ran right to first base just like we rehearsed all morning!!! The next batter came up and she she ran right to second base. She had a slight mishap when the next batter hit the ball and she started running back to first. WHOOPS!! Good thing there's a "coach"/dad at each base to direct them because he quickly grabbed Grace and directed her towards third base. I'm pretty sure Grace's favorite part of the game was running to home plate to our cheering section!! HYSTERICAL!! After every player ran home, all the moms went crazy and clapped and cheered. She got a HUGE grin on her face and headed towards the dug out.
The fielding was a different story because she would much rather play in the dirt than worry about what ball was coming her way!! And if you want to know the truth, it took FOREVER for the other team to get all their players to bat. BUT that's just between you and me. I do have to share a story of a little player from the Yankees (the other team). Let me give you a mental picture. He was as skinny as can be. He had his uniform shirt tucked into his pants that were pulled up to his nipples. He steps up to the plate and swings with everything he has. He swings a few more times and finally makes contact. And THEN he runs at FULL SPEED after the ball!! He even tackled our player trying to get to the ball first!! WAHAHAHAHAHA!! I think all of the parents nearly tinkled in their britches after that one!! Bless his little heart! Maybe football is his sport!
Anna (in her usual fashion) watched patiently from outside the fence "cheering" for Grace and eating her puffs! She just goes with the flow wherever I drag her every day.

Serious dug-out conversation

AND SHE SCORES!!!!

Grace's biggest cheerleader!!

The girls got a little bored while fielding!

Team huddle after the game

After the game, the team got together for a team huddle and snack. Coach Jimmy (love his heart for all the patience he has with these 3-4 year olds!) said he would give out a game ball to a player after each game. He said, "I saw someone who worked really hard and ran really fast. And this week's game ball goes to GRACE!!!!" WHAT!?!? Matt and I nearly peed right down our legs!! Everyone was clapping, hooting and hollering and Grace got a little embarrassed. Way to go kiddo!!

On the way home, Grace was more interested in "the brown thing"/brownie that they got for their snack than she was about the game ball, but Matt and I had swollen heads that barely fit into the car. We did have to explain to Grace that she wouldn't get the game ball after EVERY game......we'll let you know how that turns out after tomorrow's game!!