Just about two years ago, Caroline had her first and, I feel almost certain, her last dance recital. Dance just didn’t hold that much appeal for her as evidenced by the enthusiasm displayed in this picture.
Of course, would you be excited about being dressed up like a three-year-old version of Charo? It will be a wonder if she doesn’t need counseling for that bow.
I think her main issue with dance, other than being dressed up like she was going to be on “Toddlers and Tiaras”, was that there was no winner or loser. She’s been competitive since the day she won the Halloween Costume Contest when she was 14 months old and tasted victory for the first time.
I don’t really know where she gets it from, says the woman who spent the better part of two weeks pinning white feathers on a white Gap onesie to make a homemade duck costume so that we could win a free ice cream at Baskin Robbins.
So, given her competitive streak, I thought it might be time to venture into competitive sports, specifically t-ball because they sell snowcones and sausage wraps at the Little League fields.
Tuesday evening was her first practice. P is helping coach and I decided to go just because I didn’t know any better. Mimi and Bops were also there because Caroline is an only child and usually travels with an entourage.
The practice was basically semi-organized chaos. None of the kids seemed to understand that they were on the same team and so they’d all go running for the ball, tackling each other to get to it first. No matter where the ball was hit, Caroline was there in an instant. She ran and slid and played her little heart out. My dad made sure to let me know she doesn’t get that hustle from me.
And he should know since he spent many a season coaching my various teams while I picked daisies in the outfield in between drawing pictures in the dirt with my cleats.
Our coach is really nice, but just a wee bit too intense and practice ran an HOUR late. It was 7:30 by the time we left the practice field and I was not happy to be heading home at 7:30 with bathtime and dinnertime still looming in the distance. In fact, after our marathon practice, the coach started to give a little pep talk and said, “I know it’s almost dinnertime…” And I said, “OR AFTER”.
That’s right. I’m the mom that heckled the coach, but hell hath no fury like a woman who needs to get some fish sticks in the oven.
P told me it wasn’t a big deal and that I was the only one who didn’t have a good time, which is easy for him to say because he didn’t have to get the fish sticks in the oven the minute we walked through the door and feed them to an excited five-year-old who kept saying, “Oh man, Mama. You get really beat up playing t-ball.”
I tried to explain that she wouldn’t get as beat up if she didn’t tackle everyone for the ball every time, but she just looked at me like she felt sorry for me and my lack of competitive nature so I quit talking.
Saturday was opening day. I got her all dressed in her black uniform and she was a little concerned because “black isn’t really my color”. Then, we headed up to the fields early for team pictures.
Everyone wanted to make the play. They looked like little black ants who just found an abandoned dorito.
The little girl in the pink uniform hit the ball and then attempted to go field the ball she had just hit. Notice Caroline beat her to the punch and then tagged her out, even though no one gets out in t-ball. A fact that caused Caroline no small amount of distress, along with the fact that she doesn’t have a hot pink uniform.
But she does have a hot pink batting helmet. And a hot pink bat. And a hot pink glove.
In the words of Clairee Belcher, “What separates us from the animals is our ability to accessorize”. And, also, opposable thumbs that can be used to catch a ball with a hot pink glove.
Here she is running for home plate.
After it was all over, what really mattered wasn’t whether we had won or lost. Except to Caroline that was all that mattered and she had no doubt that her team won even though no one kept score.
And, I’ll be honest, they totally won. They put the smack down on that hot pink team.
I mean that in the nicest way possible.
After the game was over, her team huddled together and decided they needed a team name besides “ICS”. The coach suggested the Panthers and all the kids just stared blankly at him. Then Caroline said, “How about the Pirates?” and everyone cheered.
It was a good day. But has there ever been a bad day when snowcones are involved?
I think not.
Ah. Those days are gone until the grandkids get old enough. My most challenging was having three kids play at the same time at three different fields across town. Can you say multi-tasking mama? Who knows how many miles I racked up driving hither and yon? Man. We have a set of triplet grandsons. This might not be something to look forward to. Although pink is out of the question and they are not into accessories.
I had hoped for a girly girl that liked to dress up and dance, twirl, cheer, etc. I instead was blessed with a beautiful little girl who will put on glitter eye shadow then go kick the butt of any boy that thinks she can’t “do it” because she’s a girl.
THIS you will come to love. How adorable!!
