Bowen Baseball Roadtrip 2010, Day 2

Day 2: Washington Nationals


We got up and drove into DC this day with plans on doing some touring before the game. The drive into DC was only supposed to be about an hour long. We even timed it so that we would miss rush hour. However, the trip turned into about an hour and a half thanks to a car stopped on the SIDE of the road causing a severe case of rubbernecking. Luckily, we were all well rested and had full bellies, so this only caused a minimal amount of frustration. We finally got out of the traffic and made it to Union Station with no problems, shockingly! We had tickets for a hop on-hop off tour bus around DC. There was a bus waiting for us as soon as we got our tickets, so we hopped right on and commenced our touring.


We only had a few hours to cram as much as possible in. The boys didn't get to see everything, but we at least hit some of the bigger and more convenient things to get to.

Seth took this picture! I thought it turned out great! He may claim to be all jock, but he has an artistic streak in him!

This turned out to be one of my favorite pictures. Not because of the picture itself, but because of what is going on behind the scenes. I had three boys simultaneously telling me to move that hand up and this hand down...I was so confused and too busy laughing at them, that I of course didn't get it exactly right. Oh well, I guess it's close enough!

Once we got tired of walking around in the heat, we wondered into a couple of the Smithsonian museums. They had some pretty neat stuff on display. Definitely worth a walk through, especially if you go when there are fewer crowds.

Eventually, we made it to the Nationals game and lucked into getting some pictures with the former President himself!

The Nationals have a very nice and clean stadium. However, there is not really anything there to set it apart from other stadiums. We still very much enjoyed the game!

We got to see Starusburg throw 9 strikouts in his first loss. Yea! and Booo! at the same time.

We also got to see Josh Willingham play. Seth's claim to fame is that Josh hit a homerun off of him when they played in college. :) And of course, we enjoyed some more marvelous ice cream!! YUMM!!

Day 2 also turned out to be a success. We crammed in as much as we could and didn't get lost one single time! We made it back to the hotel in time to catch some of the College World Series and get a good night's rest.

Bowen Baseball Roadtrip 2010, Day 1

As you know, Seth and I are trying to see every MLB stadium...this is of course a long-term goal! :) Last year we went to NYC for our anniversary and caught a Mets and a Yankees game. This year Seth wanted to take his brothers with us for a graduation present. So after much searching for the best deals out there, we finally decided on our destination: Baltimore! And Philadelphia! And DC!! Yes, that's right...we decided on taking in three MLB games in three different cities. But that's not all...we were going to do this in THREE days!! "Insanity!" some might say! Naahh, would be our response! That just makes it more exciting! So, let me tell you about our whirlwind adventure...


Day 1: Baltimore Orioles



We lucked out and found the perfect flights between Huntsville and Baltimore for very reasonable prices. Our flight left EARLY on Day 1 and came back late on Day 3. This is what allowed us to do the trip sooo quickly. After checking in and getting to our gate, we didn't sit down for two seconds before they were boarding the plane....and off we went!



We arrived in Baltimore 20 minutes earlier than scheduled! That's unheard of! Way to go AirTran! We were able to check into our hotel early and rest for a few minutes (aka check ESPN for any major sports happenings...oh the joys of traveling with boys!) Once the boys got their SportsCenter fix, we headed into Baltimore. Our first stop was Camden Yards. It was way early for the game, so we figured it was the perfect time to take some pictures outside the stadium. When we walk up the first thing the boys notice is that the gates are open for some reason.

I wasn't turned around for two seconds....when I turned back they had decided we might as well go on in! We could apologize later if we weren't supposed to be in there. :)

After a delicious lunch at Hard Rock Cafe, we wondered around Inner Harbor for a while.


Once the boys got bored with that, they decided we could try out the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum. It was only 6 bucks a person...that's a steal of a deal, right? ....Wrong. If you are planning a trip to Baltimore, let me go ahead and warn you. Biggest.Waste.Of.Money. If this had been free, it might have been a pretty neat little stop. However, in our opinion (and keep in mind I have three baseball fanatics with me), it's not worth it. It was very small...just a little memorabilia and a few pictures to look at. And it wasn't even air-conditioned well! It might have been worth it if it had served as an escape from the blistering heat...but no. Oh well...at least we had a sense of humor about it! It served as a pretty good joke for the rest of the trip!




Finally, it was game time! The Orioles have a beautiful park! The boys enjoyed watching batting practice. Seth even caught a BP home run ball!

Once BP was over, the search for food was on! I turned around once to see if Seth was following me and he had stopped to ask for some advice. "So fellas, what's the best thing to eat in this place?" They unanimously decided: Boog's BBQ. So that's what we got and it was delicious!

We don't do a lot of souvenir buying on these baseball trips. Instead, we get ice cream in a hat and a souvenir drink. Food and a take home gift! What could be better?!

All in all, Day 1 went very well! We didn't get lost, had some good food, and enjoyed a perfect evening for a ballgame!

A Special Father's Day

I met Brittany when I transferred to Auburn. We both transferred in the same year, were the same age, and hit it off great. We became instant friends. I couldn't have asked for a better friend while I was at Auburn and in the few years since. She was a maid of honor in my wedding and has just been such a wonderful friend to me.

Brittany and her husband Ty recently moved to Huntsville, which was sooo exciting to me! B and I hadn't lived in the same town since I graduated. (Or since she got married, since coincidentally that was on the same day! Whew...that was a busy weekend!)

