My son Riley, now 7, is quite the little traveler. He’s been to Disney World numerous times and loves to fly, has been to Baltimore and enjoys the hotel stays, and is a frequent beach bum.
Being the big Yankees fan I am (no apologies here!), I’ve been almost literally counting down the days to the time I felt was right to take him to the big city for a game at Yankee Stadium. While he does well with traveling, up until recently, I didn’t know if he’d be able to sit through a game and remain entertained, let alone have fun in a way other than flagging down every concessions vendor he saw in the stands. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to negotiate the crowds with him and hop aboard the subway system.
I don't know how I knew, but I just felt the timing was right of late. So on June 20 (unfortunately one of the hottest days of the year) we hopped aboard the Bieber Bus and were on our way to NYC!
We headed out early, 7:30am, knowing full well it was going to be a scorcher (Neutrogena Sweat Proof sunscreen, I salute you….you did well by us!). After arriving at the Port Authority (which my son said sounded like Port-a-Potty – okay, he IS still a 7-year-old), we walked to the Toys ‘R Us in Times Square for a trip on the indoor Ferris Wheel. We got the Lego Taxi Cab car…how appropriate! The ride gives you a good look at what’s in the 4-floor kids paradise and Riley knew exactly where he wanted to go after we exited the ride – to the Jurassic Park life-size interactive T-Rex. He had a blast thinking he was teasing the big guy and getting him all riled up and roaring!
Next we took a look around the Disney Store and then headed over near Radio City Music Hall for a sweet treat at Magnolia Bakery – a brownie for him, a carrot cake cupcake for me – delicious!
Then it was time to hop aboard the D Train and head to Yankee Stadium. Riley was enamored with the Subway system, but even more than that, he was in awe walking up to Yankee Stadium. He particularly loved the banners displaying the most famous players in the current line up and I was especially proud we he could identify them correctly. Being the MAJOR A-Rod fan he is (I’m a Jeter fan, myself) he insisted I snap his photo by his banner.
Unfortunately, the Yankees didn’t get the win against the Atlanta Braves, but it was a fun game for my first-time visitor. He enjoyed seeing Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano – all favorites of his – hit homeruns right in our vicinity. He also enjoyed the $20 Yankees spray mist fan I bought him to cool off with, the $6.50 chocolate ice cream in a Yankee helmet, and the $7 popcorn. Yankee Stadium isn’t cheap, folks. Know that ahead of time if you visit.
After the game, we made our way back to the Times Square area and visited the M&Ms World (hooray for free M&Ms samples!) and the Hershey’s Store, a sentimental favorite of Riley’s as he’s a big fan of the Hershey’s chocolate bar. He even let me take a picture of him holding a 5-pound version of it.
For dinner, we sauntered over to 44th street and got a perfect pizza pie from John’s Pizza. It was a nice relief to enjoy the AC for more than a mere 10 short minutes.
Our day was marked by Riley’s frequent proclamations that he was “having so much fun.” And the question as to if we could come back, and if we could live there.
I may have created a monster.
