Changes In the Air...

I can feel them. And it's not just the loss of summer, slipping noiselessly into fall.

Fall 2005 seems to be shaping up as a season of change for us. Some things are definite, some are planned. Some are big maybes and big hopes, and some are big pies-in-the-sky. But even if only a few of the changes come to pass, life at the Inn of the Last Home will soon be quite different than it was back in the spring.

The definites involve the kids: BrainyBoy v9.5 started baseball practice last night, which tickles me to the depths of my Field of Dreams-lovin' soul. He played little-kid coach-pitch when he was in kindergarten and first grade, then switched to soccer for the last two years. Now, with due encouragement from dad, he's gone back to baseball again - at least in the fall. We'll go back to soccer in the spring and likely alternate as the seasons change. Now, through my own PeteRose-colored glasses, he looks like a bit of a Natural on the field. The right size, the right build - he'll never be a shortstop but he has a fluid catch and a decent arm. Last night he made some great catches in left field that wowed even his coaches (and me), plus he's solidly built so he should be able to make some decent contact at the plate. Besides, just seeing him on a diamond, wearing a baseball cap, sends chills of normalcy down my spine. I love it.

The other definite is for both kids - they auditioned Saturday morning and were accepted into the Oak Ridge kids showchoirs, "Sound Company" (for BB, and "Sound Company, Too!" for tink). Neither has been in these kinds of groups before, but they're both great singers and good performers so it shouldn't be much of a shock. The group(s) will be performing around Oak Ridge and Knoxville in the coming months, so keep an eye out for them.

Yes, big changes. There will be scheduling adjustments that need to be made, which will involve sacrifices and hard work for all of us. But that may just be the beginning.

I'll keep everyone abreast of what's going on in our lives. Some of the other things in the hopper may never come to pass, or maybe they all will - who knows. But either way, I like it. Because change is something that should always happen, lest we get too comfortable. We'll see.