Cardinals Care 6K & How I became a baseball fan

Via Instagram

OK, so before I go into a little bit more detail of why my birthday was the best one ever, I think I should back up and tell you how I literally turned into a crazy baseball fan overnight. I honestly never liked baseball. I thought it was boring and slow, and growing up in San Antonio, we were all about basketball, not baseball. I had no vested interest in any teams, and while I had been to a few games, it was really just for the food and people watching.

It's definitely hard not to get caught up in the post season hype when you're living in St. Louis. In 2011, the buzz was everywhere, so I decided to watch some of the post season games. This helped me get more familiar with the players and even started helping me round out some favorites. When the Cardinals were up against the Rangers in the World Series, the husband decided to see if we could get tickets to any of the home games. He convinced me that going to a World Series game was pretty few and far between, so we should take the opportunity to go, should it present itself. We managed to get tickets to game 2, sitting out behind left field in the bleachers. You could feel the energy in the stadium - it was amazing. Sadly, they ended up losing that game - the energy was completely gone and it was a different crowd as everyone walked quietly to their cars after the game.

I kept up with the series on TV, and when they came back home for game 6, we decided to try for tickets again. And basically from there, my life was never the same again. Here's a video our friend took, sitting next to us, at the game.

I remember standing there. We were down by 2. It was 2 strikes, 2 outs. I was just waiting for the last pitch, and it would be done. A great series, but we'd be done. When the ball shot out to right field, we lost sight of it and assumed it was caught. But then the crowd went crazy, and just like that we were tied. It was an emotional roller coaster from there as the Rangers answered with a 2-run home run. The game ended in the bottom of the 11th with a walk-off home run - the Cardinals winning 10-9. I literally had tears re-watching these highlights!

It was just such a high - electrifying! I can't even describe the energy in that stadium after that game! And I have never high-fived that many people in my entire life combined! It was the most fantastic, indescribable feeling-- I honestly think half the reason I love baseball so much is just for the chance to feel that elation all over again. We did end up going to game 7 as well - although, as awesome as winning the world series was - nothing will compare to the excitement from game 6. Wow. Just WOW.

So, this is the second year in a row now that we have season tickets - a quarter of a season actually, and I've definitely graduated from being a fair weather fan. The Cardinals game is on as I type this, and honestly, they're the only thing I watch on TV anymore, other than Friends via Nick at Nite. The fact that I know what "ground rule double" or "E6" or "RISP" mean amazes me. Or that someone will actually ask (or care) what my opinion is on Ryan Braun's suspension. Sometimes I don't even know who I am! Because not only am I not a huge sports fanatic in general, I absolutely never thought I would ever like baseball.

Now, let's fast forward to my birthday. I had read about the Cardinals Care 6K and thought it would be so fun! A manageable distance AND we finish on the field at Busch Stadium? How awesome is that!

I would have been happy if that's all this was! Raise money for charity, work on my fitness, and end the race in my most favorite place (not shopping related). It didn't stop there though! I had no idea I would get to meet one of my favorite pitchers, one of our closers, Jason Motte. And yep - that's Jackie Joyner Kersee to the right of us.

I think I was a bit crazy to sign up for a run on my birthday - first thing in the morning, but I can't think of a better way I could have started it off. I was glowing when I left! Literally floating, so excited and happy. But wait. You're probably wondering about my socks. No, this is not my usual running attire. You see, my favorite Cardinal is centre fielder, Jon Jay, and not only is he infamous for sporting his high socks every Sunday, but he uses the hashtag #highsocksundays on Twitter quite often. Naturally, I had to get some for myself (here). Saturday night before the race, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to wear, then  it hit me - AHA! It's Sunday! I'll wear my highsocksundays!!

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OK, so afterwards, we went to a local restaurant for breakfast - Sgt. Pepper's Cafe, then I showered and relaxed before leaving for my birthday manicure and pedicure. Perfection right? Well, as I was at the nail salon getting my toes did, I was surfing Instagram and found this:

Via Instagram

Whaaaa??! Those are my feet! And legs! And yeah, could they have maybe gotten a better angle? But OMG those are my highsocksundays!!! They also posted about a dozen photos from the event on Facebook. Just a handful. And my socks made it! 1.4 million people get to appreciate my highsocksundays.

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I'm just such a big fan, it's ridiculous. And the fact that I am now on their social media channels just makes me so happy. There were about 800 people that ran in this race with me, so I feel pretty privileged to have made this cut. Such a great life choice to wear these socks and such a great cherry on the top of an already awesome birthday!!!

Hope you enjoyed my little trip down memory lane along with my 15 minutes of stardom. What about you? What are you obsessed with? What would be your ultimate birthday?