Baseball Family…A Home Run

Our Iowa son’s family is a baseball family. 

Let me rephrase that. They are a BALL family. There is no question about it.

Those three boys and one girl have been playing ball, ANY kind of ball,  since before they could walk. And these two photos I ran across today, taken in 2007, should prove my point.

Our first-born grandson used to wake up in the middle of the night and head straight for his parent’s room. Not because he was afraid. Not because he wanted a drink. No. Our son would be awakened in the pitch black darkness by a tug on the blankets and a tiny voice saying “Let’s play ball!” Our son would lead the toddler back to his room while trying to convince him that they had to wait for the moon to leave and the sun to come back before they could play catch!

So that was then…and this is now. And his love of the game is stronger than ever.

And that love of all things round has been contagious here in Iowa.

These days, Big Bro’s eight year old “Sis” knows more about baseball than most adults. I like to sit next to her at her brother’s games so she can explain rules and base running strategies to ME. (I’m serious.) She has her own set of fierce ball handling skills and has proven to be a terror on both the soccer field and the softball diamond. 

Sis has already started HER collection of tournament wins…and in one game she recently pulled off her very own UNASSISTED TRIPLE PLAY!

And “Middle Bro” is “playing up a year” in baseball…playing with kids a year older than he is. Here he is…sporting a Most Valuable Player medal he was awarded in a game played earlier this spring.

Even 4 year old “Little Bro” has a spot on Middle Bro’s team. (He’s the bat boy!)

Their mom is a loyal and loving supporter (and unofficial team photographer) of all the ball players…and she keeps her precious baseball family fed, hydrated and hugged as they juggle four schedules…often headed in four different directions!

And our Iowa son?

He is a coach…just like his father before him…so many years ago.

So this spring and summer while we’re back home in Iowa we’ve been spending many weekends following this baseball family…following them all around the Midwest.

Watching ALL of them…doing what they love, and playing against some very stiff competition. And when I say follow them…I mean FOLLOW THEM. In ANY weather. Even on “springtime” game days like this!

Recently (thankfully on a MUCH WARMER day) Peepaw and I packed up our car and followed that baseball family to Mauston, Wisconsin to watch ten year old “Big Bro” compete in a tournament.

The Woodside Sports Complex is incredible. Amazing. Beautiful. And for ten-year-old players to play on professional grade artificial turf fields like these…”It was SO MUCH FUN!” according to our grandson. And FUN was the name of the Meemaw and Peepaw’s game…all weekend!

Teams from all over the Midwest were in Mauston to compete that weekend. And Peepaw even got into the fun by running the scoreboard for awhile…just like the old days when our sons played baseball in high school. (In fact, both of our boys received scholarships to continue their baseball careers in college.)

What fun to watch grandkids…doing what they LOVE to do!

And spending family time together…Priceless.

Little Bro loves to watch the games…and he’s almost always wearing his glove while he watches. And his dad or Peepaw usually accept his repeated requests to play catch or to “warm up” and pitch a few strikes behind the dugout. And with so many generations of players and  coaches on BOTH sides of the baseball family tree it’s already obvious that baseball is in HIS blood too.

In fact, his Grandpa Harry and his Uncle B are both umpires. They even work some games together like this one we watched in Iowa earlier this year.

Obviously they don’t umpire in games involving the grandkids. That could be a four-way conflict of interest! But what fun it must be for that father and son duo to spend time together again…on a baseball diamond. Just like the old days…

When Little Bro starts “warming up” it’s not unusual for a crowd to assemble. It brings a smile to many faces…just watching him.

And for any self-respecting baseball family…a warm summer day at the ballpark is NEVER complete without some of these…

Who needs waiters and a wine list when I can share a hotdog or a hamburger with these guys?

It was a winning weekend on MANY levels (including on the diamond) since Big Bro’s team won the whole tournament! And he’s got a HUGE ring to show for it. 

But Peepaw and I have precious memories of the weekend that are much bigger than any ring.

It is truly heart-warming to see where the love of the game has led us…for three generations…

And the journey continues…