Alfred, Lord Tennis Anyone?

Today, Ba-Ba and Nana made sure that Madison could have her first experience with tennis: they got her a special tennis set for smaller kids, and together everyone went to the front yard for some lobbing back and forth.

Here she is!

It took a bit for her to get into the swing of things, so to speak, but with proper guidance from Ba-Ba and Nana, she started to get the hang of it. Each of us took a turn on the pitcher's mound, pretending to be a tennis ball machine, nervously tossing that yellow ball towards Madison, who swung her tennis racket like a lumber jack trying to fell a tree with one strike. There were quite a few misses initially - if you're one to believe a butterfly's wings can cause a hurricane further down the road, then someone somewhere had better get ready for a category five - because Madison was swinging hard! She provided air conditioning for the whole neighborhood!

And look here:

She was hitting them back! She darted a few fastballs back to Daddy or Ba-Ba, depending on who was throwing - and she was having a great time doing it. Each time, she'd celebrate and get more comfortable for the next swing. She'd pull back on the racket like it was a baseball bat, and swing it all the way around, making solid contact to the delight of everyone around. It was fun exercise - Madison was sweating a whole lot by the time it was done. Part of that was the heat outside: even though it was dusk, the temperature was still a bit on the warm side.

In any event, it was a fun day. We started it at church, continuing with our series, Kung Pow! Afterwards, we ate sub sandwiches that Mommy made, and read some books afterwards. Oh, and I can't forget the ice cream: we definitely had ice cream. Madison had a big bowl with sprinkles, and cleaned the bowl so there wasn't a drop left. It's funny to tell her about her first experience with ice cream: she didn't like it. She was quite young, but she simply opened her mouth and let it fall out. It was cold, and that was new - and it was sugary sweet, and that wasn't anything she was used to. So, she just spit it out!

Can't imagine her doing that ever again, can you?

*********

In honor of today's tennis achievement, here below is one of Daddy's favorite conversations from the television show, "Space Ghost." Enjoy!

Zorak:

Here's a poem by Alfred, Lord Tennisanyone.

Brak:

O, o, o, well for the fisherman's boy,
That he shouts with his sister at play!
O, well for the sailor lad,
That he sings in his boat on the bay!

Break, break, break
At the foot of thy crags, O sea!
But the tender grace of the day that is dead
Will never come back to me.

Space Ghost:

Hey, Brak, what does that poem mean?

Brak:

The poem speaks of a yearning for that which is lost, um, a hunger for... somethin' to EAT!

Space Ghost:

Nothin' works up an appetite in the old Space Ghost more than a couple stanzas of classical verse.

Zorak:

Boy howdy.

Brak:

Corned beef would be good right now. I just happen to know, don't ask me how, that Alfred, Lord Tennisshoe, ate corned beef and sauerkraut morning, noon, and night. That's why his nickname was Reuben. Reuben, Lord Tennisshoe. And his buddies would say "Hey, Reuben, write another poem, buddy!" and, and then he'd say "Okay, but lemme finish my sandwich first!"