Take Me Out To The Ballgame

Part two in the series "Music Mondays in May" from my

blog group Homesteaders & Homeschoolers.

I have been going to major league baseball games since I can remember.

My dad is a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan.

I don't know how that happened really since his mother (whose home I live in) was an even bigger Chicago Cubs fan.

I guess he wanted to root for a team that didn't have it's fans in tears at the end of September, every year.

So, because of my dad's unwavering love for the redbirds of Missouri, I spent many days and nights at Busch stadium.

Eating cotton candy from a bag and scouring the seats looking for Fredbird.

Doing the wave and then begging my dad to leave "because it's the 11th inning and this tie is never going to end!"

And always singing from the top of my lungs during the 7th inning stretch to Take Me Out To The Ballgame.

The quintessential "Baseball in America" song.

I moved to Chicago in 1994.

I started going to Cub games.

It's what everyone does.

Wrigley Field.

It's a passage of sorts.

To sit in the confines of the ivy covered walls.

To get a seat behind a pole so you can't see a thing.

To get a SRO ticket (Standing Room Only).

But it didn't matter when the 7th inning stretch came up.

After the visitor's at bat and before the home team had their turn to bat in the 7th inning, he appeared.

Harry Carey.

It was a momentous thing to sing along to Take Me Out To The Ballgame with this true American symbol of baseball.

I thought of my grandma every time.

He would hang out of the booth and was such a huge presence and it's a memory I won't forget.

But, we too got tired of losing.

Of hanging out with a group of people who didn't really seem to care too much about the game before them.

Who instead were more interested in taking pictures of themselves with their friends, talking on their phones, and of being obnoxious under the beer stupor they were in...mind you, this was not everyone at Wrigley field. But it seemed to be that way everytime we went.

We then moved our allegiance to the south side of Chicago.

To the White Sox.

I think it was in 2002.

Zoe was born in February of 2005 and her first baseball game was in May of 2005.

It was dog day at the park, so we took our two kids...Zoe and our dog Madison.

The Chicago White Sox won the World Series that year and we took in the ticker tape parade the city threw for them downtown.

We had made the right decision to move.

We also made sure that Zoe knew every word to Take Me Out To The Ballgame by the age of two.

Both girls have been to numerous major league baseball games.

Gigi went to her first game at the age of 6 1/2 months.

It was in Cardinal territory, though.

We do go with grandpa to St. Louis.

He's tried brainwashing them to become St. Louis fans, but it's not working.

They have both Chicago and St. Louis apparel and banners in their rooms.

Baseball is a big deal in our house.

And as long as they love the game and love singing at the top of their lungs during the middle of the 7th inning while their faces are covered in ice cream and cotton candy, I know we have done something right with these girls.

Lets Go White Sox!