St. Louis Day 1

We are currently enjoying our annual St. Louis vacay with my parents. This year we have a laptop to bring with us! Yeah for blogging from the hotel room while Hunter sleeps and Jay and Holden enjoy the pool. :)

Day 1: Sunday we crammed the van to capacity with my parents and all of our stuff. It is amazing how much is necessary for the tiniest person of all of us! I had forgotten! Holden is at such an easy stage packing wise. The diapers, wipes, formula, nursery water, cereal, baby bathtub, bouncy seat, pack n' play, etc....the van looks like we embarked for at least a month long trip! Mom and I were jammed in the very back and they could have made an America's Funniest Home Video when we needed to climb in and out over the boys and all of the stuff. It was fun to have a good view of Hunter since he faces the rear. Dad and Jay navigated, and Holden occupied himself with books, coloring, and a "telescope" Grammy gave him. :) We had a minor catastrophe when we realized that Jay forgot the portable DVD player, but fortunately besides the afore mentioned activities, we also had Papa for live entertainment.

Jay, Holden, and I had tickets to a 1:00 Cardinals game. It was Build-A-Bear night, so the first 1,000 kids in recieved a free bear. Jay dropped Holden and me off while he took Grammy and Papa to check into the hotel with Hunter. Here is my big boy outside the stadium. He looks so much older than last year! This was the first year he truly understood where we were going and was excited about it.

Jay encountered a slight glitch: they wouldn't let him check in until 3:00. So Grammy and Papa took Hunter in the stroller and were basically homeless with a baby for 2 hours! We owe them! They found a nice, shady spot near the arch and Holden napped there in the stroller. Meanwhile, I took Holden to the kids' playground at Busch Stadium while we waited for Daddy. It is such a fun little playground, and he was very into climbing and jumping this year at age 3. Then he decided he wanted to find our seats so we "didn't miss the players." I thought he was so cute sitting there with his bear. We were able to get a bear for Hunter, too, after a little coaxing and pleading on my part to the Build A Bear people. :)

FREDBIRD! Holden was SO jealous of this little girl that got to ride with him.

Our seats were in complete sunshine, and let's just say Holden literally did not pee once while we were there because he sweat so much out! (Sorry if that's TMI!) :) I tried to break up the heat a little by taking him to some of the venue areas. Daddy was nice and said Holden could make a new animal at Build A Bear. The point was that if you spent 25 dollars, we had a coupon for a free backpack. Of course AFTER I spent the money, they informed us that they were out of backpacks!! Holden chose a doggy with a baseball bandanna, and named her "Muffy Lou," after our friend, Cyndee's little dog. He loved helping to create her this year. She even has a little button you press on her foot and she barks.

On Sundays, they let kids run the bases after the game. We practiced in this little area by the food venues.

Back to the game: singing, "Take me Out to the Ballgame" at the 7th inning stretch, eating a giant snowcone (Best 5.50 EVER spent! It lasted us 3 innings and that was with all three of us eating it!), and him sleeping on my shoulder after the game as we waited in line to run the bases. His attention span still isn't super long, and we definately had to break it up between sitting and doing things, but he did enjoy himself, and sat a lot more than at ages 1 and 2. He especially loved seeing 2 home runs and dancing to the music/fireworks that followed. The Cardinals beat the Pirates 9-1. Go, Cards!

Running the bases was such a cool event! I will say we chose the WRONG line to wait in; we went to gate 1 and waited an hour and 15 minutes because they let the upper deck go first! Holden got a nap in on my shoulder, and was refreshed and ready to go again so it all worked out. I think Daddy was every bit as excited as Holden to get to go down on the field! Holden ran all by himself and was very proud. I loved watching him pump his tiny little legs as fast as they could go.

Daddy wanted a picture by the Stan Musial statue. The lighting didn't turn out too great but I am posting it for him. :)

When we got to the hotel, Hunter was waiting for us with Grammy and Papa. Love his big, expressive eyes, long lashes, and sweet little mouth. He loves the big hotel beds!

Daddy and Holden enjoyed an evening swim on the rooftop pool. We stayed here last year, (Crowne Plaza) and I just love the views.

It was a breezy night and they were out of towels; when Holden got out he was practically convulsing because he was so cold. But he had fun while swimming. Dunking Daddy was the highlight.

A few rooftop pics.

Ready for bed with Muffy Lou. They watched a DVD together and Holden informed me that Muffy Lou was "staying up all night." I'm glad she did this and not Holden! Or Hunter, for that matter. He sleeps sooo well in his crib at home. This was a new environment, and he fought the pack n' play for 45 minutes. I was waiting for someone to knock on our door for disturbance of the peace!!!