My favorite time of year

Baseball season has begun for the Keetons.  My son, Jake, loves to play baseball almost as much as I love to watch him play! Almost. :)  I love the excitement of going to the games and watching my favorite son out on the field.  Sometimes, he is actually playing the game.  Sometimes, he's out there pretending to pitch.  Sometimes, he's busy swatting at the bugs, or hitching up his pants. But when that boy bats, you'd better watch out.  He can hit that ball like nobody's business.  I was in the backyard with him over the weekend, pitching (very badly) to him so he could practice batting.  I was ducking flying balls like, well.... like a GIRL. I figure if he can hit what I was throwing, then he shouldn't have a problem during a game!  Baseball consumes our lives until the end of June.   Jay is an assistant coach and goes to all the practices, too.  Most games start at 6 pm, and both of us get off work at 5, so it's a mad dash to get home, changed and to the ballfield in time. There are sometimes 3 games a week so the laundry starts piling up and the dishes go undone and we eat a lot of sandwiches.  By mid June, we're complaining that we are tired of all of it, and even Jake is ready to be done.  But, every year, we sign up for it all over again. And every year, we are excited and happy to go to the field.  It's one of life's greatest pleasures, in my honest opinion, to watch young children learn a sport.  So, thanks, all you coaches out there...for giving your time unselfishly to a child.  There is no greater reward than to see a child loving playing a game.