I’ve been sitting in bleachers (and heckling the coach in my mind) for 7 years now… it is so fun watching them play and have a great time!
and I love love love the pink patent stripe on the black cleats… way to accessorize that lil’ darlin!
Sllluuurrrrppp… Know what that is? You getting sucked in for the next 7 years. I did it. Now, it’s your turn. Just DON’T LET HER TRY OUT FOR ALL-STARS. You’ll be traveling to every one stoplight town in Texas for a “tournament” where you are not allowed to bring in your own food and they charge you to park and to get it and for their $5.00 hot dogs….in AUGUST. Okay, don’t say I didn’t warn you!!
Love the pictures!! Enjoy it! Our daughter is 11 and so over it now. But, we did enjoy it while she did it (I know this now)….
Great post! She is so cute! My son’s team is the same way and they are 7 and 8 years old.
Oh I LOVE this post. T-ball is so unique and FUNNY! Watching them pile up every time must be universal… they do it here in GA too.
And I love the “Steal Magnolias” quote too, made me smile =)
Oh man, I remember those days! Our first coach (Bless him) asked our little girls on the first day:
“Who knows where first base is?”
Nothing. Blank stares.
The first game, he was trying to go over finer points before we started (like reminding everyone where first base is) and they were working on their cheer strategy and preening in their “Lil’ Angels’ uniforms (which I kept referring to as their “little costumes” much to the dismay of my husband).
Ah. I miss those days.
My ‘lil angel’ is getting married June 13.
Give Caroline’s sweaty cheek a kiss from me, would you?
Go to YouTube and watch Brian Regan do his Little League stand up routine. It’s a hoot!
How much fun!!! She sounds like the ideal candidate for soccer….
This so takes me back about 10 years! My son has played baseball every spring since he was 5 until this year (where he’s 15 and didn’t make ths school team). We (his mom & dad) had an absolute BLAST while he was playing from the t-ball stage right through to travel ball. He made some great friends. And as parents, we met great people at the ball field. And, oh yeah, it’s a good excuse to eat food that may not be quite so healthy for you. Enjoy!
SEVEN THIRTY is ALMOST dinnertime???? We eat at FIVE thirty!!! He’s nuts! I think you need to eat before practice!
I don’t think you’ve ever explained who Mimi and Bops are, even though we hear about them all the time. I am assuming Bops is your father, but I’m only guessing that Mimi is your stepmother, and I’m not sure what you call your actual mother….we need a handy dandy shortcut list/cheat sheet from you please!
My son’s one experience in tball is most memorable for his grandmother standing by the outfield fence (he also is an only child with an extensive entourage) reminding him not to pick flowers, fill his hat with dirt, take off his glove or any of the other things he thought were much more interesting than waiting for a hypothetical ball! I have to admit we were totally into band…yeah for late Friday nights followed by early Saturday contests. Wow, do I miss it!
My daughter played t-ball for a few years. She would stand on 2nd and discuss uniforms or ponytails with the girls out there. One year we purchased those little pictures that look like baseball cards, imagine our suprise when we got them back and she looked as if she were posing on Vogue. We knew then that we had a special one!!
She eventually moved onto basketball, where her competitive spirit was constantly fighting with her girly nature. She helped design the warm-ups one year (high school), this was following a year where she was the smallest out there but, after trying to steal the ball–{she was stellar at it
}, she literally was picked up off the floor by the opposition as she held onto the ball (picture here a dog hanging onto a bone)!!! I LOVE the juxtaposition of beauty and butt-kicking!!!
Enjoy now, my little pig-tailed pixie is now a freshman in college…and I get a lump in my throat remembering little pink mitts.
Definitely eat before practice- my kids heads start spinning if they don’t eat by 6:30.
Love the pink accesories- every pirate should be so lucky.
Your post brought back memories of my son’s t-ball “career”. Not once, not twice, but three times over the course of the season, he was at bat, hit the ball and ran to the bathroom instead of first base. When questioned about it, he just said, “I forgot I had to pee.”
Our daughter played t-ball for one short season. We knew it was not the sport for her when she finally got a hit, was running to first and her helmet came off…she decided that it was more important to get her helmet, and then was mad that she was out!
She did however, excel at dance recitals!
Anne.
How exciting! Soccer starts up tonight for us. Ugh. I kind of miss the days when they were five and running around aimlessly. Coach is serious now. (bah)
Love the ants and the abandoned Dorito analogy. Brilliant.
