Baseball!

A new era has begun in our ohana. We are officially a baseball family.  It was inevitable but I was dreading the day.  Not because I don't like baseball, but because of the stigma that comes with Mililani Baseball.

If you are familiar with Mililani Baseball you know that it is hard core.  During baseball season go to the park and watch a practice.  During my afternoon runs I have heard coaches cussing and swearing at their young players.  The competition and expectations are cut throat.  In to win?  You bet!!!!  But that's not the only issue that I have with the league.  If you go to games you'll see that entire sidelines are decked out in matching clothing from the little 2 year old sisters to 80 year old grandpas.  The kids also have matching bags, jackets, and helmets.  And then there are the "snacks."  "Snacks" is a code word for meal.  When it's your turn for snacks you really need to cook, buy, bake whatever a meal for the entire team and their ohana.  Ever driven in Mililani and wondered what the little lights on the field are at 8pm?  It's the baseball peeps!!

I am not a conformists, I am pretty anti-social and I do not wear tshirts unless they are Lululemon, Nike, or my Racing Tshirts.  So this whole baseball thing has me really quite FREAKED out!

The kids had their first and second practice this week and I was worried.  For one, this is the first (and probably the last) time they have been on the same team.  They fight all the time at home and I wasn't sure how they'd act at the field.  Well, I don't know why I would have expected anything different because yes, they did fight at the field. Over the one bat that we bought for the two of them to share.  Two kids, one bat pulling, pushing, yelling.  Nope, my kids are not the type to behave in front of strangers.  Needless to say I will be buying another bat this weekend.

My second worry had to do with the nature of the game.  My kids are very active (hyper) and soccer is perfect for them because it's always moving.  The waiting game in baseball is not the easiest for easily distracted naughty short attention 4 and 6 year olds.  So of course, it was a problem but not to the scale that I was worried about.

All in all the kids did pretty well for their first practice.  We haven't spent a lot of time on baseball skills so they have a lot of work to do.  It should be of no surprise that they're great at running the bases and have excellent careers ahead of them as pinch runners.