Day 1,482 - Sluggerrr Meets Ethan

If there's anything kids love more than a costumed character, than I'm not sure what it would be. When I was four years old, I know that I was absolutely enamored with the life-size costumed replicas of my favorite Disney characters at Disney World. I also know that I apparently harbor a grudge against "Dopey" to this day for not taking the time to take a picture with me. It's ok though because everyone knows that "Doc" and "Grumpy" were the superior members of the Seven Dwarfs.

Those are the eyes of pure evil...

For my kids, they don't necessarily get excited about the idea of meeting Disney characters. However, what they do get excited about is meeting their favorite Kansas City-based costume characters. For reference, I'm talking about icons like KC Wolf and Sluggerrr. It's that second one in particular that is the focus of this blog post.

Yesterday, as a precursor to today's Opening Day, the Royals held a free Workout Day at the K where fans could come and watch the Royals take batting practice and do some fielding drills. While I didn't totally know if Ethan would enjoy it or not, I went ahead and got tickets for Ethan, my dad, and me to go. Worst case scenario, I figured that we could just leave early if Ethan got bored and antsy.

Practice started promptly at 11 so we obviously made sure that we arrived early enough to get inside the stadium and find our seats. It didn't take long for things to get going after we arrived and it was really fun to watch my dad point out guys like Salvador Perez and Bobby Witt, Jr. to Ethan as things went along. However, it didn't take long for Ethan to see someone in a Royals jersey that excited him more than the aforementioned Salvy or Witt. Who was that someone you might ask? Sluggerrr.

Ethan first saw the costumed lion a couple of sections over from where we were sitting and kept pointing at him excitedly. Finally, as our area was largely open, I told him that he could run over and wave to Sluggerrr. Ethan did exactly that but was largely dismayed that Sluggerrr didn't wave back. Much like myself and "Dopey", there was a chance that we were seeing the beginning of a lifelong blood feud. Luckily for Ethan, that would not be the case.

As Sluggerr continued to weave his way through the seating area, it didn't take long until he spotted Ethan sitting between my dad and me. Once that happened, he weaved his way up to our seats where Ethan excitedly shook the lion's hand. Then, with Sluggerrr deftly tilting Ethan's head in my direction, I snapped a series of pictures of the two before Ethan's new friend wandered away to meet new friends of his own. With that, Ethan sat back down in his seat and proceeded to excitedly retell the entire event to my dad and me.

While Ethan's brief moment of meeting Sluggerrr was undoubtedly the highlight of the day for the little man, I would be hard-pressed to choose between that moment and the ones that involved my dad sharing his passion for the KC Royals with his grandson. You know what, both are good. Both are good.

On a different topic, you know what's not good? "Dopey." "Dopey" is definitely not good.

#DaddyWrite

Day 1,471 - The One Where I Go to First Grade

This may come a slight shock to some, but I don't necessarily enjoy being the center of attention. In fact, while I very much enjoy being around people, I'd rather be part of a group rather than have everyone looking at me. I enjoy the idea of knowing that everyone is on the same playing field rather than it being a situation where there's utter silence outside of the sound of my voice. That being said, there are certain times where, despite my trepidation, me being the only one talking can be both a fun and rewarding experience.

One of these experiences happened on Friday as I wandered into Ellie's classroom to serve as the guest reader of the week. While one wouldn't think that would be an intimidating scenario, for some reason I was slightly nervous. For one thing, I knew there would be twenty pairs of little eyes and ears hanging on my every word. Therefore, I didn't want to mess up or get tongue-tied for fear of it being awkward. I also wasn't sure how I should go about reading a book to kids. Should I read it strait-laced, or should I do voices? Honestly, I probably put WAY too much thought into a relatively simple exercise which isn't necessarily a good thing.

As for the book I would be reading, I let Ellie help me decide what it would be. Her book of choice? Enzo Races in the Rain! It's actually a really fun kids' version of an adult book named The Art of Racing in the Rain although the kids' version is much less sad.

Upon arriving at the school, I was directed to head to Mrs. Hendern's room where I would wait for the class to return from the library. This was a good thing for me as it gave me a chance to get acquainted with my surroundings and try to diminish my nerves before the kids came in. Before I knew it, the kids started wandering into the classroom. It was funny because one of Ellie's friends that lives in our neighborhood, Nathaly, came into the classroom first and immediately ran up to me and started excitedly chattering before running back to the classroom door and yelling out into the hall to Ellie that her dad was here.