We had opening day to on Saturday. We stayed at the ball park all day. My youngest had one game and my oldest had two. And nothing makes opening day worth it like snowcones!
You make me laugh. I was that child you wanted to win, but didn’t want to sweat or look bad doing it.
I turned out alright and went into journalism. :-p
LOL at the dance pic she looks “oh so thrilled!”
Love the t-ball pics and I totally think the pink and black are so stylin!
love you
Kim
Ooooh! The Pirates! Just think of all that cute skull and crossbones stuff in the Juniors department that you never had a reason to buy before now. You can totally buy it to show your support for the home team!
That picture of her sitting on the rail is priceless! Her little legs and big attitude!
Oh yes, the memories of t-ball. not. I was on my way to sign-up for a team and I made the mistake of asking my dad, “what color are the uniforms?” He turned that car around so fast my head is still spinning. Lucky for me, I got to sit on the bleachers and eat Fun-dip while rooting on my brother. Good times.
Enjoy your sno-cones!
I laugh out loud everytime I read you blog!!!
I love the pinkness! My girls have played tball for a couple of years, and I love the pink gloves and bats. Hot Pink T-ball!
“Hell hath no fury like a woman who needs to get some fish sticks in the oven” I believe that would be Shakespeare, no?
That is so funny. She doesn’t look like happy Caroline in that dance outfit, at all. But in the baseball uniform, she’s back!!! So cute!
Somehow, we skipped over the dance recitals and cheer competitions and landed right on the soccer field. Our daughter loves it and the games are fun to watch. I was in choir and tennis, so what can I say?
At least you are feeding her champion grade fish sticks, right?
Go PIRATES!!!! Arrrg!
After that shot with the rainbow snow cone, you gotta listen to comic Brian Regan talk about little league. Classic! “Grape! Cherry is a favorite too, but not as much. Not as much FAVORITE.”
Nobody wins in t-ball? Hunh. I’ve got to go ask my parents about this, because I really think t-ball had winners and losers back in my day.
Oh, and also, black is an odd color choice for a little girls’ t-ball team! I don’t blame her for wanting hot pink!
I’m a mama with no great athletic prowess who gave birth to a natural athlete as well. It’s fun to live vicariously through their great talents and strengths (in a good healthy, non-whacked out mom kind of way.) Welcome to a whole new world. By the way, I would have heckled the coach too.
I have to admit I’ve been a bit nervous about Lael starting T-Ball soon but if she’ll be half as cute as Caroline me and my camera will be ready!
I am giddy with excitement!
And not surprised at all that you are the heckler mom. Were there any “gifted” parents in attendance? LOL
I notice that Caroline bats left-handed. This should prove to be beneficial to her down the line in her little league “career”. ;>)
I also notice a few people mentioned Brian Regan’s stand-up bit on baseball and snowcones. I have been a long-time fan of Brian Regan(I’m even a fan of his on Facebook) and he really is hilarious. Definitely worth checking out.
She is so adorable! What a little beauty. And good for her for having the right color t-ball accessories – hot pink!!!
We just pulled my daughter (age 3) out of her dance lessons about a month ago, because it just wasn’t her bag.
And it’s killing me to see pictures of y’all in shorts! Our high temp this week is s’posed to be way up in the 30s. I think I’ll not break out the flip flops just yet.
Happy Spring!!! =)
I love it! : )
what a fun post. like ants on an abandoned dorito. CLASSIC
next comes swarmball, i mean soccer.
talk about scrum!!
enjoy the sporty years. and i’m glad caroline has an entourage. so great.
Pa-recious.
That’s all I’m gonna say about that.
Loved this story – you’re such a great story-teller! And your little girl is adorable!
That looks like a fairly tame bow to me… When I was elementary school my mom used to have my bows custom made because the regular bow makers didn’t make them big enough. Needless to say, her effort was not wasted as my 5th grade class gave me an award for “Having the biggest bows.” Because don’t all elementary schools give out class superlatives?
Oh my goodness! I can’t stop laughing!
I’m with you on being stuck in the outfield. Right fielder, here. Hated it. I was partial to dandylions.
“They looked like little black ants who just found an abandoned dorito.”
Too funny!
My daughter would have complained too about not having the pink jersey.
