Jeremy's First Blackhawks Game

As part of my birthday present, Phil surprised me with tickets to a Blackhawks game. And not just any game, but a game against the rival Detroit Red Wings on the last game of the season! Of course I was beyond excited, after I harassed him for spending so much money on me. But then he left me with a difficult decision: who should I take to the game? And as the title of the entry states, I took my favorite little hockey-obsessed boy. (Don't worry, even though Riley voiced her displeasure at not being able to go, Phil treated her to a day of Riley. Included were bowling, Dairy Queen, and playing with the neighborhood kids.)

In our hockey gear before the drive.

At first I was a little apprehensive driving into the city by myself. Yes, me, who lived in the suburbs for 20+ years of my life still gets a little anxious driving into the city. But after I got over my fear, I asked Jeremy if he wanted to go to the game with me. And I was met with a resounding YES!

The game was scheduled for 11:30 since NBC wanted the game for their Game of the Week. That meant we had to leave by 9:15 because Chicago was hosting its annual Shamrock Shuffle, which is an 8K race, and we didn't want to deal with traffic. We made pretty good time, and found a parking spot by 10:40. We walked around the parking lot, and there was a guy dressed up in goalie gear for Degree deodorant (I have no idea why), and they asked if they could take Jeremy's picture with the goalie. Why not?

We walked around the inside of the building and found where our seats were. And wouldn't you know, they were right near one of the bars? We found our seats, and Jeremy began to get scared. I think the height bothered him -- he wasn't used to being up that high. People began filtering in, and it was getting loud due to the speakers and the people. Jeremy got even more scared and actually told me he wanted to go home. They dimmed the lights and ran the pregame highlights, and Jeremy was scared. (Sensing a theme?) When it was time for the anthem, he knew that Jim Cornelison was doing the anthem, and it was LOUD! He buried his head in my shoulders.

Watching the Hawks before the game started.

But then the game started, and it got quieter. The Hawks scored first, and I lifted him up so we could dance to the song the Hawks play when they score. He loved it, and he told me he wants to do it again. Luckily we were able to do it 2 more times.

He did great during the game, although when there was 2 minutes before the first intermission was over, he declared he had to go potty. I was a little frustrated that he waited until the last minute, but we went and had to wait a bit to sit back down. So I reminded him before the game was over that we were going to use the potty again before we got in the car because it was a little while to get the Papa and Nana's. He said, "That's OK, Mom. I've had to go potty since the second period, but I didn't want to miss anything."

During the shoot the puck contest, Mr. T took a shot.

Unfortunately, on Jeremy's first Blackhawks game, they lost to the Red Wings 4-3. The players stayed on the ice afterward and gave their jerseys off their backs to "random" fans (which I'm sure were season-ticket holders). At the time, the Hawks needed the win to secure a spot in the playoffs. Luckily since the Wild lost that night, they did make it in with the eighth spot.

Me and my boy.

Focusing on the game.

Being sly.

Smiling for the camera.

The Hawks tried to make a rally.

The scoreboard shows the final score.

But for the hockey-obsessed boy and I, we made it out of the stadium, to which I found several text messages from Phil containing some vulgarities regarding the Hawks' performance. It was a balmy 86 when we got out of the arena, so I let Jeremy change into shorts and take off his shirt when we got to the car. Traffic was horrible, and he actually ended up falling asleep on the way to Papa and Nana's. But in the end, we both had a blast. I cannot wait to go to more games with him in the future.

All worn out.