Fathers Day/Opening Day 2009

How awesome is it that those two things coincide most years? I can't think of a better way to spend a Fathers Day weekend than by catching a ballgame.

We went to the Hawks season opener last night, with all the kids and stayed for the whole game for the first time. The Hawks lost (in typical A ball fashion), like 14 - 6 with 8 errors, but the deep-fried Twinkie kind of made up for the shoddy baseball. Some highlights aside from the actual baseball:

• Faith lost her mind somewhere in the middle of the 5th inning (waaaay after bedtime) and was singing something at the top of her lungs. After the 7th inning stretch she switched to singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at the top of her lungs. Thankfully everyone around us found it humorous instead of annoying.
• Tanner's typical mascot issues. He saw the Hawk ride in in the back of a pick-up truck and kept an eye on him the whole game. Even when we couldn't see him anymore, we would ask, "Tanner, where did the big birdie go?" and he would immediately know where he was and what he was doing, because he had been watching him the whole time as opposed to the game. When the Hawk finally got within two rows of us, Tanner lost his mind. He crawled over Marisa and both his brother and sister to get onto my lap, screaming, "Don't let him get me...." over and over. There was also a potato race during the 7th inning stretch (which is new this year, a French Fry, a Spud and a Tater Tot race around the bases....we are the Potato Capital of the world after all....). Tanner said, "Dad, there's a lot of mascots here tonight".
• After the game, they let the kids run the bases. Jake, Tanner and I had to run from our seats on the 3rd base line to the RF gate to get out on the field, and then in from RF to 1st base to start our way around. Jake ran on ahead, with Tanner and I about in dead last, holding hands, while he used the other hand to keep his pants from falling down, giggling maniacally the whole way.
• The opening night fireworks show after the game was really cool. We watched it from beneath the grandstands, only able to see the really high ones (of which there were plenty), while Tanner sat on my shoulders shouting, "BOOM" as each one exploaded over-head.

The kids made it through, even staying awake on the ride home. We got them into bed about midnight, sleep-over style, with Jake in with me and Tanner in with Marisa. They all slept until after 8:00 this morning, which was a first.

When we woke up this morning, Jake asked me what I wanted to do today for Fathers Day. I told him that I wanted to get some breakfast, work in the garden and make a good dinner. His response was, "That sounds like a short day.". I explained that, to me, how long you take to do each one of those things is what makes it a great Fathers Day.

We had Pancakes at the Merc, and as soon as I'm done typing I'm off to Home Depot for sprinkler parts.

Here's hoping your Fathers Day is shaping up as good as mine.