Tempe South Little League

The Thunder

Cameron loved (and so did we) Little League so much last year, he couldn't wait to sign up and get started this year.  He hoped and prayed (and so did we) that he would get Coach Brad again for this year.  So when Coach Paul called to tell me he had drafted Cameron to his team, the Thunder, my stomach dropped.  However, when he said that coach Brad would be his assistant coach, my faith was restored.  However, we loved Coach Paul right off the bat (pun intended). So with Paul and Brad, it was the perfect storm.  The season got off to a great start, winning several in a row.  That made that first loss all that much harder.  But they went on to win some and lose some.  In true Little League fashion, some wins were not deserved, some losses were really tough to swallow and some wins as well as some losses were total blow outs.  The Thunder finished the season with a record of 11-6 and in 2nd place.  They played each team in the league 3 times and with the exception of one team, The Firebirds, they came out of each series on top.  They did beat those un-defeatable, dreaded Firebirds one time.  (Remember the Devilbacks from last season?  Same coach.) And that game is when I earned to worst parent of the year award.   Chuck was out of town, life was crazy at the time and I thought the game was at 7:30pm but it was actually at 5:30pm.  When I dropped Cameron off at 6:45 for warm ups, he discovered the game was nearly over.  I felt horrible, but surprisingly Cameron wasn't too mad at me.  I was also annoyed that no one tried to get a hold of us.  Cameron was at almost every practice and every game (except that one).  So it wasn't like us to just not show up.  But it is what it is.  Now I double and triple check times for everything.  Cameron played a variety of positions; catcher, first base, outfield and an occasional 2nd and 3rd base.  He pitched in a scrimmage late in the season and pitched fairly well.  But when he was finally worked into a game, it didn't go so well.  However, he does like to pitch but one of his favorite positions to play is catcher.  He had some brilliant plays as catcher.  He was also one of the better hitters on the team.  He was one of three on the team to hit a home run, a goal of his for the season.  He barely missed another homer when it hit the tape on the fence and landed in the outfield. 

home run ball

after the loss in the finals

The Dirtbacks

Since we love Little League so much and wish we would have started Cameron sooner, we signed Christian up this season.  Christian is quite athletic and can throw and catch better than most kids his age.  He played on a AAA team, the Dirtbacks.  We requested he play on the same team as his best friend Jack.  They were coached by Troy, Luis and Dave (Jack's dad).  AAA is a different ball game than Minors or Majors.  It is coach pitch, each kid has eight chances to hit the ball, and runs are not scored, but outs are.  If you've seen kids this age play, you understand why outs are counted and not runs.  It is extremely hard for these kids to get outs.  Each kid gets a chance to bat during an inning.  Christian was one of the better kids on his team.  Especially for not having ever played.  His team also had the most girls of any of the teams.  I hate to say it, but most of the girls were really terrible.  But so were some of the boys.  Despite that, Christian's team finished with a record of 9-3 and took 2nd place in the Finals.  Interestingly, in the Finals tournament the kids pitch.  Strikes are counted but outs are still used to keep score.  Christian was quite an impressive pitcher.   Although AAA played about the same number of games as the Majors, the practice schedule was much less intense and obviously the level of play was much less intense.  I would have liked to see the kids practicing more and there was quite a bit of drama from the coaches and parents on this team.  But it didn't affect Christian.  He loved it and definitely has an aptitude for it.  

All-Stars

Cameron REALLY wanted to make the All-Star team.  He had a great season, went to both the try-out practices (some kids that made the team did not) and prayed that he would make the team.  But he did not.  He was very disappointed and went to bed that night with tears in his eyes.  However, he did so well that the coach asked him to practice with the team.  After the first practice he came home, took a shower and went straight to bed.  Hannah came in to our room and asked why Cameron was crying.  I went to his room and found him sobbing.  He was so sad that he did not make the team.  It was just heartbreaking!  He felt like he was better than some of the kids on the team and wasn't sure why he didn't make it.  And he probably was better than some of the kids.  But just like in life, it's not always fair.  Some kids make the team because of who they are.  It's a lesson you don't want your kids to have to learn that early in life but Cameron is learning a lot of lessons early in his life.  So we encouraged him to take advantage of being able to practice with the team, do his best, have a good attitude and make them regret not putting him on the team.  He did continue to practice with the team.  He enjoyed the coach and the coach really enjoyed him too.  I'm certain he had a good attitude during practice, but he didn't always at home.  He was quite bitter from not having made the team and it was hard to go watch them play.  But I am proud of him for not quitting and I hope that his experience will make him a stronger, better, person.