My dad still says the exact same thing about my t-ball days of long ago. I used to pick all the dandelions in the outfield or draw figures in the dirt!
Caroline is a natural… I can’t wait until Reagan starts t-ball!
Love it! And you’re right- the pink bat, helmet and glove are a MUST. Cute pictures!!
Do you think your Diamond Darlings skills will come in handy here?
Thanks for the memories. My “t-baller” is 19 and finishing her first year of college. This is the first year we have not been on the fields and boy do I miss it. Enjoy every last minute.
Oh my goodness, the wonderful memories this brought back. You’re going to have sooo much fun. My girls started playing ball at this age and played until they graduated from high school. You’re going to get callouses on your rear end, something I fondly call bleacher butt, but it’s worth it.
I think everyone looks good in black! It looks like she had a great time! Go Pirates!
I thought you were gonna say they were called the Princesses. ha ha
Go Caroline! Go Pirates!
That girl is a caution, truly.
This post reminds me of one of my favorite comedians, Brian Regan. He is a funny (and clean!), and did a bit about being lousy in little league as a kid. It’s pretty funny, and makes mention of snow cones. Doesn’t apply to Caroline, but reminded me of what you were saying.
Here’s a link to a youtube video of it. It’s from his CD, so there is actually no video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHumAwg6Wxs&feature=related
Thanks for sharing the tball spring fever!
Christy
Is your daughter a lefty? My six year old daughter is a lefty, and it’s hard to find gloves for her, let alone HOT PINK ones! Where did you get it?
I could have written nearly the same post (from my perspective) 2 years ago about my daughter, now 7. However, after 2 seasons, she was still picking daisies and playing in the dirt… so we ended her t-ball career. I wanted her to be competitive and more aggressive like Caroline since I played softball all through school and loved it… now I’m kinda glad she didn’t enjoy it because I loathed the practices and sitting in the hot sun on Fridays or Saturdays watching her NOT play, while chasing a toddler and caring for an infant… not fun.
Be thankful Caroline had the black and white uniform to pair with her hot pink equipment… she is right in line with one of the spring trends! My daughter had black and gold one season, then red, white, and gray the next… her hot pink did not look nearly as nice with those colors!
~Charlotte
Ah. The memories. Sitting in the horribly uncomfortable bleachers, screaming at the idiot umpire, drinking lukewarm sodas, being eaten alive by merciless swarms of black flies, starving because all the games were at mealtime, trying to attend two games simultaneously on opposite ends of town because one child played baseball and the other played softball.
You’re in for a great year.
I just LOVE her cleats! My 6 year old is playing t-ball (his second year, and he towers over every kid on the field) and it’s just hilarious! On Saturday the coach’s son (yes, the son of the man who is TEACHING all of our children) hit the ball, then ran to 3rd. And wouldn’t stop until his dad had to run over to him and physically move his little body in the right direction.
Ahh, the memories. We only made it through one t-ball season as our oldest daughter was more worried about her socks, shoes, jersey and hair bows all matching.
And I am with Caroline…someone has to win and someone has to lose or it just isn’t a game.
We always eat before practice (about an hour before) just to avoid the 7:30 rush of getting the fish sticks in the oven, bath and then to bed……seems to work pretty well. And watch the progress you see in the team from beginning to their last game – it’s really amazing to see how they become a “team”!
I have been a subscriber since the Year of the Scarf was declared by Angie. I wanted to invite you to the photo challenge next week- would love to have you play!
Sorry, here is the link for it:
http://everythingexceptthegrill.blogspot.com/2009/03/my-life-in-pictures-new-photo-challenge.html
this post made me cry. Oh how I miss those days! She will be in college before you blink!
Tell her I think she looks good in black! (And I thought that even before I read that she doesn’t think she does.)
I can’t wait until my babies are old enough to participate in those kinds of things!
This sounds much like my own ballpark experiences….complete with crazy coach.
Love this, Big Mama. My husband is coaching my son’s t’ball team this year, so I’m the mom heckling the coach/daddy/husband who is keeping the kids at practice too late! What is the deal with that????
)))
I so LOVE that you quoted Steel Magnolias! Alas, Mae would not play t-ball because “momma, that is for the BOYS. Besides it would interfere with my cartwheel practice.” Come to find out 1/2 of the players in her league are girls.
