We didn't have any big plans for Labor Day weekend. We were going to just spend a nice and relaxing weekend at home sleeping late and going to our neighborhood pool. It was going to be great. On Friday evening, Eddie mentioned that he saw a post from his alma mater that they were selling discounted tickets to the Opening Day football game. I, being the supportive wife that I am, told my husband he should have bought the tickets because he and the boys would love going to a game. College football tickets are expensive unless you know somebody, and we have just never taken an opportunity to go to a game since having kids. We went to N.C. State's bowl game in 2006 here in Charlotte, but Eddie had not been to a game at home since he was in college. Although I am not a fan of watching football on TV, I actually don't mind going to games. Football on TV is boring, but there is always so much to see at the games. Anyway, Eddie thought about the opportunity more Friday night, and in the morning, he decided we needed to go. He got on the computer and ordered the tickets. The game started at 12:30 so we had to get the kids up, eat breakfast, and pack our overnight bags very quickly. We could have driven to Raleigh and back in one day, but we decided that it would be nice to make a weekend of it and had plans for other things we wanted to do. The drive to Raleigh from Charlotte is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours so we were pushing it to make it to the game by kickoff. We made good time, but unfortunately kickoff happened while we were still in the parking lot of the stadium. The game got off to a fast start and State scored two touchdowns before we even got to our seats. One touchdown occurred on the very first play when State's starting quarterback threw a 93 yard pass. It sounded like an amazing play, and I was sad to have missed it. The play actually resulted in the quarterback getting injured, and sadly, he will be out for the next few weeks. The rest of the game was still good although we didn't see any plays that topped that one. It was a hot day, but thankfully, we were sitting on the side with the box seats and building behind us so we were in the shade before the end of the first quarter. Unfortunately, I still got a little sunburned during that 1st quarter. Ha!
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| The score when we got to our seats after two touchdowns and a field goal. Carter-Finley Stadium got some major upgrades in the last few years, and everything was very nice. |
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| N.C. State has the ball. |
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| The flags flying after we scored! |
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| We had to eat after we got to our seats because we didn't want to take time to get something on the way. Evan enjoyed his pizza, Brody ate his whole hot dog (bun and all), and Daddy and Mommy had Chick-fil-a sandwiches. |
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| The biggest fan! |
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| He was so excited to be at his first real football game! |
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| During the halftime show, the band formed the shape of the state. |
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| This building was part of the new additions to the stadium. |
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| The team comes out of a wolves' den. |
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| Eddie and his boys enjoying the game together. Priceless! |
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| I have to say that N.C. State actually has some of the sweetest guys, and these are just some of them. That's why I enjoyed hanging out at State so much while I was in college! ;-) |
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| Go Wolfpack! |
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| Poor Louisiana Tech didn't stand a chance. |
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| One of the many wolf statues around the school. |
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| The flags were flying proudly on a beautiful day. |
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| A field goal was scored. |
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| Wolfie comes out to cheer on the team. |
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| Wolfie doing some push ups. How do mascots do push ups in those heavy and very hot costumes? |
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| Some of the students helped Wolfie climb the wall. |
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| Always have to have a few students paint their chests, right? |
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| Let's go, pack! |
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| About to score again! |
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| And another field goal! This is the final score. |
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| The team leaving the field. |
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| Daddy and his boys pose for a picture after the game. |
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| I love State boys! |
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| Posing in front of the cool fountain in front of the stadium. |
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| Someone took a family picture. |
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| Beautiful wolves. |
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| My sweet boys. |
We enjoyed lots more fun on our little mini vacation!
How much fun! I LOVE the picture of Evan that is labeled the biggest fan. What an amazing shot! Can't wait to hear about the rest of y'all's trip! How'd Brody do at the game? We're thinking about cheering on our high school team next week. I'm wondering how the little ladies of our family will do.
ReplyDeleteI was actually quite surprised with how well Brody did! He was so hungry when we got there that he ate his entire hot dog with no problem. He was two-fisting it with the bun in one hand and the hot dog in the other. Haha! I think there was just plenty for him to see to keep him occupied. We stayed the entire game and even stayed after the crowd left to take pictures. It was a fun day! I think ball games are great for kids. Of course, it might have been a different story if we had been on the side in the full sun because the heat would have been unbearable. :-)
DeleteThat looks like such a fun time! Way to be spontaneous. You made such great memories for your family. And I love watching sports so add an NC State football game to your list of activities we need to do together :)
ReplyDeleteOh we have lots of opportunities for sports watching around here so we can choose which suits us best...college football, college basketball, baseball, professional football and basketball, golf, even hockey (which I know you love) etc. This a great area for sports enthusiast! :-)
DeleteI'm with you. There are about 1.2 million things I would rather do than watch football on TV. But I can tolerate going to a live game, mostly because of the people watching and the snacks.
ReplyDeleteAll of your pictures are great. The red really gives a festive feeling. It almost makes me want to go to a game, which is really shocking. Spencer has been to a few baseball games, but never football. Maybe this year?
Yep, at least 1.2 million! Ha! I have felt kind of bad that Evan hasn't gone to a football game yet because it is obviously his and his daddy's favorite sport (I prefer basketball). I know we have a professional football team right here, but the tickets are so expensive, and we always seem to have something else to do. I do try to convince myself that he's had some pretty great experiences having his birthday party at the stadium and going to other kid friendly events there. I think he is getting old enough to really enjoy the games now though. :-)
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