As we prepare for the upcoming school year, another summer has come and gone. I’m not sure where the time went, it seems like just yesterday we were still playing baseball/ teeball, now we’re school shopping and about to start sleep training to get back into routine for school.
This summer has been eventful to say the least, in the best ways possible. It was pretty low key for us... hard to top Disney World last summer. But, we still had some fun.
We had both kids going with spring sports, as Cheekies played his first year of coach pitch baseball and Natalia swung into her first year of teeball. They both did a fantastic job and I couldn’t be prouder of both of them.
Nat finally got her first two hits off of the pitcher in our last game of the season, which made our whole year. She had been hitting off of the tee all year, but she just kept missing the pitcher, but that last game, she finally got her two solid shots.
Cheekies, flourished in his first year of coach pitch and got some great experience. He helped lead his team during the regular season and made his first All-Star team, who placed third at the district tournament and played at the state tournament, both of which were held in Levelland.
I can’t wait to see what the future holds for both of these kiddos.
This was also the first summer where Jaden was “old enough” to attend all of the sports camps around Lamb County, while Natalia got to do Cheer Camp this year.
In total, Jaden attended four Lamb County camps, one in Levelland and has one more this upcoming week.
I was blessed to get to watch both of my kids compete at each camp, and see the growth they made each day. This was Natalia’s first time ever doing a camp, so we weren’t sure how it was going to go, but man, she did a great job at Cheer Camp and was really trying to pay attention and follow along with the big cheerleaders in what they were doing and saying. I can’t wait to see her cheer with the big cheerleaders during the third quarter of the season- opener. She even made a new “big kid friend in Zalise Davis”.
Jaden met some new people at the Olton camps, which was good for him to be around people he isn’t always around and learn from different coaches as well. I think one of the best moments was when we walked up for the first day of the Olton Baseball Camp and a kid saw Cheekies and was like, “ oh man we played against him, he’s a good baseball player.” Not going to lie, that made me feel really good as a dad.
His last camp of the summer will be the Littlefield Football Camp, which starts tomorrow. I think he’s looking forward to learning some new skills and a new sport.
And as if the fall wasn’t hectic enough, both kids will be starting soccer at the end of August and Jaden will also simultaneously be playing flag football for the first time. We had to talk him into it, he wants to play “real football”, but I told him he’s got a while before he gets to do that. But, we’re looking forward to it and I think he is too, even though we had to talk him into playing.
I’ll be coaching soccer for both of them, this will be their last year to be on the same team, so gonna cherish every moment.
We’ll be starting first grade with Cheekies and Pre-K 4 with Natalia, hard to believe Jaden only has two years left at Primary, before switching campuses and Nat is already into her second year of school.
With school starting, that also means high school sports are starting, which means getting to meet some new kids, the freshmen, and see some old friends, the seniors, suit up for the last time.
I’m looking forward to it, over the last several years, I don’t know how many times I’ve said I’m going to go out with this class, but here I am going into year 13 in total, year 11 at the Leader- News of doing sports. I imagine I’ll give it up someday, but I’d be lying if I said I really knew when.
Each year, there seems to be a handful of kids that I grow close to, and I tell myself, I’m just going to stay until they graduate and then I’m out, but then those youngsters come through and I start getting to know them and the cycle repeats.
I’m grateful for our small community, not just in Littlefield, but all of Lamb County. I’ve gotten to know so many great kids, coaches and families over the years and I really couldn’t imagine doing anything else. So, here is to another great year, and good luck, safe travels and I wish everybody good health as the 2026-2027 school year gets underway.