There can be crying in softball...

I am fairly certain I did a lot of oversharing yesterday after my baby hit her first over-the-fence home run in USSSA softball. And man, I felt guilty all night.

But y'all, (And I know I say thisi all the time!) watching her pitch, or bat, or just play anywhere on that field, is emotional for me. I start thinking how amazing it is that her body actually does what she wants it to do and before I know it I am a crying, blubbering mess.

It wasn't as if I just really wanted to be a Sport parent. No. And as a matter of fact, I remember when my boys played on an accessible soccer team in 2nd grade and we once had a game that was delayed due to a non-accessible game running long on the field. Parents started yelling at their children (and I mean, CHILDREN....not teenagers!) in the harshest tones. "Can you not see the ball? Get it!" And that was mild compared to when they started yelling for their little Bobby to "take number x out". It was insane.

So I didn't dream of that. I frankly was grateful that I assumed we would never be on the sidelines of such.

And then came Cate. She has loved playing sports since SHE begged US to put her in "kicky-ball" (soccer) when she was only 4.

And she couldn't wait to play softball as soon as she was old enough. ( I am relieved to say she has only played on teams with supportive cheering parents on the sidelines!)

But more than that -- these photos showed up in my memories the last two days and as soon as I saw them my stomach turned upside down.

Most summers have not been spent on the softball or soccer fields. Most of our summers have surgeries, hospital stays, rehabs. And don't get me wrong, we have fun even in the midst of that but not hit-the-ball-over-the-fence-and-run-the-bases fun.

So I will keep celebrating my Red. I am going to probably keep oversharing. And I am certain I will keep blubbering.

And I will trust that my beloved friends who have stood with me in the hard surgical seasons will understand as I celebrate and celebrate with me. And I will be forever grateful.