The Freak

We have a new family member. It isn't alive...but, it is a big part of the family because so much time, money, effort, and fun has gone into "raising" it. Now that it is in officially up-and-kickin'....may I introduce...

THE FREAK

Yay...that's a batting cage...in my backyard. And what? Did I say, "The Freak"? Why, yes, I did. Lovely name for our new bundle of joy don't you think?

"The Freak" came to join us out of a crazy, scatterbrained lapse of normal human thinking on Kirk's part. It all happened so fast. I still remember the exact spot where I was when I got the phone call from my husband informing me of our new addition (I was sunning myself at the WaterPark -- I even know the exact deck chair I was in, which bathing suit I was wearing, and who I was with). He called and told me that he had purchased a "net." A huge net, mind you.

After the net...everything else was a whirlwind. We had a pitching machine by the end of week...which Kirk claims was a gift from God since he just had to go pick it up in Texarkana instead of paying the $1000 shipping it would have cost to buy one from anywhere else. Okay, I agree...gift from God (I'm convinced He also loves baseball!). After the pitching machine, there was dirt hauled in, dirt leveled (yuck...many, many blisters from that job), surfacing out the bottom of the cage, placing poles, pouring concrete, hanging the net, and the list goes on and on...

Did I mention the granules? No? Well, let me just tell you...Kirk decided to use these teeny-tiny little granules (something from work -- don't really know what they are) to fill in the whole bottom of the cage. They look nice and they keep the balls from bouncing like crazy. Anyway, they come in one ton bags from his work, so he made 12 trips back and forth to town (remember...we live 20 minutes out) hauling those bags. Then he and the boys would have to rip open the bags and rake/shovel them out into the cage. Crazy. So there are 12 tons of little tiny granules in my backyard. No, I take that back...now there are probably 11 tons out there, because the other ton has made its way into my house. UGH! Everyday I say, "Kirk, I love your batting cage, but I hate your granules." It has become our new term of endearment. So romantic.

So, aside from the granules and the minor insanity that has ensued on our household over the past couple of months...The Freak is up and running and I really am enjoying it. The boys are completely infatuated with the thing and Kirk? well, Kirk is like a kid at Christmas. He walks around the house with a starry-eyed gaze saying things like, "I love my batting cage," and "Look what we have!"

You may be wondering why exactly we have a batting cage. ME TOO! Aside from Kirk having a mid-mid-life crisis, I'm not really sure. Something was said about hoping the boys could get better at baseball....hmmmm...I think it was really Kirk just wanting a batting cage!!! :)

That's Sawyer (no shirt and all) swingin' away! Fun right?