Today was practice #2 for Brennan for tee ball. This was a good day because Brennan was excited and participated! At the first practice he was a bit shy and I had to go out with him in the field to provide dad coaching.
After practice last Saturday, we went to Dick’s Sporting Goods and bought a tee, a bat and a couple of extra tee balls. This was a big a step because Brennan got to pick out his own bat! Later that day, we set up the tee inthe yard and practiced for about an hour. He enjoyed watching me hit and I have to say that it was pretty cool cranking home runs out onto the golf course. 
The homers were a pretty good motivation for him to want to learn and the next couple of days we practiced hitting.
Overall, I am enjoying tee ball quite a bit and I think Brennan is too. We’ve never really played or practiced so we have a long ways to go but I am pretty confident that he’ll pick it up fast. After all, he did get his first hit off a live pitch today and he’s only been playing a couple of days.
Here are a couple of photos. The one in the red shirt is from day one practicing with Coach Matt at the tee. The second in the white shirt is from tonight after practice and he is proudly showing off his UNC baseball hat.
- Dana
Special Thanks to Wells Black for posting this photo of the last Pelham Road Mustangs. That’s me in the front – #43! I wonder why I look like I had the smallest shoulder pads.
Dana
If you know me, you know that every day is football day. Draft day is a really special day. I’ve got the family decked in gear and we’ll have friends over soon at which point the suds will flow.
Sure, I realize it is a huge gamble and that many of the picks will be busts. The guessing and the hoping is a lot of the fun! More than anything, Draft Day reminds me that it wont be long before the games start again! After an 11-5 regular season, I am hopeful that we do a couple of things:
- Back to back winning seasons – yep, I’ll take 9-7.
- We make it to the playoffs
- We win a playoff game for the fans, the team, and for Tony Gonzalez
- We play like a team and there are no individuals that try to make themselves bigger than the team
Those four things are on my wish list. Of course, more is better in this situation but I’ll be content with 4.
As far as today goes, we need three things – defensive linemen (Ziggy), offensive tackle (right side), and a new CB or two. Here is my message to Thomas Dmitroff:
Draft Day Message to Thomas Dmitroff
I have to begin by saying that I have been an Atlanta Falcons fan for a very long time. I can remember just about every draft pick we have had and remember the days of Cain, Andrews, Bartkowski, Mathis, Riggs, and a whole bunch more players that were outstanding. Mike Smith has come to Atlanta and setup a system and a process to win which is what we have lacked for a few years. As a long time fan, I am very happy to see us go back to a more traditional style offense and very happy to see Matt Ryan leading that for us.
At the beginning of the season, Atlanta was coming from the previous season considered to be one of the worst in the league and had a 4-12 record the year prior. It didn’t take the experts long after the 34-21 opener to see that Smith’s new system was going to yield results. He had several advantages – Michael Turner had fresh legs, the offensive line was working as a team, and Matt Ryan played in a pro-like system at Boston College. The preseason showed mixed results but Matt Ryan lit up the defense on his very first throw – a 62 yard touchdown to Michael Jenkins.
Ryan was also very successful at gaining the support of veteran players. Several referenced some of the greats like Farve, Manning, et al throughout the season as he showed his potential week after week.
After being selected 3rd in the 2008 draft, Ryan has become the 3rd quarterback in three years to win the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Ben Roethlisberger (2004) and Vince Young (2006) had won prior to Ryan with no other quarterback having won that award prior to Big Ben.
In his years prior to being with Atlanta, he earned the nickname “Matty Ice”. John Abraham has come up with a new nickname for him – “ROY”. Ryan said he was flattered to even be mentioned with the other candidates.
Dana
