RANGERS

This pic taken at Game 3 against Tampa, Saturday October 9th.

Our little Rangers are going to the World Series!!!!! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.

The bottom three pictures are from the last regular season game we went to in September, and brought my Mom along. She LOVES going to Ranger games and I wish we could take her more often.

Jav and I went to the third game of the 1st playoff series between Tampa Bay and Texas (which happened to coincide with Jav's birthday). Texas had already won both games in Tampa Bay, then was coming home and everyone assumed they would finish Tampa off. We had traffic and parking hell before the game because we didn't leave early enough. But once we made it in (we missed the 1st inning), the atmosphere at the ballpark was so cool. There were no cell phone conversations going on about trivial matters, no one chatting about what they did that weekend. Everyone was into the game, and standing when our pitcher was up two strikes, or if a hitting rally got started. It was great when Darren O'Day got called into to relief pitch, because the whole entire stadium did the chant: "O'Day, Oday Oday Oday, Oday, Oday" which is what alot of fans chant at soccer games except it's "ole".

Sadly, we ended up losing the game because of our relief pitching. It was a long, long walk back to our $30 (OUCH) parking place, and then took another hour and a half to get home. But I'm glad I got to experience some post-season baseball. The Rangers lost the next game at home, too, which Jav got to go to also with his dad and sister because someone at work handed him the tickets thinking we wouldn't need that fourth game. Things were looking sort of bleak. But they went back to Tampa and our new star pitcher, Cliff Lee, got the job done and we moved onto the ALCS - against the hated and dreaded Yankees!

Watching these games, I don't think I've been as nervous since I was in the hospital to have Joel. I couldn't watch on TV if they started to fall behind (which they rarely did), but would switch over to radio and keep doing chores while listening. We lost the first game at home, then won the second one. Then we did the unthinkable in NY - won two out of three. And didn't just win games, we slapped them silly in their own house. The team traveled back home and had a game Friday night, which my husband was lucky enough to get lottery tickets for. I decided that it was too much to ask someone to keep the kids for that long around bedtime, so Jav's dad went with him.

THEY WON!!!!!! And so goes history. I was listening to the best baseball broadcaster EVER in the history of radio, Eric Nadel, so I could hear him say, "The Rangers have won the pennant!" But then I was a little depressed about not being there right after the game, mostly because I was by myself and had no one to share my excitement with. But then I called my parents (my dad actually stayed up, which is just unheard of!), and then my brother texted me, and then I got on Facebook. Facebook actually helped me more than anything, because everyone was so excited and responding to statuses in real time, so it felt like we were in the same room. I dug down deep and realized that my sainted husband really deserved to be there (he's been a fan much longer than I have), and then I realized how many times I've heard him say, "Once when my Dad and I were at the old stadium..." . So how fitting is it that they could be there together for the Rangers' finest hour (at least up to this point?)

It's still very surreal. When I see promos I think, "Oh yeah, the World Series is about to start". Because we watch it every year. And then I realize, "Oh my God the Rangers are in the World Series" and I get goose bumps all over, then my goose bumps get goose bumps and I get so excited I want to jump up and down and scream like a little kid. Which is SO appropriate, because I think this team is constructed of guys who are little kids at heart. They've all been playing their hearts out, and looking like they're having fun doing it. I credit Ron Washington, the manager, for that. It's just a great group of guys that you can't help but root for. AND THEY BEAT THE STINKIN' YANKEES FOR GOSH SAKE!!!!!!! I hope they can now take on the SF Giants with as much gusto and prevail, but to quote long-time Star Telegram sports writer Jim Reeeves, "Does anyone really give a rat's patootie at this point?"

I just want to savor this happy feeling.