Yankee Stadium - Day 2

Friday night was a blast at Yankee Stadium and we had a great time, but by the time we got back to the hotel we were wiped out - it had been a long day! We were able to get some rest and get ready early because we had to get going around 10:30 to be back at Yankee Stadium two hours before game time again.

This time there was a bit of a glitch in the subway travel. We got on the A train and they said it was an express making all the stops, so we stayed on instead of getting off to catch the D train. So, we got off at what we thought was the right stop...and ended up in Harlem! We walked a few blocks because we weren't sure exactly where we were, but then ended up hopping back on the A to catch the D and ended up back at Yankee Stadium. We did a little shopping outside of the stadium and got Wyatt a new, bigger sized Jeter shirt and the baby girl a pink "My First Yankee's T shirt." I got a "Joba Rules" T shirt that I wanted (although I did almost get a pink Jeter shirt - but I already have one). The lady kept trying to tell me that the shirts were kid sizes when I asked for a medium. So I finally had to say "Look, I'm usually not this big! The medium will fit me fine after I have her!" It was kind of like that Yoplait commercial where the lady wants her stuff taken in, but the tailor keeps thinking she wants it let out...but the opposite.

We made our way over to the stadium, a little later than we wanted to because of the shopping and the Harlem excursion. Our seats were farther down the first base line on Saturday, but they were still great. We were right in front of the players while they warmed up and stretched, and then Johnny Damon came and signed autographs in our section. Brian is an "autograph professional" thanks to his many trips to Spring Training, so he was able to get Damon's autograph, which was awesome! We were pleased to see that both and and Robinson Cano were in the line up for the game.

Mike Mussina was the starting pitcher on Saturday and he pitched a really good game. He's had a few ups and downs, but he was great on Saturday. The team also did well offensively, with a final score of 6-1. Jeter, Cabrera and Damon all hit doubles, with Damon hitting doubles twice. Damon hit a 2 run home run as well, which was the first (and last) home run that we saw at Yankee Stadium. It was a little sunny out, which was good. We got lucky because it was chilly both days, but the forecast called for rain as well, and we never got any.

I'm not going to lie to you, the three most annoying women on the planet were sitting behind us during the game. There were about a dozen times that I almost turned around to tell them to shut up. One lady in particular kept saying "Why are there 2 retired number 8's?" (Because they didn't retire it immediately after Bill Dickey wore it and then Yogi Berra wore it...it was retired twice in 1972), or "This guy's batting average is .153, I bet he's the pitcher" (No you dope, it's the American League, pitchers don't bat. They have a Designated Hitter). And then they kept talking about their personal lives...seriously, not the place. Go out to lunch, not the ballgame. And what irritated me the most was that one of those ladies knew the answers, but she just kept letting the other one talk and talk and talk and talk! I was jealous because Brian can block anything out, so they didn't bother him! They didn't ruin the game, I just wanted to punch them in the face.  (Sorry, crazy pregnancy hormones).

After the game we made our way back to hotel and got on the road and drove home. It was late when we got back, so Brian and I didn't get to pick Wyatt up until Sunday. My parents had gone to church and taken Wyatt with them, so we didn't get him until 1 and it felt like forever until we saw him! We took him to the zoo and out for ice cream, so look for those pictures soon!

Brian and I

The back of Brian's head and Johnny Damon...getting his autograph

Jeter, Damon and Giambi

Moooooooose!

The Stadium!

Damon rounding third after his home run!

Damon and Cabrera after Damon's home run

Jeter avoiding getting picked off. 

The team after the game

US!

Yankee Stadium - Day 1

This weekend Brian and I took a major step on the path of parenthood...and left our baby for two whole days. He was left in the completely capable hands of my parents for the weekend so we could get out of dodge, and he actually seemed to have a great time.

We have always wanted to go to a Yankees game at Yankee Stadium, but we've never been able to go. Not even Brian, who has gone to more Spring Training games than I can count, has ever been to a game at Yankee Stadium. He's seen them play at Legends Field in Tampa for Spring Training and he's seen them play the Orioles at Camden Yards, but not on their real home turf. Since it's their last season at the Stadium before the new one opens next year, we knew we had to go now.

On Friday morning I dropped my little fella off, and then we hit the road with Brian's parents to go the game. We got to New York around 3:30, but wanted to be at the stadium by 5 when they opened the gates for fans to come in. So we dropped of the bags and got subway directions to the game. So we took the A to the D to the B (I know, I'm so cool with my subway lingo) and ended up at 161st Street - the Yankee Stadium stop!

We went to the first gate we could find and went in the stadium, and immediately got ushered into Monument Park. It was actually a lucky break because we would have had to look for it, but we stumbled right on top of it. So we made our way through Monument Park and saw all the retired numbers and the monuments of the Yankee Greats. The part of Monument Park with the retired numbers is below the Visitors' bull pen and while we were down there Mel Stottlemyre, the former Yankees pitching coach walked in with his pitching staff for the Mariners, which was pretty neat.

Then we went to the gift shop and got Brian a sweatshirt (someone forgot to pack it for him), and went to our sits behind the Yankees dugout. Brian was able to get us GREAT seats for the game, it was a blast! We were a little concerned going in because A-Rod and Jorge Posada are both on the Disabled List, and then we saw that Robinson Cano and Johnny Damon were not in the line up once we got there. Nevertheless, it was an awesome game and the Yankees won! Chien Ming Wang pitched a great game, and after a shockingly good inning of pitching by Karl Farnsworth (let's just he's typically not...good), we got to see Joba Chamberlain and Mariano Rivera close the game.

The coolest part of Yankee Stadium is being in the stadium where Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe Dimaggio, Mickey Mantle, etc. all played. There's so much history there and it's a shame that they won't be playing there after this season. I've personally only been to Turner Field before, and while it's nice and relatively new and beautiful, it just doesn't even compare! Anyway, here's a few pictures from the game on Friday.

Monument Park

Me at Monument Park

Brian with Mickey Mantle:)

Brian and I at Yankee Stadium

The view from our seats!

Joba rules!

Derek!

Ichiro stealing a base (Boo!)

Rivera closing the game!

Brian and I at our seats!

Our Family

It all started with Brian and his black lab puppy Noelle. The two soulmates met in December of 1993 when Brian was given Noelle as a Christmas gift. You can learn more about them here. For many years, the two of them enjoyed driving around in the Jeep, weekend trips to the Outer Banks, long walks on the beach and sharing the occasional graham cracker.

Brian and I met in 1998 when I interviewed for a job and he was the boss! We didn't really talk or even become friends until 2000, but at that point we definitely made each other laugh. So we liked each other as friends and it really just kind of became more. One day when my foot was broken, and I didn't really get to eat during my break, Brian brought me my lunch at my spot and ate with me. From that point on I was in LOVE, it just took my buddy a little bit longer to come around to it.

Fast forward 5 years to Christmas Eve 2005. Brian really surprised me with a wonderful and thoughtful and romantic proposal and of course I said yes! So we set about planning our perfect wedding day, of course including our perfect puppy dog Noelle! From that point on, it's all kind of been a whirlwind! We got married, had our precious baby boy Wyatt and we have another on the way!

Our son has brought more joy to us in the last year than I think either of us could have imagined. He is all boy for sure, but I think he's nice and cuddly when he wants to be too. I always knew from the way Brian has taken care of our girl Noelle that he would be a GREAT father, but he is a Super Fantastic Wonderful father. Wyatt LOVES to play with his Daddy, and it's awesome to see how happy Wyatt makes Brian. So this blog will mainly give updates into the four (soon to be five!) of us!