New York, New York Part 2

The Yankees Game

The subway was a little difficult to figure out at first. We found ourselves wandering around trying to find either "uptown" or "downtown" and each train that we needed to find. We did quickly get the hang of it. It was nice that we had to pay $2 no matter how far we were traveling on the subway. At one point, the doors opened and in the "waiting area" we saw two rats just hanging out around a trashcan. You could also tell who the real New Yorkers were just by seeing what they were doing on the subway. The adults had books or crossword puzzles and the kids and teenagers had gameboys and ipods. It seemed oftentimes like we were the only people without an electronic gadget to "play" with on the subway.

When we were unsure of which subway train to get on to get to the Yankee game, we saw a group of men wearing uniform pinstripes, and we decided to follow them. They led us to the right train and to the stadium!

We got off the subway and the stadium was right there! We were a little confused once we got inside, because we were not exactly sure where to go to get to our seats. Finally, we figured out that we needed to go UP. So, up we went. There was the main area called "sections" that were closest to the field, and the top areas were "main", "lodge", and "tier." Our tickets were "Tier 34." So, we just kept climbing up. Finally, we got to our tier, and turned to go up some more. Going up the stairs to get to our seats was literally like climbing a ladder -- it was THAT steep! Jake says, "The tiers felt like they hung over the diamond because it was so steep!" We were almost at the top of the stadium, but we felt like we were close to the field. It was so steep that it didn't matter where you sat, you felt like you were close to the field.

It was amazing to be able to watch a team whose fans were so supportive of them. The fans had a cheer for each player. The bleacher fans (out in the outfield) had a tradition for every game; they would say "Hell-llo" and wave the first time each Yankee would be up to bat. It was cool to see that.

There was a big ceremony before the game of all the "greats" that had passed through that field and played there. It was such a legacy to be proud of, and the fans were all very proud of their players. It was overwhelming to be in the presence of that. There were 53,610 fans in the stadium that night; the game was sold out. The total number of fans that had ever been in the stadium throughout it's 85 year history was just under 152,000,000.

During the 7th inning stretch, they played YMCA. The cameras picked up several fans dancing and showed it on the jumbo-tron. The best part of that was the groundsmen who were grooming the field during that time. They all danced the YMCA as they were grooming the infield. They did turns together and everything. It was hilarious!

The moment the game was over, there were cops on the field, prepared to keep people from trying to take any part of the stadium. They had cops on horses in the outfield and lining the field were cops with long sticks (to keep people in line!). It was crazy after the game was over. These pictures kind of show the cops lining the field. The players are all on the infield grass. Despite the cops obviously waiting on the field, one idiot decided to run out onto the field. He was immediately tackled by several policemen and quickly escorted off the field.

Overall, it was a really good game to watch. There is so much talent there. Johnny Damon hit a 3-run-homerun and the place exploded. 53,000 people screaming and clapping is quite exhilerating!

We sat in a non-alcoholic section and sat next to a man who drank all night. He was very nice and friendly, but just got more and more drunk as the night wore on.

The Yankees did win their final game in their old stadium. It was a fun game to watch. The game didn't end until about midnight. Then, we had to get out of the stadium and on the subway and back to our hotel.

Once we got off the subway near our hotel, we saw a 24-hour convenience-type store, so we picked up some bottles of water and a few snacks. Then, we walked down Times Square just a little bit, since we had not had time to do that before the game. It was amazing that even that late at night, Times Square did not seem to slow down too much. We finally got back to the hotel around 1:00am. We were exhausted after a day of plane travel, figuring out the subway, and watching the game. We were finally in bed at 2:00am.

Still more to come...

New York, New York

Jake surprised me two months ago with tickets to the very last Yankees game in their old stadium in New York. I was more than thrilled to go, although sad to leave Judah behind. (He did GREAT while we were gone.)

So, we took the trip to New York for the final game of the season.

Our trip started out in a rush. We were trying to get out the door to drop of Judah with Grandma & Grandpa Monhollon and get off to the airport in plenty of time. On the drive to the airport, we hoped that the fog would lift before we had to take off for Chicago.

We got news that Chicago had delays due to fog, too, so we were hopeful that no matter what we would be able to make our connecting flight.

Our flight in Kansas City was delayed, but only about 30 minutes, so we waited in the airport to board the plane. Finally, we boarded and were on the runway, ready to go. Then the captain came on and said that we were not able to go due to fog. So, we sat in the plane on the runway for an hour waiting for the fog to lift so we could get going. Finally, the plane took off and we got to Chicago's O'Hare airport. Before we had time to go anywhere in the airport, Jake asked someone at a gate where our flight (that should have left 18 minutes before we arrived) even was. We didn't know where the gate was that it was leaving from. She said it was right down from where we were, but she also said, "You better run." So, we both took off running toward our gate. Strangers were calling, "Good luck!" and "Are you going to make it?" We called over our shoulder, "We hope so!" and "Thanks!" After dashing the 100 yards to our gate, we told the lady there that we needed to board the plane. She didn't even look at us once, but rudely said, "Boarding's done." We were shocked at her rude behavior. We told her we needed to get on the plane. We just held out our boarding passes, waiting. She never once looked at us as she continued to do whatever she was doing. Finally, she took Jake's boarding pass and scanned it, then she took mine. We got to the plane and there were still people waiting to get to their seats. Then, three more people came on behind us.

Once in New Jersey, we got on a shuttle to take us to New York. The driver was insane. Several times, we stopped breathing, just wondering if we were going to crash. We went through the Lincoln Tunnel, which felt so very long! Traffic was pretty crazy and backed up for several miles. We made it to our hotel and were very glad to get out of the shuttle. Our hotel was very nice. We got our room key and found our way to our room on the 44th floor. It was a beautiful view of the city. We were in the heart of Time's Square. Our hotel room: Small but nice.

The view away from Time's Square from our hotel room.

So, that is how we got to New York City. I will update more on the rest of our trip in another entry. Stay tuned...

Fall approaches

September already! I don't know about everyone else, but I am loving the cooler weather. It always makes me feel like I should be buying school supplies and new school clothes. Pretty soon, I will be doing that again!

Here is a recent video of Judah doing his newest thing: Kisses. He doesn't kiss on the face, but he just makes the noise instead. Also, it shows that he is standing on his own.

With these newest pictures of Jake and Judah "wrestling" on the floor, you can see Judah's new teeth. He has two on the bottom, one on top, and another new one coming in on top that you can't quite see yet. (But it is sharp and definitely there!)

This is those lovely bottom teeth that showed up a few months ago!















Judah loves being upside-down!

















Such a beautiful face!!!