take her out to the ballgame

While standing behind the dugout at Mr. M’s softball games was definitely exciting, Miss L’s trip to her first real baseball game was even better. Mother & Father M had purchased special club level seats for all of us to visit our local Raley Field and cheer on our beloved River Cats triple-A team (direct feeder to the Oakland Athletics).

Pretty much everything about a baseball game fascinated Miss L. The giant kid’s playground, the sights and smells of all those delicious ballgame treats, the music and games played between innings, and especially the free baseball cap that came with our spiffy tickets. The actual baseball game? Well… it’s slow and not as active as a basketball or football game, but cheering along with the crowd and boo-ing the umpires when the coach gets thrown out of the game… so yeah, she liked all of that.

It was a typical hot July evening (the hottest park of our day hits between 4-5pm), so the urge to sit in our seats in the sun wasn’t too great. We were super lucky to be at the Solon club level though, so we had easy access to food and a full bar, and lots of confined space to walk around and not be “stuck” in a normal stadium seat. Miss L definitely ate herself silly with pulled pork and baby back ribs (she really likes pork? who knew?) and cold cold lemonade.

Once the sun set behind the 3rd base line, we were good for the rest of the night. In fact, we practically had to drag her out at 9pm because we had all lost track of the time by the arrival of the 7th inning stretch.

Considering our proximity to the ballpark, I’m really surprised that it took us almost 2 and a half years to get Miss L to her first baseball game. But, then again, considering the 7pm start time and the guaranteed 90+ degree temps at a 12pm weekend game, maybe I’m not?

I’m just loving that our little girl loves sporting events as much as we do… I can’t wait to blow her mind with the Olympics around the corner!