Surviving Baseball Season in Flag, 2.0

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Spring in Flagstaff. Honestly my least favorite season in our small mountain town, with its strong winds, 40+ degree temperature swings and the real possibility of snow. Coincidentally, spring is also when hundreds of families send their beloved children age 4-12 outside for baseball and softball.

This Little League Mom learned my very first year that one must be prepared for ANYTHING to take place during a game and last year I shared some of my favorite tips and tricks for surviving. Read the original blog here.

Surviving 2.0 provides a quick update on the newest tricks & gadgets discovered in the last year: 

Snow Clothes

So simple. Don’t pack those fabulous snow pants, bibs and jackets away just yet! Literally as I outlined this blog at the fields, I was wearing my snow pants over the day’s jeans, with my hockey-rink-down-to-my-knees puffer jacket.

I was comfortable. My daughter…who refused her snow pants…was not.

Seriously – instead of packing those things in a box, pack them into the back of your car and just have them on-hand anytime the weather starts to get nasty during a ball game.

Rechargeable Hand Warmers

I honestly felt guilty about buying those disposable hot hands. They are hard on your wallet at $2 per pair, anything with as many warnings on the packaging can be good for the earth. So I sought an alternative.

AND I LOVE IT!!! For a mere $25 (that’s 12 sets of disposables) you can enjoy adjustable, rechargeable heat. As an added bonus, it can also serve as an emergency charger for your cell phones or other device!

I purchased the pink OCOOPA model as a test and the whole team agrees (since we pass it around the bleachers), it’s a winner. I’ve ordered two more so that my son and coach husband can each have one too. For whatever reason, pink is less expensive than black, but I went ahead and ponied up the extra $1 for black as one friend and baseball mom commented that the pink looks like another, small, handheld, battery powered device. *GASP* I say, let them talk. I’m warm. 

Waterproof & Windproof Stadium Blanket

I just saw this for the first time a few weeks ago, owned by another baseball mom. These fabulous little blankets fold into their own carrying straps and have zero bulk like sleeping bags. They block the wind AND the rain, if you’re unfortunate enough to have some during a game.

You should have seen us. The team moms gathered round Kristin’s blanket “oohing and ahhing” as though it was a new “it” bag from a famous New York fashion designer. This is what happens when you reach AAA and have spent 5 years in the league; your “wow” factor shifts.

Of course, I had to have one! I again went online and found a great little blanket, The CozyCoverz Stadium Blanket for only $18.

Portable Personal Heaters

Yes. A family on our team has one! I had to look it up and these things are pretty cool.

Compact, you can set these at your feet on the bleachers and enjoy instant heat, just like a plug-in space heater. There are both butane and propane powered options. I was unable to find a battery-powered version, so please comment if you know of one!

I found butane options starting at $50, propane starting at $75. Because I still adhere to the rules I was raised with, I haven’t straight-up asked the family how much they paid. Nor do I know which model they own…but it looks nice. I’m betting it wasn’t cheap.

Under The Weather Pod

Wait – I already wrote about this. But you should know that my Under The Weather pod is still going strong in its THIRD baseball season. These things are built to last! And right now, they’re having a spring sale on outrageous colored pods. If you’re willing to really wear your crazy, purchase one of their neon pink or green pods and save $20 while supplies last. And, ahem…my pod is neon orange. Whatever. I love it. 

My only regret is that they did not have the “monster pods” when I purchased mine. I can sit in mine with a friend, but quickly get kicked out by my younger daughter and her friends. At the first game of the season, they were freezing, went in the pod, zipped it all the way up and it actually steamed up inside. I don’t know how, but these things generate their own heat.

Do you have a survival tip I’ve missed? Be sure to share it in the comments, because we’re all in this together!

Much Love – H

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