PKs score big with short team

Our loyal readers will no doubt be thrilled to know that last night the Promise Keepers won both games of their double header, wrapping up the final one at about 11:00 PM.  Team Roberts was there to cheer our guys on, and as usual, Yours Truly shouted herself hoarse.

Four of our regulars were gone (John – RC, Max – 1B/P, Jerod – LC, Dave – 1B), and another regular (Les – C) had to leave after the first game.  However, Jeremiah and Ryan stepped in to play outfield and second base, respectively, and with only nine guys, we stomped both other teams.

Jeremiah did take a hard tumble resulting in a twisted ankle, so, unable to run, he moved to catcher and the other gents rotated around.  There were several nice slides in to second and a number of great defensive plays on the base paths.  Several home runs were hit over the fence, and My Hero managed a two-run homer inside the park! Justin completed a lovely diving catch with body roll in left field, and Ryan caught the fly ball that ended the second game.

Congratulations to all the Promise Keepers on two jobs well done!

Guess who was at Buffalo Point?

Scott took Andrew on a father-son camping trip to Buffalo Point this weekend.  With each of our kids, the appropriate parent has taken a fun overnight jaunt at this age and stage.  It having come to our attention that the time had come for some necessary “guy” talk to occur, we agreed that camping would be a good environment for that discussion.  Besides, if Scott could combine education and information with hiking, biking, swimming, camping, tubing, and eating smorgs, it would surely be a weekend well spent.

The days leading up to the camping trip were rather stressful, as Andrew was not too hep on helping with all the planning and packing, but the big day finally came, and Friday at 5:30 PM, the guys pulled out.  I think they remembered most of the important things. . . except bread and Scott’s pillow.

I haven’t heard if all the anticipated purposes of the weekend were achieved, but one REALLY funny event did occur.  It involved the couple who happened to be walking past Scott’s reserved campsite as he pulled in.  Remember our aborted camping trip to Buffalo Point with the Browns in April?  Remember how shocked we were to meet our long-time friends from Little Rock there?  The friends we’ve exchanged Christmas cards with but hadn’t actually seen or had a conversation with in nearly 15 years?

Well, Dusty and Laquita Edwards were camped just down the road from our guys!!!  Again!!! And they’re still enjoying life.  And no, they really don’t live at Buffalo Point.  They hadn’t been there since April, either.  Wow!  It’s a very, terribly, extremely small world.

Hail to the Chief

We have a new president who won by easily capturing over 100 convention delegates and taking Florida at the start of the convention.  Her nearest rival, though a media favorite early on, trailed in the polls, and was soundly trounced in California by Henry Hudson (who evidently sailed into New York Harbor a heck of a long time ago).

Yes, Katie and I played a fun game of “Hail to the Chief” tonight.  We laughed a lot, learned a lot, and lamented quite a bit.  Obviously Katie won, but we both enjoyed the journey a lot.  See the “What I’ve Learned Today” tab for my newest piece of presidential trivia.

Promise Keepers skunk Tri-Lakes Church, but lose to The River in championship game

It was an interesting softball season.  There were about 12 teams in the church league this year, but only three of them were really competitive:  Promise Keepers (undefeated in the regular season), Church Army (rowdy guys, good players), and The River (arguably the best team of The Three, although we beat them in the season, narrowly and with great effort).

Last night was the second round of the post-season tournament.  Our guys faced Tri-Lakes Church for the semi-final game at 6:30 PM, in searing sun and blistering 95-degree heat.  We scored nine runs in the first inning, and despite their very impressive four-or-five run rally later in the game, Tri-Lakes never had a chance.

The tables were turned in the 8:30 PM championship game.  Thankfully the sun was down and we enjoyed the occasional slight breeze, but that is about all that went well for Our Heroes.  The River’s first batter hit the first pitch to just inside the left field fence, and while our guys fumbled getting the ball in, he managed to make it all the way home.  Not too encouraging.

Our worthy opponents scored a total of 11 runs in the first inning, and I think when the dust finally settled and the game was called, the final score was something like 14 to 3.  Our guys actually played pretty well for most of that game, but last night The River was clearly the better team.

No regrets, and I’m sure fall ball will be starting up in a few weeks.

Promise Keepers Upset The River

Yes, sports fans, all eyes were (or should have been) on Kiewit Field at Stockstill Park tonight at 6:30.  Off to a slow start, their initially lackluster fielding and non-existent offense quickly had the Promise Keepers down 7-0.

Of course, part of their poor performance early on could be attributed to the absence of regulars Max at 1st base and Jerod in left center.  Mark from the outfield was playing 2nd, Nathan had come from Springfield to cover for Jerod, the mouthy husband of a Country Mart employee(?) was playing 1st, and Dave was sitting out the first inning, because we had too many players.  = (

However, with the strong support of a their larger-than-life cheering section – eventually including Cinda, Trena, the CM husband’s extended family, five Duncans, four Browns, John’s wife and two sons (the newborn son was sleeping and so is not included in this count), six Madrigals, and five Roberts’ – the Promise Keepers rallied, holding the River to only one additional run, while gradually piling up eight of their own.