Well, yesterday, Father's Day 2010, Brittany and Ty welcomed their first baby into this world!! Meet Samuel Joseph!

Baby Sam weighed in at 8 lbs. 6 oz. and was 20" long. He is a beautiful baby!! And I am so happy for Brittany and Ty! They are going to be wonderful parents!

A Day at the Rodeo....

...but this isn't your typical rodeo!! I drove up to Murfreesboro Saturday to watch Adam compete in the Tennessee Valley Lineman Rodeo. This was his second year to compete. Last year he placed third overall, placing in a couple different individual events as well. This year, not only did he place first in one event, he won 2nd overall!! He did a great job! It is amazing what some of these guys can do and how FAST they can do it. We unfortunately did witness one guy fall off of a pole from almost the top. Amazizngly, he was able to walk away. However, it just goes to show you how dangerous this stuff is! Here are a few pictures from the day.

And here's a video of one of the events...hopefully it works!

Playing Catch-Up

Wow! I am so far behind on posts!! I guess we have been pretty busy the past couple of months, but it's all been good! I will try to give you a brief overview of our lives the past couple of months....

May 8th:

It's my 26th birthday! We went to Henderson for the weekend to celebrate with my side of the family. I was able to spend Saturday visiting my family while Seth went fishing with Adam. I know he just hated to have to do that! :)

We spent the evening being entertained by Luke, who is such as ham!! Funny boy! We had a wonderful weekend and look forward to visiting again sometime this summer!

May 24th:

Caleb graduated from high school! Even to me who has only been around the Bowen family for five or six years, this is crazy! Seth and I are very proud of him. He is a wonderful young man!

The ceremony went well...just your normal graduation. You can see that it was very emotional for Myles...or maybe that was his reaction to the very bad singing.

Can you tell they are brothers? Always looking very mischievous when they are together!

We enjoyed dinner together at Logan's after the graduation. Yum! I love Eli's face in this picture...I think there is a pretty good possibility he was up to something when Seth took this picture.

June 11th:

One night the week before, Seth was looking something up online and noticed that the Zac Brown Band was going to be in Birmingham. We didn't want to pay $50 a ticket, so where else did we go for tickets but eBay?! (We are some eBay lovin' folks!) I lucked out and won some pretty decent priced tickets, so off we went to B-ham! We ate at Jim n Nick's...Yum again! And even got some FREE lemon pie since it was Seth's birthday. We got to the amphitheater just in time to hear Joey and Rory start to sing. Aren't they cute? :)

The concert was wonderful...with the exception of the heat! It was soo stuffy and humid until about 9 oclock. At least it cooled down after that!

We had a great time and would definitely recommend this concert! They are a very talented and entertaining group of guys!

June 13th:

It's Seth's 30th birthday!! Woo-hoo!! I threw him a big family baseball-themed (what else?) birthday party at our house. Although he has his sister to thank for his sign in the front yard! :)

My parents and Brandi and Luke even came down for the shindig!!

Good times!!

June 18th:

Today I sit here in my cubicle at work, bored to tears...therefore, I am taking the opportunity to update this! So, I guess I'm being semi-productive...although it's not work related. Oh well...it's FRIDAY! And tonight we're going to see Toy Story 3!!! Woo-hoo!!!

Proud to be an American

“Since America felt it was important to build a memorial to the service and the ultimate sacrifice of her veterans, the Honor Flight Network believes it’s equally important that they actually get to visit and experience THEIR memorial.”

For those who haven’t heard about Honor Flight, it is a group that provides a free day-trip to DC for WWII veterans (along with some Korean and Vietnam vets) to tour the monuments that were built in their honor. I think this is such a wonderful service to provide for these heroic individuals! We have had multiple veterans travel on this flight from our area. However, most recently, one of my favorite older gentlemen here in Huntsville got to go…Mr. Newman.



Mr. Newman attends the same congregation as Seth and I. Seth grew up knowing the Newmans…I have only gotten to know Mr. Newman during the past couple years that Seth and I have been married. But he has found a special place in my heart...he reminds me so much of my granddad who passed away a few years ago.

I was so excited for Mr. Newman when he told me and Seth that he was going to get to attend the next Honor Flight trip out of Huntsville! I cannot wait to visit with him and hear his stories from the trip! The folks who fund and support Honor Flight deserve a huge round of applause in my opinion. They recognize that our WWII veterans are a dying generation and deserve all the respect we can give them while they are still here to share their experiences.

My granddad was so proud of his service for the US Navy. He and my grandmother attended his battleship reunions EVERY year up until he passed away…my grandmother still goes when she can. I can remember Adam dressing up in my granddad's Navy uniform when he was little...I even played "Anchors Aweigh," the US Navy's anthem, at my one (and only) piano recital. I think being around him made me appreciate so much more the service that those in the military provide to our country. It is a service that I don’t think I would be brave enough to do…but I am SOOO thankful for all those who have served in the past and continue to serve today!!

(My granddad...Daddy Phillips :) ...is the second from the left. He was pictured here in 2004 with the only few remaining original crewmen of the USS Iowa.)


“We can’t all be heroes. Some of us have to stand on the curb and clap as they go by.”

The End of an Era

Last week, Caleb played his last home game as a Madison County High School baseball player. Senior Night came way too quickly this year. It seems like the season just started. Yet Senior Night has come and gone, and today is their last game. Seth and Caleb have both worked very hard this year, and I am proud of both of them!

We had quite a few seniors this year! I'm sure the team will miss them greatly! They are some talented young men!