Foul Ball + Bruised Mom = Happy Son

OK, this happened over a week ago but...

For my hubby's June 8 birthday, the kids and I worked our sources (thank u Key Bank) and got some sweet seats for the June 7 Mariners game.

We were about 20 rows up on the first base line. But before we even went, we had a plan. (Insert small world story here.) When we lived in Fort Lauderdale, we lived across the street from a gal named Tiffini W., whose brother Chad was a minor league ballplayer. He got injured and never made it to the Majors, but in the time he lived with his sis, he had plenty of up-and-coming ballplayers visit. One of them was Russell Branyan, who now plays for the Mariners and has hit 15 home runs this season.

Our son Jayan is pretty much obsessed with Branyan. He made a poster board sign that said "Hey Russell, Chad W. is my friend." We showed up at the game before batting practice, and sure enough, eventually Branyan came out to stretch. He saw Jayan's sign and came over. Ironically, he had talked to Chad W. that morning and seemed to know we existed. He was totally gracious, spoke with Jayan (and Priya) and even gave us his email address.

Needless to say, Jayan was over the moon. We went back to our seats to watch the game and for icing on the cake, Branyan got a home run in his first at bat.

And then... the ultimate. A foul ball (hit by the opposing team) was headed straight for us. The dude next to Jayan held his glove up, but deflected it. It hit off Jayan's ear and came straight at me and nailed me in the hip. Then it rolled into Jayan's seat, and he got the foul ball!!

It was a dream day for Jayan. For the record, I got a huge bruise. But it was worth it, especially if Branyan (who happens to be quite handsome) ever emails us back!