It was a gorgeous day to visit Charlotte (the city, not the daughter).
Ahhh!!! Scary Panther statue outside the stadium! There's a matching one on the other side of the entrance looking just as dangerous.
We got there pretty early so we went out to see the field only a few rows back (okay, a few was probably more like 40). I was shocked by how small the field looked. On TV it looks like the players run forever to score that touchdown but in person it didn't seem that far. What I would soon learn is that the field looked MUCH different once we got to our seats.
Most of you know that we're both die hard Steeler's fans and we were devastated last year when we missed our chance to see them play before Christmas. I was hoping the Steeler's wouldn't mind too much that my first NFL game ended up being a Panther's game. Forgive me, Polamalu!
The air was much different up here... and we were still had to climb about 50 stairs to get to our seats. 
I'm not usually afraid of heights but I have to admit that I was very freaked out by the way the seats in front of me seemed to want to pull me down. The seats up there are stacked so steeply. I swore I was going to suddenly fall out of my chair and roll down the hill of seats. I told Jon that I wished that our seats came with seat belts. He just laughed.
Luckily I felt much better after people filled in the seats below us. At least the people would cushion my fall if I suddenly started tumbling down the hill.
The air was much different up here... and we were still had to climb about 50 stairs to get to our seats. I'm not usually afraid of heights but I have to admit that I was very freaked out by the way the seats in front of me seemed to want to pull me down. The seats up there are stacked so steeply. I swore I was going to suddenly fall out of my chair and roll down the hill of seats. I told Jon that I wished that our seats came with seat belts. He just laughed.Luckily I felt much better after people filled in the seats below us. At least the people would cushion my fall if I suddenly started tumbling down the hill.
Did I mention that we were 6 rows from the very top? Did I mention how steep the stairs were to get there?
Look at all of the empty blue seats. I love this picture.
Look at all of the empty blue seats. I love this picture. So, after we saw the view from the mountain top our seats, we went in search of stadium food. What we found instead of the great food served at our minor league baseball stadium, was over-priced fast food. They had Wendy's and Bojangles set up inside almost every booth inside the stadium. A Frosty was $5! And that was the small size! A quarter-pounder was $5! Yikes. I finally settled for a hot dog and a bottle of water.....
Guess how much my bottle of water was? $4!! Apparently this water was very special water that was harvested from the spring where unicorns drink.
Guess how much my bottle of water was? $4!! Apparently this water was very special water that was harvested from the spring where unicorns drink. But you know what? Even though the food was over-priced and no better then bad fast-food, Jon and I were still having a great time. It was so exciting to see something in person that I had only seen on television.
It surprised me that the field is covered with people and players before the game. They warm up and just generally mill about before the game starts. I guess I just assumed everyone stayed in the locker room listening to motivational speeches while they waited for the game to start. Too many movies, I guess. They did eventually leave the field. Maybe they listened to speeches, after all. 
Once the game started, the star players re-entered the field one at a time to music and flame throwers. It was very exciting. 
The stands looked much different with people in the seats. 
Jon bought me an Italian ice at some point during the game and it was by far the best thing I ate all day. I want another one just looking at this picture.
The game continued on.... I tried my hardest to concentrate but we were really far away and there was no announcer telling you what was happening and when to look. I find TV football much easier to follow.
It surprised me that the field is covered with people and players before the game. They warm up and just generally mill about before the game starts. I guess I just assumed everyone stayed in the locker room listening to motivational speeches while they waited for the game to start. Too many movies, I guess. They did eventually leave the field. Maybe they listened to speeches, after all. Once the game started, the star players re-entered the field one at a time to music and flame throwers. It was very exciting. The stands looked much different with people in the seats. 
Jon bought me an Italian ice at some point during the game and it was by far the best thing I ate all day. I want another one just looking at this picture.
The game continued on.... I tried my hardest to concentrate but we were really far away and there was no announcer telling you what was happening and when to look. I find TV football much easier to follow. So, after a very exciting last 2 minutes of the game, the Panther's won their first game of the season! I think we were good luck charms for them.
What a great day. I got to spend time with my wonderful husband and we got to have actual conversations... without kids interupting. Thanks Nana and Grandpa for keeping the kids so Jon and I could have such a fun day.
