A Canadian Baptism

I was a little worried about this one, but we were going to be prepared.

Milo's first hockey game.

So many things to worry about. What if he had a runny explosive poo? Got a diaper bag packed with wipes, blankets, change of clothes, and half a dozen diapers. (For a three hour game? Talk about paranoid...) What if it was too loud? Got baby earplugs and a toque to keep out noise. Plus blankets. What if he got squirmy? Got the Baby Trekker carrier ("The Octopus" as we call it - great carrier) and the slings (easier to sleep in, plus they keep out light). What if the crowd was too much? We had contingency plans that involved wandering around the deserted concourse during play.

First of all, I forgot the diaper bag and only noticed after we had driven downtown and parked. Oops. So much for preparedness. Good omen, I thought.

As it turned out, Milo was a dream. He watched quietly as we walked around GM Place then sat down in our seats. The loudest part of the night was the pregame sound and video stuff - designed to rev the crowd up by playing U2 and some TV spots. Milo was fine through the whole game and listened as we sang the anthem. When the game was on, Milo stared at the bright white rink and, I'm sure, was figuring out how best to beat the Coyotes defense. Or possibly rehearsing his own defensive positioning in his mind. Either way, he was intense.

He had a nice nap in the sling for most of the second period, after a snack. Our seats were right in front of the pub, which had nice comfy chairs and except for the tables with a view of the rink, was mostly deserted while the game was on. Some breastfeeding and a few chats with friendly servers, and they were back for the game.

The hardest part was the two of us trying to keep him shielded from the noise without blurting out our own cheers first. Anyway, the Vancouver Canucks beat the Phoenix Coyotes 3-2 (could easily have been 6-2) and we all went home happy. After all that stimulation, he woke up once at about 1:30am and screamed at me for trying to help. Luckily Mom took care of him and he slept for the rest of the night. Today he's been happy and giggling up a storm. I suppose he always does that after a win. Man are we lucky.