New York, New York!!! (The Countdown)

As many of you may have guessed right now, I'm catching up on some unfinished business. I haven't even talked of the ballparks we visited earlier this 2008 baseball season. However, the excitement is just getting too great...

The plane tickets are purchased, the game tickets arrived by FedEx the other day and I finally found a decent deal in midtown Manhatten in a hotel that is safe and sound enough for me and my five-year old boy (while I'm trying to do this on minimal budget, the YMCA was sold out all over NYC and so only if I was willing to swing down to New Jersey could I find anything for less than $250/night).

Yes, it's a double-header in New York City. Friday night at Shea Stadium and Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. The fact that this is the last year for both stadiums pushed a wish into a reality (thanks to a loving wife) and I am already grateful. I think Diana and I both felt a little guilty for leaving Oweghn home when we went to NYC last fall, so this will more than make up for it (and Diana gets a small taste of what it will be like for Daddy to take the boys away on weekends while she relaxes with good books and relaxation, although Kelan is staying with Diana...). This will be a whirlwind trip, flying in Friday morning and flying out Sunday evening, but Oweghn and I have plenty to do. A friend will take us to the top of the Empire State Building, a ferry will take us to see the Statue of Liberty and a diet of hot dogs and cotton candy awaits 3000 miles away.

The big concern is that Oweghn just started kindergarten this week and he will not only be missing a full day (I know, kindergarten, big deal), but will also be getting back late on a school night and will probably implode sometime Monday (I'm guessing during soccer practice which should make it pretty interesting for me as a coach). Nonetheless, it will be worth it, and this will be the first trip like this for me and Oweghn alone. So, armed with iPod and iPhone and the video camera, we are counting down the days to departure (9/11 :-I).

This is better than Christmas...

Arizona Diamondbacks

"Oweghn, welcome to the world. Welcome to the world of baseball. I'm excited to start this journey with you and I hope it keeps us close, through good times and bad, that it always gives us something in common, something to share, as we grow older and as we grow apart. These memories I will cherish always."

I wipe a tear from my eye and think back to how it all began...

It didn't take long for us to start the journey. Little did I know but within a couple of months we would start notching the bedpost with not just one, but three ballparks... before Oweghn reached 6 months!

Parking and walking into the BOB (Bank One Ballpark) with Mommy. You strapped into the Baby Bjorn, completely unaware of where you were, only that you were cozy and warm and that you were on a rather bouncy ride (referring to Dad's level of activity, I still don't have a gut... yet).

Of course, it's not the BOB anymore, but it was a nice stadium. Home to the Arizona Diamonbacks as they welcomed the Cincinatti Reds. So there we were, with only photos and a ticket stub to remember the first game that started it all. Visiting Aunt Shelly and her family and allowing them to spend some time getting to know you, our first bundle of joy! I think I'm going to like this thing called "Daddy-hood." If I ever had to close my eyes and think of a happy place, I now have it.

Fast forward 5 years and I'm listening to Dan Patrick interview Tiger Woods and on asking Tiger what no one can understand until they become a parent, Tiger's response is "Pure Love."

So the first pitch has been thrown. But it was no ceremonial pitch, the game is underway. The first ballpark has felt our feet tread its halls. And I am happy.