Then, at a true crisis point of the game, our noble 3rd baseman was called out on strikes and left the plate looking decidedly dejected.  But not to worry; shortly thereafter, Hero-of-the Night Dave got on base with a nice hit and subsequently scored the winning run!!!

And the crowd went wild.

Quick trip, no tip

Today being Andrew’s 10th birthday, Scott decided to quit work early and take him canoeing.

There are two creeks that come together just across the street from our house:  Bull Creek (the larger, the one our family often canoes, the one with the swimming hole to which we fought so hard last summer to maintain access) and Bear Creek (much smaller, rockier, and entirely unfloatable except for perhaps one day every three years).  It has rained a lot lately, but neither creek is up right now.

Scott looked out the window today and said, “the water’s perfect to float Bear Creek.”  I wisely said nothing.  So about 4:45 PM, we all piled into the van to take Scott and Andrew up to the low water bridge put-in on Bear Creek at Reno Springs Road.  Last year, in the midst of serious flooding, Scott and Jessica put in there with the water running a foot over the bridge.  Some weeks later, after a second torrential flood, Scott and Josiah put in there with the water right at bridge level.

Today the water was three feet below the bridge, so we drove a couple miles further downstream dropped the canoe down a steep bank at BonnieBrook, and put them in there.  In the next hour and a half, they managed to float all the way down to the pasture across the street without tipping, but they did drag quite a bit.  Andrew attributed that to the fact that Scott “was eating too many chocolate chips” along the way.  However, they did see a lot of wildlife (besides Andrew), including seven deer in the water, one rabbit, three turtles, and a great blue heron.

Rubber of eternity

Scott, Katie, Jessica and I just completed one of the longest bridge rubbers imaginable.  I think it took over two-and-a-half hours.  Katie was my partner, and that was a good thing.  No one else could have tolerated so gracefully my bidding and playing errors.  Katie understands the way my mind works – and she still loves me!

Congrats to the winning team of Jessica and Scott.  Theirs was a long, hard-fought victory.

Advance planning

As you may know, it’s been raining a lot in these parts lately, and this causes several very predicatble things to happen:

1.  The grass weeds grow like crazy and need to be mowed frequently.

2.  Lots of mud gets tracked into the house, but I leave it alone, figuring that there’s no point cleaning it up till the weather dries out.

3.  Scott wants to go canoeing.

It was #3 that hit last night (Thursday night).

Scott knows the Buffalo River is up, and a high Buffalo draws him like a magnet.  He would not be able to resist its pull even if he wanted to, and he certainly doesn’t want to.

Canoeing is not a solo sport, so someone (or someones) would need to go with him.  Thursday evening, the plan was to do this on Saturday, when Josiah’s friend, Aaron, might be available; the thought being that Andrew could sit in the front of Scott’s (our) canoe, and Aaron and Josiah could go in a second (borrowed or rented) canoe.   Then we got the weather forecast for the upper Buffalo area:

Friday – 20% chance of rain, highs in the 80s, no air space at the Ponca bridge (these are EXCELLENT canoeing conditions for wild males).

Saturday – 80% chance of rain, high of 64 (this is lousy weather for canoeing, no matter who you are).

Sunday – 80% chance of rain, highs in the low 60s (equally lousy).

So, at 7 PM Thursday, the decision was made that the canoeing would have to happen on Friday, which is today.

Never mind that Scott does ministry work for a half day on Friday and then works a half day at his paying job.

Never mind that Aaron works Fridays and would not be able to go, thus putting all three of my men together in one canoe.

Never mind that Andrew is playing not one, not two, but THREE pieces in our annual piano recital Friday evening – plus he is the designated “collector of music” for all the player who will be using music, Moi included.  Oh, and that recital will occur in Branson, which is some two hours’ drive from the upper Buffalo.

Never mind that Andrew will need to get home in time to eat, shower, change, and gather his music before leaving at 5:50 PM for the recital.

Never mind that Josiah will be assisting with some aspects of the recital and will also have to eat, shower, and be in his Sunday best for that event.

So, Thursday evening was a flurry of planning, packing, gathering, and hooking up the canoe trailer, and while the females slept in on Friday morning, the males trashed the kitchen, made a lot of noise, and departed at 7:30 AM for great scenery, high water, and many testosterone-laden adventures.

This is my husband.  Mr. Flexibilty.  Mr. Carpe Diem.  Mr. I-Will-Make-Memories-With-My-Family no matter what.   What a guy!

Pop-up-less camping

So our much-anticipated camping trip with the Browns was rained/stormed/hailed/tornadoed out, but as you may know, I am married to The One Who Never Gives Up.  We hauled all our stuff back home, gained three Brown ladies, and sacrificed one Roberts man for the night.  Meaning that Josiah stayed with the Browns Friday night, while Courtney, Emily, and Rachel stayed with us.

