That time of Year again

I love, love, love Major League Baseball!! I am counting the days until the first televised spring training games, and I"m setting up my team in the fantasy league that Roger and I play in with some of the guys he works with.

My first memories of baseball are of watching Braves games with my grandfather. We would watch the games on the big floor model tv in Papa's house in Rome, GA. Papa would tell me stories of his Dad's playing days in the Cincinnati Reds minor league system, and how much he loved watching his Dad play while he was growing up.

Somewhat surprisingly, it wasn't my DAD who inherited a love of baseball from my Papa, his father. It was my MOM. My Mom has been a baseball fan, particularly a Braves fan, for as long as I can remember. I have to smile when I think that many adults feel comforted when they hear a song that their Mom sang to them when they were little, or when they read to their children a story that they loved as a child.
I am comforted by the voices of Skip Caray and Pete Van Weiren, both of whom have been Atlanta Braves announcers for the last 32 years!! LOL

I"m not only a Braves fan, though. I love ALL of baseball~I love the game itself, I love the history of the game, all of that. I am one of those 'weird' people that loves the sound of a bat hitting a ball, and the satisfying 'thump' of a ball landing in a glove.

I've witnessed some wonderful moments in baseball~an unassisted triple play by Atlanta's Rafael Furcal, the amazing 125 win 1998 season of the New York Yankees, and the amazing post season of the 2004 Boston Red Sox, including Curt Shilling's gutsy and famous 'bloody sock' performance.

I've had other 'favorite moments' closer to home~Like my husband's fantastic softball pitching performance representing the Shaw Outlaws ( his company team) in 2003, and his contributions to our church team's first place finish in thier league last fall.

But, I think I had my favorite baseball moment ( so far) tonight. Our son, who turned 5 on Valentines Day, put on a glove and picked up a bat for the first time tonight. He had a new bat bag, a brand new bat, ball, glove, batting gloves, and a batting helmet with his name on it. It cracks me up that the thing he was most proud of were his cleats!!! He refuses to call them cleats. To him, they're 'my baseball shoes that make me run fast".

He did well with throwing and catching, and he was pleased when his coach told him so. He is SO proud of being able to hit pitched balls, and not having to hit off the tee!! His grin when he first made contact with the ball is the cutest thing I have ever seen! And his "Mommy, I hit it!" as he ran by me on his way to first base is definitely my favorite baseball moment~so far! :)
Blessings,
Vicki