Trophies & Travel Plans

So, as is the case with the rest of the country, it’s stupid hot here, and yesterday it rained for the first time in about a month. Not a lot, but I can see a little color perking back  up in the grass this morning.

I’m really grateful that the heat wave held off until my kiddos were done with their baseball and softball seasons. I was pretty proud of my crew – M’s squad never ended up winning a game all year, but they learned so much, and by the end of the season, you could see the pieces coming together. She worked so hard this year, and it showed. Also? This girl can RUN!

Sis with her participation trophy after the final game of her year.

E’s team had a great season, and ended up in first place for regular season. The tournament that they play is double-elimination, and we got to the championship game without a tourney loss. Sadly, that final night, we fell twice to a great team, and ended up runners-up. 

This was E’s first year in kid-pitch, and I think it was pretty intimidating to him. He was a solid hitter at the coach-pitch levels, and this year he just seemed really off his game. We worked hard on it, and by the end of the season, he was making solid contact with the ball again.

 

Mr. E showing off his First Place Regular Season and Tournament Runner Up trophies.

 

J’s league was really small this year, and only consisted of 3 teams. I’m not sure who all worked to split the kids into those teams, but they couldn’t have divided them any better. Technically, we ended up last in regular season play, but the records for the three teams went like this: First place finished 6-5-1, second was 6-6, and third was 5-6-1. Had we beaten the first place team instead of ending up in a tie? All three teams would have been 6-6. Yeah, we watched some really fun games!  And, after finishing “last” in the regular season, we came back and beat both teams to win the tournament championship!

 

J, trying to not burst with the pride of winning the championship.

Outside of a few select incidents with “adults” over the course of the season, I think we really had a great time. It’s been really strange these last few days to not have to take someone to practice or a game. I’m incredibly grateful to the guys that give so much of their time and money to teach our kids, and encourage and support them, so a bit thanks to our coaches!

In  a few days, we’re taking our first trip flying commercially with all three kids! We tend to drive when we go places, and when I fly, most often it’s for work, so it’s sans kiddos. The kids have flown before, but they were lucky enough to get to do that on a private plane, and I’m afraid they’re going to be a bit disappointed by the lack of amenities on Southwest. At any rate, we’re heading out west for a few days for a wedding, and we’re really looking forward to it!

Obviously, the kids are older, and hopefully the travelling won’t be to difficult, but if any of you have flown recently with kids, do you have any good suggestions on ways to make the trip as easy as possible? We will have to change planes (just a short 45 minute window for that!) and my plan right now is to check luggage, but we may revisit that as we pack and see what we really have to take. We’ll just see how it goes!

What tips do you have for flying with kids?