Take A Knee

I have few vivid memories of my Dad, but some of those I do have are of him being my big brother's coach when we were growing up-I remember sitting on the sidelines of basketball games and cheering as my Dad coached his "bud" and teammates. I remember playing at Seven Oaks Park each weekend while my Dad lead my brother and his teammates to victory on the baseball field. Such sweet memories.

And now? Fast forward 25-ish years and my own hub is creating those memories for our little boy and little girl.

Because over the weekend, my hub became the head coach of our son's first teeball team. 

Of course, I was so, so proud of my little buddy, all decked out in his baseball gear and "so excited" for teeball, as he told us over and over on Saturday before the afternoon practice/game time. He was absolutely precious, and I definitely teared up when getting him dressed, for the first time ever, in his "Express" (i.e., his first teeball team's name) t-shirt, X-small baseball pants, Adidas cleats, and royal blue baseball socks and hat. And let's not even begin to discuss what I was feeling when he took the field and when it was his turn to bat, for his first official time, as a teeballer. Dream.Come.True. for this momma.

But honestly? The day was made just as, if not more, special seeing my hub as the head coach. My little buddy was so very proud that his daddy was the coach. And I was so proud of my hub.

The email came a couple of months ago, asking if any of the parents whose children were registered for teeball were interested in coaching. The gleam in my hub's eye said it all. Without thought or hesitation, he volunteered. It was a dream realized for both of us. He would be coaching his son's first teeball team. I would be watching my hub coach our son's first teeball team. Pure excitement, joy, love, enthusiasm, and gratitude for this man  immediately followed. 

As we arrived to the field on a warm Saturday afternoon, ready for the first practice/game, my hub quickly launched into coach mode, shaking the hands of all the parents before kneeling down, greeting, and high-fiving all of the adorable 3-year-old boys who were meeting their coach for the first time. 

After uniforms, socks, and hats were distributed, my hub asked his players to "take a knee" and subsequently demonstrated what this meant to the confused 3-year-old athletes. After each player was introduced to his fellow teammates and a quick pep talk was completed, the official practice/game began. The focus of practice that day? Positions and base-running. To see a group of excited 3-year-olds proudly running the bases? Well, you can only imagine how many hearts were overwhelmed by the cuteness that day. And to see my hub leading the pack? Almost more than this heart could handle. Simply adorable.

At the end of the practice, after juice boxes and snacks were distributed to the many outstretched, dirt-ridden, little boy hands (another dream realized as I came prepared to be the "snack mom" for the day), my little boy proudly walked up to his daddy and, completely unprompted, looked up into his eyes and said, "I love you, Dad." 

I'd say it was a pretty solid coaching debut.