The Last Inning: Seattle, WA - Safeco Field

On Saturday, September 10th, we made the drive from Boise, Idaho to Seattle, WA-our final destination on our journey of a lifetime.  We were greeted by our dear friends, Mike and Emily Kennedy, who were going to join us for our final baseball game.  They treated us to a wonderful dinner at Jimmy Mack's Roadhouse, where we all had a chance to catch up on each other's lives since the last time we saw each other in the middle of June.

On Sunday, we all enjoyed a wonderful breakfast at Roxie's Diner -a New York Deli-style establishment.  Mike and Kevin enjoyed a Bacon Bloody Mary as an eye-opener and Tina and Emily celebrated the day with a double Peach Bellini.  The food was awesome, but the company was even better.

After gorging ourselves, we made our way to Safeco Field to watch the Seattle Mariners take on the Kansas City Royals.  Unfortunately, the Mariners lost by one run, with the final score being 1 to 2.

It was a very special day for many reasons.  Prior to the start of the game, the entire stadium became silent to observe the victims of the September 11, 2001 tragedy. It was yet another reminder of how much we love our country.

After the game, the four of us walked around downtown Seattle to explore the wharf area.  We enjoyed shopping at the local tourist shops and socializing at Ivar's, where we enjoyed their famous Clam Chowder soup and a couple of cold adult beverages.



We then made our way back to our hotel for our final evening on the road.  It is so hard to comprehend the magnitude of our adventure this summer. We are both overwhelmed at our accomplishment and will forever be grateful for the opportunity that we were presented with.  To all of our family and friends with whom we met along the way: thank you for being a part of our adventure, thank you for your support and hospitality, and thank you for becoming a permanent part of our lifelong memories.  We love and appreciate you all.

Boise, Idaho: Homecoming

On Wednesday, September 8th, we made the drive from Salt Lake City, Utah to Boise, Idaho- Kevin's hometown.  We had a very enjoyable visit with Kevin's Uncle Dale and Aunt Mary Ownby.  They treated us to a wonderful Italian dinner at the Olive Garden restaurant.  We then went back to their home in Meridian and enjoyed dessert, good conversation and the Green Bay Packers season opener.  Uncle Dale was also nice enough to give us a comprehensive tour of his garden without leaving out ANY details!  He takes so much pride in his flowers and vegetable gardens and it shows.  Tina was so jealous because she can't even keep a silk plant alive in our home.

We thank you both for your generosity and are most appreciative to have you as family.

On Thursday, September 9th, we enjoyed a full day of family, friends and food.  We enjoyed lunch at Cobby's, a submarine sandwich shop that has been in Boise for years.  Our meals were delicious and brought back some fond memories from Kevin's youth.  We then made our way to the Boise State University, home of the Bronco's.  We enjoyed shopping at the SUB- Student Union Bookstore where Kevin purchased a BSU sweatshirt to show his support of the team.

Our next stop was Grandma Taylor's home in Eagle, Idaho.  She recently lost her husband, John, in July and this was the first chance we had to see her.  We had a nice visit and shared some of the highlights of our baseball adventure with her.  She was most appreciative of our visit.  We miss you Grandpa John.  Rest in Peace.

At 4:00 PM it was off to meet the "Boise Boys", Jason, Bob, and Todd for pizza at the Flying Pie Pizzeria.  Pizza from the Flying Pie is a must have anytime we're in Boise.  We all enjoyed catching up on each other's lives while pigging out.  We had lots of laughs and are both thankful for the opportunity to reunite with Kevin's lifelong friends.

Denver, Colorado- Coors Field

On Monday, September 5th, we made the ten hour drive from Kansas City, MO to Denver, Colorado.  We enjoyed a nice Mexican dinner at Garcia's and then turned in early.

On Tuesday, we decided to spend the afternoon exploring the downtown Denver area.  We found a trendy little area called the 16th Street Mall.  This was basically a one mile strip that consisted of restaurants, shops, theaters, and various local attractions.  Due to an afternoon rain shower, we decided to pursue an indoor activity.  We chose the Lucky Strike Lanes for our first stop.  We bowled  5 games each and now have the blisters to prove it.  At least we'll both be ready for our upcoming Fall bowling league which starts on September 20th.  (We took first place last year and are hoping for a repeat performance with our teammates Mike and Emily Kennedy).

