On Travel and Kids' Softball

We're back!

Yes, we have made it safely home after a wonderful visit to our son and his family in Dayton, Ohio. We had a great visit, played with all the grandchildren, attended Marcy's dance recital, celebrated Fathers' Day, and watched Joe's softball game. I can stretch this out into at least two posts, so let's start with a few general comments on traveling and a recap of Joe's very entertaining softball game...

Travel is as much fun as ever. We found that flying from Baltimore to Dayton was about half the cost of flying from DC to Dayton, so we decided to drive up to Baltimore on Thursday afternoon. This would allow us to beat the morning rush hour traffic and arrive in plenty of time for our early Friday flight. Of course, nothing ever quite works out how we plan it ... our departure from home at about 2:00 Thursday afternoon coincided with a rainstorm of biblical proportions. We drove almost halfway to Baltimore in rain so heavy that I was ready to pull over and rent an ark.

We finally made it to Baltimore in spite of the rain (there was brilliant sunshine there, wouldn't you know), got checked into the hotel, and enjoyed a relaxing drink in the hotel bar before dinner. Dinner was excellent, although we weren't expecting the floor show - when we arrived and were seated, a table across the room was occupied by three middle-aged gentlemen who were obviously business travelers, one of whom delivered a lecture on sales techniques and strategic planning at full volume the entire time we were there. He didn't shut up for a minute, and neither of the other two managed to squeeze in more than a brief word or two before vanishing into the howling gale generated by their tablemate. He was still going strong when we left. We were horrified to see him again at breakfast the next morning, although he was alone (I expect the others decided to opt for room service to avoid a potential Part 2 of the evening lecture)...

We arrived in Dayton without further incident, and were met at the airport by our son and the Munchkins. We got settled in at home, and then Jason and I took Noah and went to watch Joe's softball game...

If you have never attended a softball game played by teams of 5 and 6 year-0lds, you have missed one of life's grand entertainments. The kids play with full energy, if not full attention, and have a great time doing ... well ... something, even if it isn't always what their coaches hope they'd do. Here are a few candid pictures ...

Joe arrives at first after a solid single...

Dad and brother Noah observe the proceedings...

Joe, playing first, keeps a close eye on the runner ...

Sometimes, though, the base runner has other things on his (or her) mind than the game ...

And sometimes, the fielders get confused as to whether this was the gymnastics night or the softball night ...

Some pictures lend new meaning to the term, "playing first"...

And just to put that last picture into the perspective of the game ...

Ah, yes ... there's nothing like watching the young'uns play ball!

Come back tomorrow, when we'll talk about the excitement of Marcy's dance recital, among other things. For now, though, it's time to go back to work.

Sigh.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo