On weekends when we have away games, we are usually up before the sun, packing the car for the trip, eyeing the weather report to determine just how many extra blankets to pack (the weather this spring has not been exactly baseball-friendly), and conferring with the other parents about travel time and the best restaurants to eat in after the games.
On the rare weekends that we have gotten to stay at home, the days have been a lot more relaxed; we rise after the sun and move at a more leisurely pace. Some things, however, stay the same: there are still lunches to be packed, for instance.
And, I always make sure to have a large container of Gatorblox ready for the cooler, as well as packing Gatorades, water bottles, sunflower seeds (Dill pickle flavor, the Man-Cub's favorite), and squeezable applesauce pouches, because, they may all stand damn near six feet tall, but the boys still love their applesauce pouches.
Once we get to the ball field, we stake out the best location for viewing purposes. This spring, that has meant securing a parking space on the hill overlooking the field, where we can watch the action without suffering the elements. Granted, this puts us in a prime location to catch an errant pop fly, which means that our windshield is at constant risk of damage, but, we have gladly taken our chances.
In between games, we feed the boys the lunch that we have packed and then retreat back to the warmth of the car. Yesterday, however, I ventured onto the field and into the dugout to take some pictures of the boys. They had won the first game, quite handily (13-1), and were in a great mood, collectively, so; they were more than willing to ham it up for the camera.
The Cub doesn't really love pitching-the pressure to be more perfect than he perceives himself to be is crushing-but, even he had to admit that, yesterday, he threw one hell of a game. He pitched all but one of seven innings, and the team managed another big win (11-3).

While this was happening, I was working in the concession stand. Thankfully, my co-concession stand worker is always more than willing to handle the hot-dog seeking masses while I venture down to the field to photograph our sons. She trusts me to come back in time to slop neon-orange "cheese" onto the nacho chips, which, I do. And, not just because the concession stand offers the second-best seats in the house.
After the second game was done, I caught the boys' celebration in the outfield before closing up the concessions stand and packing up the coolers.
Ordinarily, we would have headed home at that point, to get a start on weekend chores, but, yesterday we broke with routine and traveled to Neighboring City, where Hugh and the Man-Cub built a firepit for QB. Then we took the kids out for dinner before heading home.
The Man-Cub fell asleep in the truck before we were a block from QB's house, and, once we got home, I followed suit. It might not have been an early-rising day, but it was a full one.
Next weekend, we host our final home games, and I suspect it will look similar to this weekend's itinerary, hopefully, including the wins. Because that was awesome!
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