We are huge baseball fans.
I have seen the love in my little boy's eyes as he learns about baseball, plays baseball, and watches baseball games.
My husband was this kind of little boy, too.
We have binders of baseball cards and thousands of wonderful memories to prove it.
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I remember vividly the day we found out the baby I was carrying was a little boy. My husband cried from happiness and I silently wondered how in the world I was going to raise a child that wasn't a girl!
Little did I know the huge treat life had in store for me.
We started attending Atlanta Braves' games when Grant was tiny - just three years old.
I wondered if he could sit through an entire game and he NEVER MOVED. He was mesmerized by the game, the atmosphere, and the experience.
Every fourth of July we attend the ball game - it's our family tradition.
He has always been my baseball loving boy.
Each time we attend the game he has to run the bases above the field. Everyone should have the privilege of watching children do this at least once in their lives. The looks on those faces as they run those bases - it's really their World Series, you know - is just priceless.
Over the years I have told Anna, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!", so she has become a baseball fan, too.
For a Braves game this past weekend they both made posters - with the goal of being shown on the jumbo tron at the game.
They were on the big screen TWICE.
As Grant gets older I am hanging onto these precious memories. He won't always be this little. He won't always want to lean over during the game and give his mom a kiss on the cheek. He won't always fall asleep in the car on the way home.
I'm treasuring these games.
We were blessed with AMAZING seats at our most recent game... 17 rows behind home plate.
The game went 11 innings and was won by the Braves with a walk off hit from BJ Upton.
{I'm shocking myself that I can even speak this intelligently about baseball. I had never been to a Major League game until I was in college.}
Each day when my husband walks in the door from work Grant is waiting for him - glove in hand.
"Dad, you want to throw with me?"
The answer is always yes. He's such a great dad. He works with him on his batting, pitching, and is at each and every little league practice.
They consult about fantasy league teams and watch the MLB recaps together every Saturday morning.
I do not take this blessing lightly of having a little boy that has such a bond with his dad.
Sitting by Grant at the game I thought it was so cute how he holds his glove the entire game - just in case a fly ball comes his way.
One day he might just catch one.
I was remembering how when he was little he was reluctant to write the proper names of everyone in our family, but when I gave him the roster of Braves players he copied every single one of those proper names.
This kid LOVES baseball.
We've used this love of baseball as a springboard for learning in our homeschool for several years.
We have done a baseball unit study, read countless baseball books, and studied geography through the location of teams.
I see baseball as a HUGE education for all of us - a peek into American history and a great focus on a game that takes much skill and dedication at the same time.
I hope my little boy always loves baseball as much as he does now, and I hope one day he can have his own little boy to share that love with.
Now wouldn't that be fun?
Following is a widget of our favorite baseball resources. Many are reader books. Grant learned to read through early reader books - many of them about baseball greats. Now he enjoys baseball chapter books and books about ball parks and the art of the game. Maybe you can find something in these resources that your baseball lover will enjoy, too!