Once the kids came in and got settled, it was time for me to start reading. Sitting in a big chair at the front of the classroom, I took a deep breath and dove right in. For the record, I had decided to do voices which was well-received by the class, as well as Mrs. Hendren. The class was engrossed in the saga of Enzo and when it finally ended, one kid actually expressed sadness that it was over. After I finished reading, the kids got the opportunity to ask me questions about myself although if I'm being honest, they mostly just wanted to ask about Ellie. That's ok though.

Don't ask me why Ellie was sitting about as far away from me as she could get

When the time came for me to leave, Mrs. Hendren thanked me very nicely for coming to read to the class and told me how much she enjoys it when parents do voices for the different characters. She also excitedly shared with me how she wanted to get Enzo for her classroom. She was also extremely happy to learn that there was actually a series of four books about Enzo.

Not too bad of an experience if I do say so considering how nervous I was heading into it.

#DaddyWrite

Day 1,468 - Back to the Stacks (and Enjoying Panda)

Ethan and I have been a little busy lately. Actually, that's probably putting it mildly. Ethan and I have been quite busy lately. Last week alone, we probably made at least four or five trips to the hardware store for various things we needed to complete our great bathroom redesign. It's ok though because our guest bathroom now has blue walls and reminds us of the beach. Case in point...

After the great bathroom remodel was finished, we wandered to Nebraska to spend a weekend on the farm with the in-laws before making our way back to KC. On Monday, Ethan and I had quite the little adventure as we went shopping for cheap pants at a children's consignment sale held in an abandoned casino. Yes, you read that right. It was definitely the most unique atmosphere for shopping for children's clothes that I've ever encountered. For the record, decorative stonework instead of tile is not a pleasant surface to drive a shopping cart over. If I never have to experience that sound sensation again, I'll be just fine. Add in a grocery shopping trip on Tuesday and you pretty much have the whole story of why life's been a little crazy lately. Luckily for Ethan and me, today marked one of those opportunities to embrace normalcy again.

You may be asking just what exactly does normalcy look like for Ethan and me on a Thursday. Easy, it's storytime at the library. Honestly, it was really nice to get back in our normal routine today. It had actually been a couple of weeks since we made it to storytime and Ethan definitely misses the routine when it doesn't happen.

After dropping Ellie off at school, Ethan and I headed towards the library. Upon our arrival, we parked and headed inside where we immediately began exploring the building, making sure to check for any holds that might have come in under our name. Once we realized there were no holds, we started browsing the stacks to see if there was anything that peaked our interest today. Ultimately we didn't bite at anything since we have plenty of books at home right now. Finally, it was time for storytime to begin.

Ethan and I wandered in and took our seat on the floor where we read a few books before waiting. Soon enough, the festivities began with bubbles aplenty. Ethan, for his part, absolutely loves popping bubbles and was arguably the most excited kid in the entire room. Once the bubbles were done, it was time to read a couple of stories and do a quick music activity involving rhythm sticks. After that, it was parachute time and then free play to wrap up our time at storytime.

I assumed Ethan would be ready to leave the library after this but that wasn't the case. Instead, he wanted to head to the coloring tables to color a picture. Once there, he carefully selected a picture of a jet airplane and began to carefully color it. He's always struggled a little bit with being careful about coloring in the lines. However, on this occasion, he would not be denied. He was bound and determined to do a perfect job and that's exactly what he did. He's even starting to hold his crayon in the appropriate manner, too!

After he completed his drawing, it was time for us to head home. At least, that was my original plan. Instead, once I noticed it was already noon, I asked Ethan if he was interested in getting lunch. He enthusiastically affirmed that he would love that and even went as far to suggest Panda Express. Therefore, the little man and I headed down the road to Panda where we split a plate of fried rice, Orange Chicken, and Mushroom Chicken. While it's true that we didn't really need to eat out on this occasion, I always enjoy how excited both Ethan and Ellie get for something special and out of the ordinary. It really just puts a smile on my face. How could it not?

#DaddyWrite