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Since my post about bringing our two-year-old to his first UConn game turned into a little bit of an advice thread on bringing young kids to a game, figured I’d post a follow up with our experience and some advice.
First and foremost, HE LOVED IT. Got a picture with Red pregame, clapped when we put the ball in the basket, sang “UConn Huskies” to the fight song, danced, made the Jumbotron, watched the team run in the tunnel, got a new UConn basketball to bring home and stayed the whole game — and didn’t really want to leave when it ended. I could see the life-long fan forming before my eyes.
Now some advice for anyone taking a toddler:
+ We had an extra seat for him to use and that was huge. He was much happier sitting in his own seat than on a lap, standing in front of me was also a favorite.
+ The advice to bring noise-reducing headphones from others here was HUGE. We got there 20 minutes before tip and I never realized how loud the pregame hype is until yesterday. All game the headphones were crucial in keeping him happy and into it instead of overwhelmed. The ones we got were 15 bucks at Target, folded up to carry and worked great.
+ We have lower-level seats, the area at the top of our section was great for him to eat, move around a little and get a little break. Went up there from halftime to the U16 and helped break up sitting in one place a lot while still being able to watch.
+ Diaper bags are allowed. Our son is potty trained but this is a HUGE help anyway. Brought some snacks, his travel potty and gave us a place to put things. But keep it light, still kind of a pain to carry around and have at our seats.
+ Do it! If you are debating bringing your kid to a game, go for it. Early in the season, when you don’t have to worry about focusing on the game (I rewatched the whole thing when he went to bed last night).
I said before the game I couldn’t decide if I was more excited about yesterday or going to the Final Four in Houston last spring, but reality is, it wasn’t even close after seeing him enjoy something our family loves as much as we do UConn basketball.
First and foremost, HE LOVED IT. Got a picture with Red pregame, clapped when we put the ball in the basket, sang “UConn Huskies” to the fight song, danced, made the Jumbotron, watched the team run in the tunnel, got a new UConn basketball to bring home and stayed the whole game — and didn’t really want to leave when it ended. I could see the life-long fan forming before my eyes.
Now some advice for anyone taking a toddler:
+ We had an extra seat for him to use and that was huge. He was much happier sitting in his own seat than on a lap, standing in front of me was also a favorite.
+ The advice to bring noise-reducing headphones from others here was HUGE. We got there 20 minutes before tip and I never realized how loud the pregame hype is until yesterday. All game the headphones were crucial in keeping him happy and into it instead of overwhelmed. The ones we got were 15 bucks at Target, folded up to carry and worked great.
+ We have lower-level seats, the area at the top of our section was great for him to eat, move around a little and get a little break. Went up there from halftime to the U16 and helped break up sitting in one place a lot while still being able to watch.
+ Diaper bags are allowed. Our son is potty trained but this is a HUGE help anyway. Brought some snacks, his travel potty and gave us a place to put things. But keep it light, still kind of a pain to carry around and have at our seats.
+ Do it! If you are debating bringing your kid to a game, go for it. Early in the season, when you don’t have to worry about focusing on the game (I rewatched the whole thing when he went to bed last night).
I said before the game I couldn’t decide if I was more excited about yesterday or going to the Final Four in Houston last spring, but reality is, it wasn’t even close after seeing him enjoy something our family loves as much as we do UConn basketball.
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