I of the gnat-attacked shins was not in very good shape and ended up sleeping quite a bit that weekend, but I HEARD that the Browns provided scrapple for Saturday morning breakfast.   Sadly, due to my gnat-induced fever and nausea, as well as the fact that there were NO leftovers, I still have not actually tasted scrapple.

Anyway, we all proceeded to spend the rest of Saturday, Saturday night, and Sunday morning and afternoon till about 5:00 PM doing as much “camping” as we could.  We drove to Busiek to do a hike, but of course it was raining.  That didn’t stop us, as we simply donned ponchos and pressed on.  However, the bridge over that creek was out and we were forced to detour.  The detour didn’t go very far before we were met with an authoritative sign:  TRAIL CLOSED.  So, we slogged back to the car and went home.

Much ping pong was played.  Some pool was played.  I am not sure who was victorious in all those playroom activities.  The adults and older guys played Sequence, and Dave made the winning sequence, even though he was down to a mere two cards.  Some of the more adventurous campers took a bike ride down the creek road in the mud.  Rachel and Andrew began the process of making “sea glass.”

The girls painted faces – including Emily’s as Bluebeard the Pirate, Courtney’s as Cruella de Vil, Andrew’s with bunny teeth and an eye patch, and Jessica as a yellow cat.  Various AIM songs were choreographed and presented, some at exteremely high rates of speed.  Kickball was attempted, but the wet grass proved too slippery.

Grilled cheese sandwiches appeared for lunch.  I don’t remember what we had for supper, but afterwards we made S’mores over the fire in the living room.  Saturday night, far into the night, we took turns “Barnabas-ing” each other, and it was a very special and encouraging time.  Many wonderful and touching things were said, many tears were shed, many Kleenex were used, and Andrew fell asleep on the floor.

That night, Dave and Sue got a room with a door (Katie’s), Josiah shared his room with Ryan, and the four girls somehow slept – or at least spent the night -  in Jessica’s room.

Sunday morning we shared a great worship service.  Courtney played her guitar and led our singing, with Emily accompanying on her violin and Jessica on the piano.  Scott shared an encouraging and challenging message  about being faithful and/or fruitful.

There was more eating of camping-ish food; more laughing, playing, and presenting; and the adults even managed to have some adult conversation, albeit sprinkled with many passings-through of offspring.

We successfully avoided electronic devices the whole weekend, and we did our very best to follow through on as many traditional camping activities as possible – junk food, hikes, junk food, games, relaxation, junk food, and so on.

Wins and losses

weather.com is not all it’s cracked up to be.  Scott’s softball team was scheduled to play in a tournament this (Saturday) morning, starting at 9:30 AM.  At 10:00 PM last night, there was a 100% chance of rain at 9:00 AM with thunderstorms likely.  Knowing the tournament would be rained out, we didn’t get moving any too early today, but when I did stagger to the computer, there was suddenly a 0% chance of rain at 9:00 AM, and it was sunny!

So we raced to the ball field, but the Promise Keepers were soundly trounced by a much better team.  One loss.  Of course, we were also short a player; we having nine to their ten.  The PKs play in the church league, which is kind of the bottom of the league barrel in Branson.  The opposing team probably plays in the Men’s Recreational Leauge or even the Men’s Competitive League.

It was a double elimination, so we played again at 12:30 PM.  It rained through most of the game, and we were down by nine runs.  Our team captain, who had missed the first game due to a prior commitment at a golf tournament(!!!), showed up in the middle of the second game and batted, eventually scoring a run that would keep them from being run-ruled, but it was determined that he was the 12th batter, and although that’s okay in our normal league, in this tournament only 11 batters were allowed.  So the run didn’t count, and the rainy, muddy game was over.  Two losses.

This afternoon, Katie’s last afternoon with us before she returns to college, she, Scott, and I played Scrabble.  I’m not sure why I do this to myself, as I almost always lose, but I sure do enjoy it.  I lost, and – sooprize, sooprize, SCOTT won!  Word games are not his strongest suit, and for anyone to beat Katie at a word game is newsworthy, so we were all duly impressed.  One win.

Then, Andrew, Katie, Scott, and I played Keesdrow, another word game.  In this one, if you challenge a word and the word ends up being legit, the player who was challenged gets double points for the word.  Scott played “pupas,” and I – with a sideways glance at the second-semester Latin scholar beside us – challenged it.  Doesn’t  everyone know pupa a Latin word and the plural would be “pupae?”  Well, wasn’t I sooprized to learn that (according to The Official Scrabble Dictionary, which was our chosen authority today), either plural is acceptable?!?!  That measly little 35-point word netted Scott 70 points, and he ended up beating Katie by a mere four points.  Two wins.

As we were wrapping up that game, we turned on the TV and found the Cardinals playing at Chicago, tied 5-5 in the top of the 11th innning.  Well, we were kind of bummed that we hadn’t realized earlier that they were on, but we watched the end of that one, in which the Cubs hit a homer in the bottom of the 11th.  = (  Three losses.

So, for the day we’re 0 for 3 on ball games and 2 for 2 on word games.  Well, that would be the royal we on the on the word games.