We then walked around to look at some of the interesting shops.  Tina was happy to find another Hard Rock Cafe and added two more pins to her collection.  A portion of the proceeds from both pins went to charity (Breast Cancer and Autism) so it was very easy for her to justify her purchase.

At 5:00 PM we headed back to our car and made our way to Coors Field for the 6:40 PM Colorado Rockies game.  It started to rain again and we worried that we might have to deal with a rain delay or a game postponement.  Luckily, the game went on without delay.

We had great seats in the second row right near 1st base.  There was a pretty sparse crowd due to the weather and the fact that the Rockies are not doing too well this year.  The weather was a little spotty and it began to drizzle at about the third inning.  It was cold and wet for the rest of the game.  We braved the rain for a few innings, but then headed for some seats that were sheltered from the rain.  The Rockies scored 7 runs in the 8th inning to come back and beat Arizona 8-3.  Since the Rockies scored 6 or more runs Taco Bell gives away tacos the next day and the crowd seemed just as happy about the tacos as the Rockies victory.

Kansas City, MO - Kauffman Stadium

On Saturday we drove from St. Louis to Kansas City.  We had to leave early so we could get to our hotel for our Fantasy Football Draft.  We had an early dinner at Fiorella's Jack's Stack Barbecue in downtown Kansas City to celebrate Kevin's 41st birthday.  We had some KC Burnt Ends and some great steaks.  Definitely one of the better meals we have had on our journey.  After the dinner we went back to the hotel and watched the Boise State vs Georgia and the Oregon vs LSU football games and enjoyed the convincing Boise State victory.

We left for the Sunday afternoon KC Royal's game at about 11:00am.  There are massive amounts of parking available as the baseball and football stadiums share the same complex.  $10 to park and we parked pretty close to the stadium.  It was actually a little cool in the morning and by game time it was a very comfortable 75 degrees.  It was an absolutely picture perfect afternoon for baseball with plenty of sunshine, warm not hot, and a nice cool breeze.  There was a very nice crowd in Kansas City.  They have a bunch of family activities out past the center field area, including a nice looking baseball themed miniature golf course.  Kauffman Stadium is 40 years old now but still looks amazing.  The fountains in the outfield are a great touch.  From our front row seats near 3rd base we could hear the water in the fountains.  The KC fans are very supportive for having a team that has not been very good for such a long time.  The Royals lost to the Cleveland Indians 9-6.  The game got very exciting as the Royals had a chance to get close in the bottom of the ninth.

St. Louis, MO - Busch Stadium

On Thursday we drove from Greendale, WI to St. Louis.  We stopped at Crown's Candy Kitchen where Kevin attempted the Milkshake Challenge that he saw on the Travel Channel.  The goal of the challenge was to finish 5 24oz milkshakes in 30minutes.  Kevin gave up after 3 and a half shakes and was cold (even though the outside temperature was about 100 degrees) and miserable for a couple hours after the attempt.  We were told that only 30 people have successfully completed this challenge since this restaurant opened in 1913.

On Friday we had a nice lunch at a nearby Granite City Brewery and then Tina had a business call to make and Kevin went to get the car's oil changed.  We headed for the stadium at about 5:00pm.  We arrived downtown at about 5:30pm and there was very little traffic to deal with and we found a nice parking garage pretty close to the stadium for $10.

The exterior of the new Busch Stadium is all red bricks and is a nice looking building.  There are statues of all the Cardinal greats on the sidewalks outside the stadium.  Inside the stadium everything is red.  There is a very nice view of the downtown skyline, including nice views of the the St. Louis Arch.  The stadium is very new, but it still has a somewhat old feel.  The scoreboards are adequate, but nothing spectacular and they still play old time organ music.  It's a very nice game time experience.  It was 96 degrees at game time and it was slow to cool down.  The Reds beat the Cardinals 11-3.  After the game there was an excellent Friday Night Fireworks show that we stayed and enjoyed.  After the game we made the short walk back to our car and then headed back to our hotel.  It was very easy getting out of downtown and back on the freeway.