Posted by
Virginia Daddy on Friday, June 06, 2008 10:09:45 AM
Last night was a good night. We only stayed for part, and the wrong result came to pass. We were out way too late, and spent too much money. There were too many people around, and one of was intimidated at first. We had to walk way too far, and coordinating stuff was hard. But man, what a night!
See, last night I took my almost three year old to his first big-leage baseball game at Nationals Park in Washington, DC. We had a great time. He got to ride the Metro for the first time, too, and my boy loves trains. It was just he and I, mom and brother stayed home. I am not sure if a more perfect night exists between two men, well, a man and a very young man.
From the get go, he was excited. When I walked into the house after work, he wanted to leave. He got upset that I had to change and get ready, for he was all set in his Pujols jersey, pointing to the Red Birds on the front saying "Bird". Patience is not his strong point yet. But once we were off, he kept talking about trains and "base". He got a bit bored until we got on the train, which is about twenty minutes in traffic from home. But once on, he was all game. Excited by watching the cars, planes, bridges, everything-- especially other trains in the distance and at the stops-- we worked our way to the park, which he is excited and unsure about.
Nationals Park is a beautiful park, I must say. And as a fan of the opposing team, given the nature of the Cardinals, I think we outnumbered Nats fans. But all were very pleasant, and many noted my little Pujols as we worked our way all the way up to our high level seats. But we got good ones, especially for a three year old. Up no stairs in our small section, 317, and enclosed by a fence about four seats down. With only about three rows above us, I felt free to let him roam some. And roam he did, especially into the fence, as he stared in awe at the field and the players in the distance and held his newly purchased bat.
Once settled for a bit, and he grew a touch anxious, we went and got our hotdogs. What game is complete without a hotdog? He ate it well, and sat in the seat for a long while, enjoying the sun and the crowd. He made some friends nearby, and then sat in my lap for about a half inning. I tickled him, and many turned and laughed with him.
We went back for some dessert, which was a pretzel for me, and gummy bears for him. OK, so we are modern family, and not opposed to things outside traditional baseball fare. We sat back down, and enjoyed some more time together. By this point, I am not sure if he even paid attention to the game, but we enjoyed each other. He was able to grab the candy by himself, something he rarely gets to do, and he drank water dircely from a big boy bottle, also something rare.
He soon started to talk about the train again, so after a three innings, we get up to head out, toward the train. With most everyone at their seats, he was able to run about, and have fun. He stopped a few times at views of the field and watched with wonder, only to return to running seconds later. Two or three innings later, I am honestly not sure how long, we made it out of the stadium and walked towards the Metro. And he was now all about the train, and exhausted.
I thought for sure he'd fall asleep on the way home, but he didn't. He watched the people and the other trains and we played the entire way home. By the time we got to our final station, he wanted to stay and watch more trains, and unfortunately, they were slow in coming. We waited some, though, and by the time I said its time to go, he whimpered but willingly came to me to hold him back to the car.
When we arrived home, mom greeted us outside, and was anxious to hear about the trip. James, told all he is able to tell, and took the bat and the plush ball we got for his brother, and started to play baseball. He got it. He got the game, and he enjoyed the trip. I hope he got much more. I know I did.