Enjoying baseball games with other people's children.

Gina and I went to a Dodgers game this weekend with two of Gina's friends. Gina and I loooove baseball games, and we're always looking for new traditions to start. We decided to go big this time and we got the $25 tickets instead of the cheapy seats. We had fantastic seats behind home plate - kind of up high, but they offered a great view:



We sat next to this 4 and a half year old little boy and his dad, and right around the fifth inning, this little boy decided that he really liked Gina. He had his eye on her ever since she bought a bag of peanuts in the 2nd inning. When he finally got the courage to ask for a peanut, the four of us had already finished the bag. Even though he was bummed out, he didn't hesitate to chat it up with us for the rest of the game. He even played along when we were giving bunny ears to the people in front of us as they tried to take pictures of themselves. He also helped Gina flag down the cotton candy guy, by standing on his seat and yelling, "Hey cotton candy guy!!"

A few minutes after we made our newest friend, another little boy came down to our seats with his mom and introduced himself to our little boy. The new little boy and our little boy were the same age, and they were talking about how they're going to kindergarten in the fall. As the conversation waned, the new little boy started saying, "I know lots of stuff. I know the baseball player's names, and I know all the signs and stuff..." The mom smiled and put her arm around him and said, "And the next thing we're going to teach you is humility. Enjoy the game! Nice to meet you all."

Because the Dodgers were losing so badly, Gina's friends asked if we would be willing to leave early. I said no way Jose, as I bought the tickets and growing up as a Cleveland Indians fan, I'm wired to think that the best baseball happens in the last inning. The little boy overheard our conversation and looked up at Gina: "Are you guys leaving?" We promised him we'd stay until the end and he informed us that he was staying until the end, too.

Well, the Dodgers failed to pull anything out, losing 7-2. We sat for a little while after the game, letting people file out before us. The little boy said his goodbyes to us, and his dad picked him up to carry him to the car. As they were walking away, the little boy grinned and waved and called out, "Let me know if you dream about baseball games!"