Wednesday August 5 was going to be one of the better days. Bradley had told Mandi that going to the Jelly Belly factory actually sounded interesting and he wanted to be able to do that. So we planned to go there Wednesday morning.
It started out as any other morning. We got out later than we had hoped but got out nonetheless. We picked up Cindy and Joseph and got to the factory by 10. They had a lot of displays outside from different companies so we took some pictures, spun a wheel and then went inside.
While inside we got some coupons for Chic-fil-A. You could get a free menu item. They gave us 10 of those and then 3 buy one get something free. So we hung onto those and thought we’d go if we had time.
Again we had a GLORIOUS time at the factory. Almost better though because we knew what to expect and what to do. We only had to wait in line for about 30 minutes this time. The tour was super fun and I learned a few more things.
After we were done we had some lunch on the lawn but we had the coupons and some extra time so we went to Chic-fil-A. About this time Alix started complaining that she just didn’t feel quite right. I told her she didn’t have to eat her lunch but we’d have to forgo the milk shake at the restaurant. She didn’t seem too broken hearted about it. We got some shakes and some chicken nuggets and some chicken sandwhiches and bottled water and only paid $3. It was perfect!
After that we got back in the car. At this point Alix is crying in pain and says she thinks she’ll throw up. I gave her the garbage basket hoping that she wouldn’t really throw up. After getting everyone in the car and starting to pull out of the parking lot, she chucks. So I go to the back to help clean up the mess and take care of the unhappy children who had to witness it when I get a phone call. Scott was having a colonoscopy (more on that later) and I needed to pick him up. Well there was NO WAY I could get back to Fremont in 30 minutes. So I told the guy that my daughter had just thrown up and I needed to clean that up and then I’d have to drive and be stuck in traffic and it would be over an hour before I could get there. He just politely said ok and hung up. It took about 20 minutes to get everything cleaned up, everyone happy and back on the road. In the meantime Cindy had called her husband and Bryon said he could pick up Scott (yay, one less thing to worry about).
Thankfully we were all laughing and having fun and trying to not let the situation get in the way of our fun week. My biggest concern (aside from making sure Alix was ok) was that we were going to have 10 puking kids for the next 3 days. Not a fun thought. We got back to my house about the same time that Scott and Bryon did. Scott was not feeling too well and went and laid down. I got Alix cleaned up and showered and in bed next to Scott. We got the rest of the kids playing and then Mandi and I headed out to Wal Mart and to pick up Scott’s car from the doctor’s office (he had driven himself in that morning).
We were gone a bit too long and so when we got back we went into action. We had gotten tickets to an A’s game and needed to leave so we could get there in enough time for first pitch. Since Alix was not well (we had already arranged with Roberta to watch the little kids and so she kept an eye on Alix too), we called Joseph and asked him if he’d like to join us. So we got everyone packed up, picked up Joseph and were on the road. We got to the stadium and found our seats just as the National Anthem was being sung. Whew, made it!
Can I tell you how AWESOME our seats were. For cheap seats we scored. It was section 225 row 17. Normally they are $24 tickets but someone was trying to get rid of them and we only paid $8 a ticket. It was a sweet deal.
What was better?? As you enter the coliseum, you can go left or right or up some stairs. We went up stairs and there was our section. We went up to row 17 and right behind us was an exit. To the left were the $1 hot dogs and to the right were the bathrooms. It was seriously the BEST seats ever!!
The boys had a GREAT time. Mandi said her boys had never been to a pro game. Poor Jaime and Niah were seriously outnumbered, not a norm for them.
Jaime looked around at one point and said ‘it doesn’t matter where I look, to the right, to the left, there are BOYS!!’. We just laughed and told her that is what Milo must feel like with all his sisters.
Fun stuff at the game:
1) our section won free Round Table Pizza’s because of a home run. The guy came to my end of the row and, instead of trying to give a coupon to everyone, I just told him there were 11 in our group and he gave me all the coupons. Well, Mandi, thinking I had gotten the coupons for my family, got 5 more for her and her boys. We ended up with 16 free personal pan pizzas.
2) For the first time in our marriage someone made a pass at me at the ball game. I was out getting hot dogs and had stopped by the condiments table to put catchup on the dogs. There were two guys there and one said to the other ‘you had a good system going’. I looked up and said ‘sorry, did I cut in on your system?’ He said ‘There is always room for a good looking woman.’ I almost looked around and asked who he was talking to but I didn’t want to feed this drunk guys ego. Still it was pretty embarrassing. I’m glad that was the first time and hope it is the last. The only person I want looking at me is Scott!!
3) During the 8th inning a couple of guys decided it would be fun to run out on the field. As bad as it may sound, it was funny! We were all cheering them on and laughing and just seriously enjoying it. The game, food and company was fun, but watching those guys run around and all the security people trying to catch them was the highlight for me!!
4) While we were exiting the coliseum they were giving out coupons for free soda. Since we don’t drink Pepsi I didn’t grab the coupon. But Mandi and her boys did. Had I been thinking I would have grabbed them for all of us too and then given them to Mandi. O’well, you win some you loose some!!
We got home about 10:30pm. Very tired but so worth it. It was such a fun day. Alix had had a rough time of it, but by the time we got home she was sleeping soundly on my bed and seemed ok. Since I felt bad moving her, Scott slept upstairs with her and I slept on the couch. That was ok though because Mandi and I stayed up till 1 am just chatting and check’n out friends on facebook. Two days down and only two more to go. What fun there was still to come.
so whats up with scott. I saw him today so it cannot be to serious. right? And…why wasn’t I invited for any of this fun??? :0 Where are the $1 hot dogs at the A’s game. I’ve never seen them! Seriously, you are the queen of free/ cheap fun.