Busch Stadium

Busch 360 Tour

Last week, Chickadee and I went on a Busch Stadium tour. I’ve toured the park a few times, and even Chickadee has been on a classic tour (though she doesn’t remember it), but this time, we went on a fairly new tour experience…the 360 Tour. This particular excursion is meant to be a bit shorter, and less focused on Cardinals’ history, and more on the beautiful views of the ballpark. Like the classic tour, we started out near the statue of Stan outside the third base entrance.

After pausing for a photo in what is arguably one of the most scenic spots in Busch, we made our way to the Cardinals’ dugout, stopping to watch the real heroes of baseball, the grounds crew, at work on the field.

The dugout is always a favorite location…it’s so exciting to get to sit where the players sit, ad see where they enter and exit the field:

We stopped by the fancy green seats:

And then we got to see the even fancier dining spot that having a ticket to the green seats allows you to eat at:

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen the space where they hold the post-game press conferences…Chickadee was very excited to take a seat at the table!

We walked through what is commonly known as “Aggie’s Office.”

And then went to the upper deck for the best views in baseball:

We walked around the whole ballpark:

It’s always fun to get a look down into the bullpen:

And we even got to walk out onto the patio above the “Batter’s Eye,” which was a really unique experience!

I really loved this tour…we still learned some things, but most importantly, we saw some really cool spots in the ballpark! We’re also hoping to go back on a classic tour later this school year, and also visit the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum…it’s just as important to learn about local history as anything else!

2025-26 School Year–Week One

The first week of the 2025-26 school year is in the books!

We had a fun and relaxed first day:

But we also got started on our work for the year. Chickadee started her religion course, Lutheranism 101. Algebra was (thankfully) all review. She also reviewed 3-level outlines in writing. We got started in physical science by reviewing the scientific method. In history, we read about Queen Victoria, The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations and the Crystal Palace, and the Sepoy Mutiny. She started her first literature study of the year, and it’s something that’s new to even me…The Wind in the Willows. Since I couldn’t find a cookbook that went with any of our literature for the year, we decided to make recipes from the American Girl Sweet and Savory Treats Cookbook, starting with a recipe inspired by my original American Girl doll, Kirsten…Jam Twists, made with lingonberry jam from Ikea…perfect for a Swedish immigrant!

And because I really wanted to have a fun, first week field trip, we took the train downtown yesterday and went on a cool Busch Stadium 360 Tour…details to follow!

Next week we’ll fully be in our routine, but it was nice to have some fun activities this week!

Chickadee Thursday

Saturday was a Very Exciting Day, because we went to the Cardinals game, and Chickadee got to see Fredbird for the first time in almost four years!

If you’re wondering what absolute joy looks like, this is it:

We also found a cool, life-size bobblehead of Paul Goldschmidt. Not as fun as Fredbird, but still exciting!

It was so good to be back at one of our favorite places!

Back at Busch

Yesterday, for the first time in I’m not even sure how long (at least five years!), the whole family went to a Cardinals game at Busch Stadium! We took a walk around Ballpark Village when we arrived downtown:

It’s changed a lot in the last few years!

We stopped to say “hi” to Stan, of course:

And then got in line almost an hour before the gates opened:

The reason we got in line so early was to make sure we were there in time for the giveaway…Molina and Wainwright Mystery Championship Replica Rings. This is my favorite type of giveaway, and they’re really nice!

Our seats were excellent…we were in the last row, so we had a nice breeze, and we were in the shade for pretty much the entire game! Plus, we could see the Arch, which is always nice.

When we were walking around, we found this cool life-size bobblehead of Ladybug’s favorite player who isn’t named Albert Pujols:

And Bunny, Chickadee, and I went in search of Fredbird:

Ballpark food is the best!

It was the perfect day. We got to see everyone’s favorite battery (Wainwright and Molina) start their 316th game together, putting them in a tie for second place on the all-time battery list! And we got to see Tommy Edman get his first walk-off, which was a total thrill! We couldn’t have asked for a better ending!

It was so good to be back at my favorite place!

The only thing that could have made today better is if we had gotten to see Pujols bat, but we did see him in the dugout, so we’ll call that good enough, and the perfect day at Busch!

One Nation

I spent a good chunk of yesterday at Busch Stadium, taking in the “One Nation Classic.” It was billed as the Closing Ceremonies for the Winter Classic, which was held at Busch on January second.

The One Nation Classic had several parts. When I got there, people were skating on the ice on the field. This was actually a surprise to me, as I had not heard about that part. I don’t know if it was available to anyone who had a ticket, or if you had to pay extra or know someone to get to participate, but it was fun watching people skate on Busch’s ice!

After the free skate was over, there were three events that I did know about. First, a skills competition between “Team Steen” and “Team Pietrangelo.” This was a lot of fun to watch…at times it was silly, and at other moments, you really got to see how talented the players are. It included events such as a 3-on-3 competition, a hilarious relay race, and a hardest shot competition. In the end, “Team Pietrangelo” won by a score of 14-11.

Next up was St. Louis’ Greatest Pick-Up Hockey Game. This featured “Team Stillman” (of the Blues) vs. “Team Dewitt” (of the Cardinals), and included former players from both teams such as Peter Stastny and Jim Edmonds, and other personalities. Fredbird and Louie even made an appearance…have you ever seen a giant cardinal on skates? It was fun to see the fur and feathers fly, especially when they both ended up in the penalty box! Like the skills competition, the players wore a prototype jersey that was designed in 1966, but never actually worn by the players…it was so cool! I think my favorite part was the very first goal, which was scored by Bill Dewitt against Darren Pang in goal. In the end, though, Team Stillman prevailed, and won by a score of 5-4.

The final event was a first responders game between local police officers and local firefighters. I’m not going to lie…I was so cold at that point, that I left almost immediately after puck-drop. But it was cool to see how many participants there were…both teams even had their own jerseys! I will say that I think the police team had an unfair advantage, as their lineup included not only officers, but members of the DOD and the NGA!

I wasn’t the only one who enjoyed Winter Classic activities…Ryan got to go to both the Alumni Game, and the Winter Classic itself. He got the best view, because by the time I got to Busch, they had removed the guitar from the field, and the banners from outside the stadium. Fortunately, he got some good pictures for me, allowing me to live vicariously:

It was definitely a cold day at Busch, but I’m so glad I got to go and see the ice for myself. Who knows if and when the Winter Classic will come back to St. Louis? I hope it does someday, but for now, I have some great memories of seeing Busch Stadium in a whole new light!