My family and I live about 250 miles due south of Chicago so while it's an easy drive it does take a little effort to get to the Windy City. Fortunately, we've never shied away from a little adventure and on Friday afternoon decided that we would go to the National. My seven year old son Otis and I would hit the convention while my wife met her aunt and some relatives from Australia for a long lunch. Below is a photo essay of our trip.
Here is Otis in the backseat shortly after learning from his father the time honored art of making duck lips out of two Pringles. This amused us greatly...
"Hey, look! Kris Bryant. Take my picture." Gladly.
Babe Ruth's bat wielded by my favorite Bambino.
Otis ripping wax, the same way we all started as kids. He saw a box of 1986 Fleer Star Stickers for nine bucks and quickly parted with the cash. I had several of these left over from my youth and he spent last year decorating his bike with them. It was his big buy of the day and came in handy for rest breaks where we would open a pack or two while he caught his breath.
We had a contest to see who found the first Cub. Keith Moreland for Otis.
And Leon Durham for me!
"You're from Indiana, Otis. It's time you learned how to draw a charge."
The boy loves stickers, even the fifteen dollar kind. He saw this table twice and wanted a picture.
More card opening at the Topps booth. The sticker on his shirt is Lee Smith.
Otis' show moment. He lost his mind pulling this sticker. "Dad! This is the one I wanted! Look! Cubs!!!!"
Otis taking on the champ. He lasted longer than Bethe Correia did later that night.
Apart from stickers, Otis loves bats. Topps had a cornhole board set up with prizes for a bullseye. We would still be there had not your intrepid reporter making a perfect shot on his second attempt. The prize was a Topps mini bat.
He wanted me to open cards with him, right as we were passing the Baseball Card Exchange booth. The 1983 Donruss wax racks were ten bucks, so why not? The result? Tony Gwynn's rookie.
A ring from the 1976 NCAA champion Indiana Hoosiers!
