Owen did super well at his first big football game. We were amazed that he stayed pretty happy during the game (some thanks to the binky...), but we were stunned that he never fell asleep! Not until the walk back to the car at 10:30. Crazy! He also started to get the clapping and cheering thing figured out. Of course, he mimicked the crowd in general, so was pretty consistently clapping for the Ducks. Oops!
I've always said I had no desire to go see a football game in Eugene because of the terrible reputation of UofO fans. But when you're offered free tickets... off we went! Unfortunately, the fans in Eugene did not disappoint. Lowlights included:- Dozens of fans screaming "GO DUCKS!" within inches of our face as we made our way around the stadium to find our tailgate. I think joking with us that we're "raising our kid wrong" because he's wearing purple is good natured fun, but the personal space invasions get old after the 10th, 11th, 12th, 39th time...
- The classy college student wearing a green/gold t-shirt that read "Ted Bundy was a Husky." Lovely. Same college student also offered us dog biscuits after Duck touchdowns.
Yes, the vast majority of the fans were plesant and friendly (including our friends, tailgate hosts, and tolerant people in the seats in front of us), but those few bad apples kind of ruin it for everyone.
Owen did fine at the hotel and we headed to Portland on Sunday morning. Our first stop was the Oregon Zoo. I think Woodland Park is better and San Diego is phenomenal, but the Oregon Zoo did not disappoint. Owen loved, loved, loved it! He would have spent 3 hours in the little petting barn, so to see the fish, otters, turtles apes, polor bears, birds, giraffes, zebras...wow! I don't think Owen even realized it was raining. (His parents who left their jackets in the car did!) We also kind of lucked out that it was the first day people could see the new baby elephant. We didn't wait in the line (I bet he looks like this), but it kept the rest of the zoo mellow.
Can you see the fish in this photo?
Mom, do you see? I'm touching it! 
The apes need more space to run around, but it looks like they're remodeling their area.Overall, it was a great weekend. One personal success was that Owen pretty much ate food that we found along the way. I had packed a bunch of toddler meals for "emergencies" if we couldn't find restaurant food for him, but didn't have to break them out AT ALL*. A little victory that gives me a boost of confidence for future outings.
*Okay, so we did have to be pretty selective: 45 minute wait for the brewery...no. Quiet noodle bar where we can have a section of the seating area to ourselves and let Owen run around the tables...yes.
5 comments:
So glad you guys had fun in Portland! And congrats to Owen for being such a wunder-baby at the game. Impressive kiddo you have there. :)
Awesome, awesome!
I am so glad it all went so well (minus obnoxious football fans, we are thinking of attending the Air Force/BYU game in Nov and will probably face the same issues), I think when we over-prepare things seem to go so smoothly...however when we underprepare, that is when the craziness begins! Sounds like a great weekend, and you can never go wrong with kids and the zoo!
Yes, he is amazing...but clearly you didn't have him cheering quite loud enough TODAY 9/6. So sad. But maybe by the time Owen is a Husky the football team will be on top again :)
Fun pix.
Peg
It sounds like a great weekend. Too bad you had to experience the annoying UofO fans. But, at least, it makes for a good story.
We've been wanting to take Elsie to the zoo, but we haven't been able to yet. I love to see little kids be so fascinated with the animals.
Owen is such a cutie. Glad he was so good for you guys. Oh yeah, bummer about the UW loss to BYU. Jared wore his yellow shirt to the game even though he was sitting with BYU fans. He was torn. We love the Huskies!
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