We survived! The boys really learned and improved a lot thanks to Ryan's work with them pre-season and outside of practice, some good coaches for my beginners, and a couple impressive young teammates for Easton who encouraged his efforts.
I'm so relieved Easton enjoyed his first season! It's hard to start a new sport at 10 yrs old and also be the youngest on the team of 10-12 yr olds. Boys grow and develop physically and athletically so much during this time! It was very jarring to Easton's routine to have two 2 hour practices a week with one or two games a week. But Easton hung in there and tried his best and we're so proud of him and his improvement! It was fun to see how well some of these young players play the game since I have had so little exposure to the game.
McKay loves participating in any sport we have time for! He wished his team practiced as much as Easton's. He always hung back on the field as long as the coach stuck around for kids needing to be picked up. He couldn't get enough! By the end of the season, McKay accomplished a big goal he'd set for himself - he got to pitch an inning in his last game! For the 7-9 yr old league here, a kid pitches 3 and a coach pitches 3 for each batter.
Our evening routine and "family economy" struggled through baseball season with frequent exhausted melt
downs and tears. With two weeks left in school, Easton's beyond thrilled he's done with Language groups for the year! This year was the first academically challenging year for him. He's learning the hard way that not bringing the homework home and not asking questions when confused does not work out well for him.
As for the family economy, it's still in place so I count that as a victory! McKay is very motivated to earn money while the others just do their normal amounts without much thought to what they could earn. They've had a couple chances to spend what they've earned so it's beginning to sink in. For instance, at our family meeting we were discussing the calendar for the week and there's a movie they want to see this week. There was much counting and recounting of what they've earned and some tears.
As we wrap up the school year, we're hoping to hang in there as both boys face two or three projects. It's hard
to stick to it when the weather is perfect for enjoying outside together!
Easton has two Ice Age "museum presentation" projects due next week
and McKay has a "Field to Table" presentation he'll do on chocolate. This week both boys also have cardboard arcade games to design with a team for a school-wide
arcade this Friday. Have you heard of "Caine's Arcade"? McKay loves creative projects, Easton bares them. And I'm trying to tie up some loose ends before I've got the kids home everyday. Summer is here!
