Take Your Kid To The Ball Game Day

Lil 93 is 15/16 months and I really wish the R-Braves were still in town.

That said, when the build the new park (and they will build the new park), I hope they have a grassy hillside.

Oh, you are nuts trying to take Inkette to a ML game. We took Lil 93 to Paula Dean's for lunch a few weeks ago, and even that was not worth it. This is the age for parks and dogs.

 

Yeah, I remember taking the kids to games when they were that age. It wasn't fun. They run around a lot.

At one game, my daughter took a nacho and kind of flung it into the beautiful long red hair of the woman sitting in front of me. She didn't notice. I reached in very slowly and carefully to remove the evidence. I must've brushed the woman because she turned around just as I retrieved the nacho. I kind of shrugged my shoulders and said "sorry" and pointed to my daughter. The woman took it pretty well.

 

I took my son to his first game when he just turned 2. It was a minor league game, and he made through 4 innings by happily running around a grassy area, shouting at the guys in the bullpen and getting some ice cream.

Later this month, I'm taking him back for a 1:30 p.m. game on his 3rd birthday. Characters from The Wiggles will be putting in a special appearance and we have front-row seats behind first base. He's completely obsessed with baseball, so I hope to make it to 6 innings before we leave.

 

I took most of my immediate family (bro, sis and her hubby and their 4 (for the moment) kids -- 10, 8, and 3-year-old twins) to a minor-league game Sunday. Another sis (who had to work) hooked us up with free parking at her office building, 100 yards from the ballpark.

It was a lot of fun. The 10-year-old hasn't been much interested in sports, but all of a sudden he is starting to get into it, so I had to explain almost every play to him (why are they leading off base, why isn't that guy likely to steal, etc etc.) The 8-year-old, like her mom, is a good athlete, so she's picking up things pretty fast.

The 3-year-old twins mainly liked the free hot dogs and watching the guy in the foam dinosaur costume run around.

Total bill for the whole shebang, including a dog and a drink for all the grownups -- just under $100. We could have shelled out twice as much at a major-league game (more, when you add in parking and gas money), but I doubt the kids would have given much of a damn. Once the older kids start caring more about the actual outcome of the game, we'll take 'em downtown.

 

I have a 15-game pack and I picked this one game as the one to take my daughter to alone this year. It's afternoon against a so-so opponent so I don't expect many fans.

I also am not against moving to the far depths of the outfield seats to avoid being "that parent" who has "that kid" who annoys everyone.

 

Odds of a poopy diaper change before a pitching change: 1 - 9

 

She won't poop at the game. Hell, she doesn't poop at daycare!

She's a morning pooper. Right when she wakes up. Every day.

 

You're insane. Don't even attempt this.

 

I am pleased to report my daughter lasted all nine innings. She watched four contently on my lap and another on the lap of my good friend, whom she will eventually call uncle. And watched the first while seated in her own seat.

She never cried once. Not once.

There were about eight people total in our section; second deck, above third base dugout.

Sure, she climbed a few stairs, played with the fold-down, spring activated seats, ran up and down our aisle (we were the only people in it).

I credit spreading her entire lunch out as long as we could. And I also credit the 90-minute morning nap as helping.

Awesome day.

But, I would NEVER take her to a weekend or night game when the attendance is double what it was today.

 

Just stick a pad of paper and pen in her hand and she'll be ready to be a journalist in no time!

 

I'm glad you had a good time with her. I didn't think you'd make it past the fifth inning, much less the whole game.

 

Since we're on the subject, anybody got tips for Great American Ballpark? Thinking of taking the 6-year-old 'hack up to Cincy for Independence Day weekend, and my only Reds home game was 15 years ago.