Planning a baseball senior night

If you are planning a baseball senior night, you are very blessed and I am so happy for you! Can you believe it is time? My first tip on planning a baseball senior night is to let your heart be full of gratitude. 

You may be helping, you may be orchestrating, or you may be the senior looking for ideas. You are blessed! Being present and flexible are key to enjoying the planning process. I talk more about how to practice gratitude here. 

Stressed?

If you are feeling overwhelmed, write out some action steps, ask for help, and take a deep breath. This is a step in the process, but don’t let it be a stressful one. 

Reminder

You know, we don’t like to think of sad or hard situations, but sometimes they help us to snap out of it and realize that what we are getting to do isn’t stressful, it is good, and we are blessed to be able to be there in that moment. 

Tough Reminders

I’m reminded of the dad who didn’t get to be a part of any of his daughter’s senior experiences, because of brokenness in the relationship, the mom who is barely breathing because her husband decided he didn’t need the Lord anymore and consequently, his family, and the mom whose husband passed away after a long battle with an incurable disease during their daughter’s senior year. Life is hard, but it also full of beautiful moments. I have watched joy exist with pain and I have watched the glimmer of gratitude peak through in even the darkest of times. 

Action steps

When you can take an action step and move the needle in the right direction it helps you to feel accomplished and to check something off your list. Here are some actions steps that you could start doing or thinking about. 

Pictures

Start taking pictures of the seniors and the team. You can get these printed and pick them up the same day if needed through the Walgreens app. There are other photo apps and options out there. The players and parents may want to make senior boards where they decorate a poster board with their name, number, and pictures of themselves throughout the years. 

Purchase black frames from Amazon that you can put the pictures in and can give out to the seniors or other team mates. It is easy to display these on a table for senior night. The players love getting to take home a framed picture, but you don’t have to do this. I have framed some, and then laid some out on the table for them to take home with them. 

Important questions

Ask the coach when senior night is and what their expectations are for that event. It is usually the last or 2nd to last home game.

You can find a parent who has done this before and ask them what they did and what worked for them. I took pictures of the different senior nights that I attended the year my son was a junior so that I would at least have a starting point. 

Decorations

Buy a few decorations in your school colors. If you can find them at the beginning of the year you will be able to reuse them for several different events. I have found things on Amazon and at Hobby Lobby. Reusing them and saving them is a good way to get your money’s worth.

I was able to find balloons, large numbers of the graduation year, mascot themed decor, cookie trays in the school colors, pennants, and other decor that went well for each sport. I kept it in a container and have reused it for several things. 

Snacks

Decide if you are going to have a treat. Sugar cookies with a baseball design are so cute. Cupcakes are also a great option. You could request icing that is the school colors or you could do a white icing with sprinkles that are the school colors. Donuts are fun, cookie cakes are delicious, and regular cakes make a great option too. 

When deciding what treat you will serve, you will want to consider your budget, who will make them for you, and if you will need serving utensils or napkins. You would want a close guestimate on how many people you will be serving as well. Do you need someone to go pick them up for you or will you have time to pick them up ahead of time.

Drinks

Are you going to serve drinks? Would you want to have sodas, waters, or punch available? Think about your space and where you will be setting up. Do you even need to serve drinks? 

If you are making punch, you will need a punch bowl, cups, and a serving ladle. Do you have a place to keep things cold? How will you clean it up?

If you are going to serve water or soda, do you have a place to keep them cold? Would it be better to put them in a cooler with ice?

Two liters are an option as well. They tend to be more affordable, but you will need cups, and there is a bigger chance of spills. Will you need ice for your drinks and how will you chill them beforehand?

Set up

Let’s think about the set up. Do you need to bring tables from home or will the school or coach have some available upon request? Is one table going to hold the treats, decorations, pictures, and treat baskets/bags?

You will most likely want to cover the table. How many table clothes will you need and what colors will you be going with? School colors are a great choice. 

Are you going to use balloons?

How many balloons will you need, what kind, and where will you put them? Think about each space that you want filled. Will you need a weight to hold them in place, a zip tie to attach them to something, or is there something to tie them to? You can do something as simple as balloons in your school colors, you could order baseball balloons, or you could make or pay for a balloon arch. I borrowed the one the girls used for their softball senior night. I hear most people say that they would never make one of those again. 

Gift Bags

You can put together a goodie bag with treats in it for the seniors. Sometimes they give the senior on the other team a small bag with candy and a drink in it. You can use a gift bag that is the color of your school colors or you could purchase baskets.

If you use gift bags, remember to get tissue paper. If you use baskets, you may want to find someone with cricket to put their name on it, the word senior, or their number. 

Gifts

There are so many options here. I was very blessed to be able to buy for very grateful boys! For the baseball senior night basket we got big league chew, sunflower seeds, a drink, a bag of chips, a light up baseball, and a Nike apparel item in their favorite color. 

It is okay to ask for help

Most parents are willing to pitch in and donate items or money. You could ask them to pick up the balloons, the treats, fill the coolers, get the table cloths or decor, pitch in money, or just leave it up to them. I think it is appropriate to ask, but also let them know that it is ok if they can’t contribute or help at that time. 

The big night

Well, the big night is here, you have everything you need, and it gets canceled due to rain. Yep, and it might even get canceled a second time. You already purchased the cookies, no worries, eat them, and then order more. That’s right, rain will come and you might have to roll with it. That is how this season of life works. Don’t stress it. Enjoy the night when it does happen and be blessed.