Take Me Out to the Ball Game...

A few weekends ago, we mustered up our courage and decided it was time to take little man to his first real baseball game.

Fortunately, we had reinforcements -- Nana and Grandpa. Which, for the record, is the only reason I agreed to such an adventure. I figured with four grown adults, we could surely wrangle a 2 1/2 year old.

Hopefully. Surely. Maybe.

I must admit, I did not have faith in little man's ability to sit through a baseball game. While I do like to think of him as my perfect little angel ... well, I guess I'll just refer you back to my previous blog about little man's spunk.

However, this was definitely one of the rare instances where mommy was wrong. (Yes, I said it.) It soon became apparent that little man is indeed a true-blue little boy. While the large crowd did leave him a little unsure, he put on a brave face and was soon wildly pointing around asking mommy "What's that?"

When we arrived at our seats, little man was even more enamored.

And when the boys took to the field and the first pitch was thrown, little man's eyes kept getting wider and wider.

Then ... my spunky little boy had an epiphany.

"Mommy, I go there."

"Where do you want to go little man?"

"Down there ... there mommy, down."

As I followed little man's gaze and saw where his little finger was pointing I realized where "down there" was ... little man wanted to go down to the field.

"I play baseball."

{mommy's heart melts}

"No, buddy, you can't play ball down there."

"Mommy, I go down therrrrrrrrre."

All I could do was give him a hug and reassure him.

"Maybe in a few years ... maybe when you grow up you can play down there."

And although it was a last-ditch effort to cheer him up after quashing his baseball dreams, I told him all about his Uncle "Lambo" and how he was once a great baseball player. He could teach little man all he needed to know about baseball.

But, instead little man just looked on with his big blue eyes, longing to go "play baseball down there."

After a few hot dogs, ice cream and all the other culinary delights the stadium had to offer, little man finally accepted that he could not go "down there."

And then, in typical Kansas summertime fashion, these rolled in:

And we moved up ... waaaayyy up as the rain came pouring down.

We attempted to wait it out, however the night hour was continuing to tick by and little man's big blue eyes slowly got heavier and heavier.

When we got home, little man was tuckered out from his big day and gladly went to bed. Later, when I went to check on him, I found little man snoring away with his baseball glove on, surely dreaming about the day when he can play "down there."

{baseball dreams}


{Getting a toddler to look at the camera and smile is often a difficult feat. But, you take what you can get}

{Did I mention getting a toddler to look at the camera and smile is a difficult feat? Hey, we tried.}

{little man and grandpa}

{down there}