Ashley and Softball

Ashley has hated every sport Joel and I have signed her up for.  She dreaded going, didn't enjoy being there with a team of kids she didn't know, and only the treats gave her just enough motivation to drag herself there.

So I was skeptical about signing her up for softball, but I decided to take a gamble.

It turns out that softball is quite possibly Ashley's thing!

Ashley loved all aspects of the game.

She gave hitting her all.

(Iowa is so windy in the early summer that the wind constantly blew the ball off before the kids had a chance to swing at it!)

She gave running her all.

And Ashley gave throwing her all.

Despite my good intentions, we never really practiced her skills.  And yet Ashley had a knack for it all.  Ashley seemed to not only pick up the body movements pretty well, but really enjoy what her body could do.

Even when those pesky through-the-legs grounders passed her by!

Ashley's favorite outfield position was first base, because the coaches had all the players throw the ball to first base no matter what, and Ashley always wanted a chance to handle the ball.  But her second favorite position was catcher.  The coaches helped the girls bat, so the "catcher" was really just in charge of retrieving the ball after the first baseman's throw.  

And boy did Ashley stay focused on her task.

She kept her eye right on the ball and jumped to catch it.  She never needed to be reminded to pay attention and she was always the first to volunteer when her coaches asked for help.

And that is how I knew Ashley loved this game.  Ashley does not like to focus on anything she doesn't love.  But she gave this game 110%.

And if any of that didn't already tip me off to her enjoyment of the game. . .

The delight and satisfaction on her face each time she played certainly did.

Good job, Ashley!  "I love to see how you love playing," I said each time we went.  And I meant it each and every time I said it.

Ashley starts with a real softball league (uniforms and everything, boo-yah!) in two weeks.  Exciting stuff!