Queen Mary

For their 8th birthday, Chuck took both Cameron and Hannah to stay the night on the Queen Mary.  Christian wanted to do the same, we just didn't have the time for him to go until he was about 8 and half.  I mentioned this when I posted about Cameron's trip to the Queen Mary, but I'll go ahead and post it again. The Queen Mary was the finest passenger liner in the 1930's.  At the start of World War II, she was transformed into a troopship. At the end of the war, she was transformed back into a passenger liner and carried passengers across the Atlantic for two more decades until air travel forced her into retirement.  Now she sits in Long Beach, CA and acts as a hotel as well as many other things.  Chuck and Christian left after a swim meet on Saturday and stayed in a hotel that night.  The next morning Chuck went for a run on the boardwalk and Christian rode his bike.  They rented a paddle boat and saw a lot of seals (one of Christian's favorite parts).  They checked into the Queen Mary and went on a tour.  The next day they played at the beach before heading home. They had a great time and I love that Chuck did this with all 3 kids!  Maybe I can be next.

Spring Break 2018

Keeping busy on Spring Break is always a challenge.  Believe it or not, if the kids aren't kept busy, they fight.  However, the break did allow us the time to finally go to iFly.  Christian got gift cards for his birthday and was very excited to finally get to go.  Cameron had been before and didn't think it was worth the money, so just Hannah and Christian went.  They both got to fly 2 times for 1 minute.  That's right, 1 minute.  And each minute cost $25.  Christian started to hesitate before he went in to the flight chamber, but I said "You're doing this" and he did.  Both kids loved it and asked when they could go again.  I said, "At $25 a minute, not for a very long time."

 In true break fashion, we rode our bikes with our neighbors to Kneaders for French toast.

We'd been waiting for over a year to go back to Main Event because the first time we went Christian was not 48 inches and was limited in what he could do.  We were excited that he could finally play lazer tag and I think he played all of one time.  We also bowled and Cameron threw the biggest fit when he did not win.  That will be one for the memory books.  The boys played pool and all the kids did Gravity, the ropes course.

Hannah and I went to see "A Wrinkle in Time."

We went to spend gift cards at the candy store Sweeties.  The kids were amazed by how much candy there was.  I tried to limit their spending to $5 each. I did not succeed, but came close.

There was also a lot of play dates and of course, a lot of fighting.  But overall, it was a good break.

Live, Laugh, Love, Dance

This year Hannah took a Contemporary/Ballet Class.  She loved Contemporary and got to learn some Pointe in Ballet.

Happy 11th Birthday Hannah!

Hannah turned 11 on the 30th of May.  We've been so busy this Spring/Summer that celebrating birthdays has almost been an after thought.  Cameron really wanted to go to a Diamondbacks game when they played the Cincinnati Reds and the only day that worked was the 30th. So Hannah was a trooper and went with the family to the game on her birthday.  

We had a party with her friends a couple days later.  We had fondue for dinner and watched "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken."  

Here we have: Tessa, Briana, Laurel, Madelyn, Melody, Ginger, Natalie and Audrey

In the last year, Hannah has continued to excel in her role as middle child.  In her eyes, she is always wronged and never does wrong.  She wants things to be fair and if she has a play date taken away for getting in trouble, she expects the same to happen to her brothers.  Hannah still loves playing with her American Girl doll, drawing, and doing crafts.  She has taken her art to a new level!  She checks out books from the library that teach her how to draw.  She has also taken to DIY projects. She has made a lot of slime, body scrub, bath bombs, and lip stick.  She has also started to read more often.  She still loves to take selfies and pose for the camera.  She is sassy and smart, has a good sense of humor when she is in a good mood and is beautiful and talented.  At 11 she 4 ft 6 inches and 68 lbs.