Another First for My Son

As every child grows, they will inevitably experience many firsts ranging from evolutionary firsts like a first tooth to character firsts like a first smile to calendar firsts like first Easter to first activities like the first trip to the zoo. Being a little better than nine months old, my son has already experienced many firsts. He has been smiling for several months, giggling almost as long; he has already been to his first MLB game, his first NLL game (albeit an exhibition game), his first OHL game and his first MSL (Major Series Lacrosse) game. My son has gone through his first Christmas and his first Easter (see picture) and many other first calendar events. He has even been to the Toronto Zoo once already. He has yet to join us to a Buffalo Bandits game though.

Through the majority of the National Lacrosse League season, we have been lucky enough to have a babysitter to look after my son while we made the long drive to Buffalo for Bandits games. Our luck has finally run out for this weekend though since we decided to stay in the US for an extra day and we will have to bring my son with us. This trip will be my son’s first trip south of the border and his first real road trip.

Warning: Sports Content
To end the season, the Bandits are playing a home and home series with the division leading Rochester Knighthawks. This weekend is set up to be a very exciting one too. If the Bandits are able to sweep the weekend series then they will tie Rochester for the division lead and due to the better head-to-head record, they will assume first place in the East division. To add to this excitement, the season points leader could be decided in these two games as John Tavares of Buffalo and John Grant Jr. of Rochester are tied for league lead with 97 points. (Dan Dawson of the Arizona Sting has 95 points and could surpass both Tavares and Grant for the lead). Perhaps the most exciting aspect of this weekend is John Tavares’ quest to be the NLL’s all-time goal leader. Tavares need six goals to tie the record and seven to surpass Gary Gait who currently has 596 career goals.

I am a little concerned at how my son will be at the lacrosse games though since he has not faired well at recent sporting events. In December, at the Toronto Rock exhibition game in Oshawa, my son cried from the second quarter on and more recently, in February at an OHL game again in Oshawa, my son cried throughout the first two periods causing me to leave prematurely. It is possible that he just didn’t like the new arena in Oshawa, the GM Centre (or should I say the mini ACC) but I am sure it was the loud noise that he did not like. This weekend we will be prepared though. We will have something to cover my son’s ears with, whether it is actual ear plugs, tufts of cotton, or just ear muffs, we will do what we can to minimize the noise for him.

I will be taking my son to the Toronto Blue Jays game tonight so hopefully he enjoys it and doesn’t cry through the entire game. Baseball, especially in Toronto, does not compare to the noise of lacrosse or even hockey so he should be okay with the noise level. There is a lot of room to walk around if things get out of control so hopefully I can enjoy the game too. It will be a long day for us; we will be heading downtown for lunch with the Canyon Creek Club (some people from work) and a visit with others. With luck, things go well this week and my next post (sometime next week) will tell of a great first road trip for my son.