la boîte

One of the oddball things I wanted to do when building our own house was make a space for a batting cage for baseball practice. Originally, i was thinking of a place where you could pitch or hit, but that would require 70-75 feet of space, so when we started seriously looking at the lot we eventually bought (only 45 feet long) I revised my mental picture of how I would use it.  

In the end, I was able to carve out a roughly 12' wide space along the side of the house which is fine for batting practice, at least.  This is why the first floor of our house is smaller than the 2nd and 3rd floors- which wasn't easy to build (that's why we have four big steel beams) but actually fine for how the house works- especially because we were limited in the total amount of floor space by the zoning code.  It's nicer to have that space on the top floor than down on level 1.  The overhang provided by the house also gives us dry access to the bike / outdoor equipment storage accessed from there. 

During the design process, Cari decided we needed a shorthand way to refer to the space, so she coined "la boîte." Totally works for our family, and I think I have heard the grandparents start to use it, as well.

This spring I was able to order a net online and put it up so that I could start using the space for hitting.  La boîte is too tight for regular balls to ever be used in it (I think even tennis balls may be too much), but I already had a golf-ball-sized whiffle ball pitching machine, and I been able to use that.  Cari was also kind enough to give me soft-toss a fair amount, as well.  The net I ordered was sized to hold in golf balls, and it's nice to never, ever have to worry about one escaping.  The net is only 34 feet long (the length of the house - I was able to order a custom size) and that is plenty to get good batting practice.

It has been really gratifying how much D has used the space, as well.  We want to thank our parents for indulging him with countless hours of "baseball" down there while they are taking care of him.  He is far more excited for T-ball to start up again next spring than he was when it ended in June.  

Eventually, I would like to be able to push the net together and roll it up somehow to clear the space below, but that is pretty far down the list.  At first I felt a bit embarrassed about having the net hanging down from below the house, but, like most things, I got used to it and it doesn't bother me anymore (can't speak for Cari on this one).  Someday, I am going to get the outlets working down there, maybe some lights on the underside of the house, a new (small foam ball) pitching machine, and practice lots. Maybe I will hit a baseball over the outfielders head next year!