I’m looking to sign my kids up for the sport that doesn’t practice or have games on Sunday, or too early on Saturday, or outside. Also, there needs to be no equipment that can be lost, and I’d like the fees to be less than a new leather sofa. I’ll keep you posted.
I always knew that we would be fast friends if we met in person and today’s post just confirms that, BigMama. Anyone who can quote Clairee Belcher is an automatic friend ‘o mine! Austin starts t-ball Thursday and I’m more excited than he is.
I’m really looking forward to these days myself; what a lovely post =)
I think she’s wrong, by the way. Based on that grinning picture, black is totally her color! CUTE!
I love, love, love football and baseball seasons…….we (the parents) grade the playing fields by how good the concession stand are. It matters…….a lot.
During football, the practices for both my boys are 2 hours, minimum. I have a friend that watches her watch and the EXACT minute 2 hours is up, she makes a HUGE showing of packing up her stuff, commenting loudly on the time, etc. I have to say, it works!!
I love that Caroline is a sports girl….good for her!!
Being from Pittsburgh, I WISH our Pirates didn’t choose a winning team, it might make them a bit more successful. But, in any case, Go Pirates! Nice choice Caroline!!
My daughter, Mollie, is now 12 and has been playing softball for 7 years. Don’t tell Caroline that the helmet can be airbrushed anyway she wants. Mollie’s has two very scary softballs shooting flames with her name on the front. You should take her to see the Lady Aggie softball team play. It’s so much fun. The players will even sign your softball after the game.
So cute! My youngest played fastpitch softball and I loved watching her play. She is not nearly competitive enough for it, but she loved her black and hot pink uniform and her hot pink batting helmet. She always made sure her ponytail looked cute hanging out the back of it before she went up to bat.
Oh, by the way, the name of her team was the Dirt Divas. Isn’t that a hoot?
Just wanted you to know I’ve been reading your blog for a little while and I absolutely love it! Thanks for sharing your funnies with us!
My son was the one digging in the dirt! That is why we are not doing t-ball this year. He can dig in dirt at home for free and on a much better schedule! FYI, our coaches last year did quietly keep score. If you just had to know, they could probably tell you.
Your daughter is awesome!!! I have been a tomboy all my life and I love hearing about girls that are competitive…I also am a coach…surprise surprise.
My son just started t-ball and that is where we spent our weekend. My husband even got a picture of him on the base grabbing himself….really….do ALL baseball players have to do that…ugh! Of course when I got home, I had to post that pic on my blog! Keep us updated on her season…I may need to recruit her to come play volleyball for me!!
Those pictures are beyond sweet!! We love us some athletes in this house! Too precisou she is!! Whoa, that last sentence sounded a little too much like Yoda.
So, I stumbled across your blog randomly a few months ago and am just now gathering up the bravery to comment. I just wanted to say that it is absolutely hilarious! Thank you for sharing your stories
Love the Clairee quote. I spend my days quoting that play/movie in my head and I never run out of material.
I can’t wait for my son to start playing t-ball. He is only 3 but his dad is chomping at the bits for that time to get here.
That competitive girl has a GREAT swing!!!
Oh man. This post brings back memories. My cousin HATED dance. She wanted to do karate.
I liked dance.
Hey there Big Mama – as a child passenger safety yechnician, I just wanted to point out a couple of things that are needed to keep C safe in her car seat:
1) The harness needs to be in slots which are at or ABOVE her shoulders – from the picture, it looks like they could be slightly below – this could result in spinal compression in a crash if not fixed.
2) the Chest clip needs moving up to be level with her undrearms. The clip is designed to keep the harness on her shoulders in a crash. If it is too low, she could slip out the top of the harness.
Oh my gosh that is so funny! That is so much like our t-ball experience so far, except my kid is the one running in circles for no particular reason. He doesn’t try to get the ball; he just runs beside the kid that kinda seems to know what he/she’s doing.
I noticed Caroline bats left.
My number 10 boy bats left as well. 
Soak up the fun times while they last. My number 10 is now 17 and is a Jr. in High School. That sure went by fast!
Good luck to the Pirates!! lol
Horray for hot pink sporting goods accessories!
I’m with Caroline – they should be taught that you have to lose sometimes, and you can do that with dignity and class as well as win. Did you know that today’s generation of 20-30 year olds are referred to as the “trophy generation” because they grew up believing that everybody won and got a trophy? Lots of them are in counseling now the first time they get reprimanded in their job.