The Swayne Family: Thrill of a lifetime!

It's 8 days until Christmas, I know what you're all thinking about. Baseball! Ok, maybe not but I wanted to share this experience and I finally had a chance to put together this post. So here goes....

GAME 6 of the WORLD SERIES

Joe and I were invited to the Fabick box for Game 6 of the World Series. Mary, who was three weeks old, was also invited if we were comfortable with bringing her. For two lifelong, diehard Cardinals fans, it didn't take us long to decide. The answer was yes! We found a babysitter for the boys and rode in on the Fabick coach, a customized coach bus which carries Fabick employees and customers to every Cardinals home game. Who knew we were going to the most exciting baseball game in World Series history! Wow, what an amazing night.

The scoreboard before the game

The atmosphere at the stadium even before the game started was electric. When else are you with 47,325 people who are all excited and happy to be there? The game's attendance was actually 47,326. They didn't count Mary when we were going through the gates. I've never been to a World Series game so I tried to take it all in. We watched the games all season so I felt like I knew the players and enjoyed seeing them come up to bat. There are a few pictures below of various players. For you non-baseball fans, bear with me. I couldn't resist posting the pictures.

I will admit, when the Cards went down three runs in the 8th inning, I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that we weren't going to witness a Cardinals win. I didn't say it out loud but I was nervous. I mean, who really wants to watch the away team celebrate a World Series victory at your stadium? When I'm at home, I turn the TV off. I wouldn't be able to do that here. Ever the optimist, I kept cheering and hoping and twirling that rally towel. When Albert Pujols came up to bat in the 8th, the flash bulbs were popping all over the stadium because it could have been Albert's last at-bat as a Cardinals player. I told Joe, "I'm not taking a picture, he's going to bat again." Thank goodness I was right!

Mary slept through much of the game and woke up in time to cheer the Cardinals on in the 8th and 9th innings as they rallied back from a 7 - 4 deficit. The Cardinals were one strike away from losing the World Series until David Freese hit a triple in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game. The Rangers scored two more in the 10th inning. The Cardinals once again were one strike away from losing until Lance Berkman hit a blooper to score two runs to tie the game at 9 - 9. The rally towels were going crazy, they look even cooler in person than they do on TV.

The Rangers went scoreless in the 11th inning and hometown boy David Freese hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 11th to send the series to Game 7. It was the most exciting game I've ever seen and amazing to be there in person to witness it. No one left the stadium for at least 20 minutes after the game, you just didn't want to leave. Everyone was celebrating and soaking in the moment. The atmosphere outside the stadium was party central. People were hooting and hollering and having a blast, except for the handful of Rangers fans I saw. Exhausted and exhilarated at the same time, we boarded the coach. It took a few minutes to get going since the streets were filled with people but we were busy chatting with everyone onboard and watching the game highlights on the coach's TVs. Watching those highlights just never gets old. Then home to get some sleep before it was time to get the kids ready for school in the morning. It was truly a thrill, from beginning to end, to be there. Win or lose, I was in baseball heaven that night and the Cardinals win was the icing on the cake.

Mary and Mommy at the game

Mary getting ready to go with her "My heart belongs to baseball" onesie that Joe bought for her.

Mommy and Mary with our tickets getting ready to go.

Mary at the game with a bib loaned to her from Jill. Thanks Jill!

Pre-game

Hall of Famers before the game, Stan Musial on the cart next to the driver

David Eckstein throwing out the first pitch. He was the MVP from the Cardinals World Series championship in 2006.

The Fox broadcast booth before the game, Tim McCarver and Joe Buck preparing for the broadcast.

Yadier Molina (catcher), Jaime Garcia (pitcher), David Duncan (pitching coach) and, in the foreground, Lance Berkman (right field)

The field

The Cardinals take the field. I took this picture for my mom before all the players got their "outfits" dirty. She calls their uniforms outfits to drive my dad crazy.