Basketball: up close and ageless

I'm  not a huge football fan. I'm just not.

It may stem from never having a great team to cheer for. KU football has never been awesome, and then you have the Kansas City Chiefs. Please. The Chiefs are literally the worst team in the NFL. Without good teams to cheer for, I just have never been transformed into a football fan. Cory has his K-State football team, and I don't begrudge them any wins, I just have very little interest in watching it.

I don't even watch the Superbowl unless we happen to be at a party with delicious snacks to eat. (FYI, delicious snacks include, but are not limited to chips, dips, cookies and cupcakes. Yum.) And, even then, I'm probably paying more attention to the commercials.

Buuuuuuut, if you want to talk about basketball, and specifically, KU Basketball. I'm your gal. I love it. I know it may sound cliche to say that I love KU basketball but not football, but, it's the truth. I find basketball more exciting to watch and much easier to follow. I'm not going to apologize for that.

So, when my dad called me up a couple weeks ago to tell me that he had tickets to the KU basketball game that he couldn't use, I jumped at the chance to go. Even if it was a to a pre-season exhibition game. I still love going up to Allen Fieldhouse and getting the experience of college basketball in person.

I had four tickets to the Monday night game, so Cory and I made it a date night with my friend Terah and her husband Nathan. Terah and I met at KU and always went to games together as students, so it was a fun time to reminisce.

Well, it turns out the tickets that my dad had but couldn't use were INCREDIBLE. Fourth row back, right across from the home bench. We could actually hear the words Bill Self used when he was yelling at the team. (A lot of "Wake up!") Even as a student, I was never that close to the floor.

Dang! Look how close we are!

One thing we noticed being so close: everyone else seems so young. The cheerleaders, the dancers, the players. They all look like babies up close. I sure don't really feel like I've aged all that much in the 14 years since I was a freshman living in the dorms camping out for basketball games, so I'm not sure why the students look so much younger now.

It's like the reverse of the Fast Times of Ridgemont High effect. I feel the same age, but everyone else keeps getting younger.

March Madness on cold medicine

In honor of all things March Madness, I thought I would spend a little time wrapping up our evening from last Friday. I know, on the surface these things do not correlate, but trust me, they do. See, last Friday night, Cory and I went with four other friends to the ALS fundraiser at the College Basketball Hall of Fame.

First things first, the ALS Association is a charity that we are happy to help support. Cory and I always like supporting charities to which we, or someone we know, have a special connection. (We like to support charities, even if I can't explain the concept to my child.) Our good friend Chris serves on the board of directors for the Keith Worthington Chapter of the ALS Association. So, when he asked if anyone was interested in attending this fundraising dinner, it was kind of a no-brainer.

We're getting up there in years, so we don't get to go to weddings all that much anymore. And, we're not really bar people. But, we do like to have a fun adult time every once in a while. So, when the opportunity came up for dinner, dancing and drinking with friends ... well, like I said: no-brainer.

We even got to get dressed up and ride in a limo down to the event.

It's amazing how much easier it is to take pictures when you don't have kids in them.

All the ladies, dressed up and ready to go.

Chris and Anne.

Megan and Brandon.

As fate would have it, I came down with a nasty head cold the day before the event. (In other, completely related news, check out this new study that shows that redheads are more prone to illness. In our entirely unscientific anecdotal family evidence, this is absolutely true.) But, we had already purchased the tickets, and we were going to ride in a limo. I couldn't NOT go. However, if you're wondering what Amy does on cold medicine and wine ... well, the rest of the pictures will tell you.

The great outdoors

Ah, Kansas weather. What to do with you? Last week, we had snow. This week, it reached 90 degrees. I seriously cannot keep up with it. My closet is a confusion of shorts and sweatshirts and flip-flops and boots. Our house was built in 1986. Apparently, in 1986, people didn't have a lot of clothes. At least, that's the impression I get because the closets are not big. At all. (Although, you'd think with all those shoulder pads, they would've needed a humongous amount of closet space.) I salivate at all my friends' giant walk-in closets. Oh, how I would love to not have to keep out-of-season clothes in rubbermaid tubs in the basement. That would be a glorious indulgence I will not soon know. But, I do dream about it.

Anyway, what's even harder than keeping my clothes straight, is trying to explain to a 3-year-old why we could go outside and play yesterday, but not today. If I can barely comprehend the massive meteorologic changes, how can I expect Molly to? For some reason, the explanation, "but it's cold outside today," doesn't really cut it with her. That being said, we have had some nice days lately. So, when we do have them, we venture outside.

Both girls adore being outside. And, I adore going outside and having real adult conversations with all the real adults on my street. So, it's a win-win.

We have a canoe. Ask me in person why. It's a great story, but not one for this blog. We got it out the other day just to clean and check on it. Molly and Charlotte had a blast playing in it. Molly pretended she was paddling down a river, while Charlotte just kind of bounced up and down while holding onto the edge. Either way, it made me so much more comfortable than if they'd actually been riding in the water. Call me a nervous-nelly mother. I'll take it. I'll admit it. I like them in a canoe on dry land.

Last year, for her birthday, Molly got a big girl two-wheel bike. She rode it for a little while, but then reverted back to her tricycle. Well, this summer, she has been forced into officially retired the tricycle, because Charlotte is now "riding" it. After she saw her baby sister could ride it, Molly told me, "I'm all done with my little bike now, because I'm a big girl!" Good thing, Molls, because your little sister is working her hardest to catch up to you. Now, if only she would walk as well as she rides her trike.

We have lots of kids in our neighborhood. But, the ones most often out are the boys. So, Molly spends a lot of time trying to fit in with the boys. This is when she is not trying to tell them all about her My Little Ponies. They are never interested, by the way. When Jack and Michael needed to take a break from all their basketball playing, Molly decided she needed a rest, too. It's what all the cool kids do.

One girl who does come out to play is Ella, Charlotte's bestie. Well, that's what we call them anyway. Right now, I'm pretty sure Ella is more interested in watching what Molly is doing, but we insist on putting Ella and Charlotte together and taking their pictures. It is our prerogative as mothers of children who are not yet old enough to tell us differently.

And, one last picture that is just too cute not to include. I don't have anything cute or clever to say about it. Just look for yourself.

Peek-a-boo!

C'mon! Tell me that's not precious. Go ahead. I dare you.

A little household division

We live in a house divided. Anyone who is married will probably say, at one time or another, that their house has been divided, too. About finances, politics, child-rearing philosophies, different standards of cleanliness. Lots of issues can cause divisions in households. Ours, in particular, is our different alma maters. Nothing big or marriage-shaking in the grand scheme of things. (Though the fact that my team lost to his on Valentine's Day didn't really do anything to help our marriage.) We are very tolerant of each other's cheering. I will root for his team as long as they aren't playing mine, and vice versa. It helps that I don't much care for football. Basketball, however, is another subject entirely.

Cory went to Kansas State University, but you see, my alma mater is the University of Kansas. Home to the Jayhawks, and one of the most successful and prestigious basketball programs in the country. Ok, so I am a huge basketball fan. I am also a third-generation Jayhawk. My grandpa was in a class with Wilt Chamberlain, for God's sake!

So, when my dad got us tickets to go to the final home game of the season (senior night) in Allen Fieldhouse, I jumped at the chance. (Now, there is a whole other story about the fact that my dad is taking my little brother with him to Final Four this year ... ) It has been a long time since I went to a game in person at Allen. So long, in fact, that I honestly cannot remember when it was. I realized, as we drove to Lawrence, that I am coming up on nine years since graduation. And, now I feel extremely old. Yeesh.

While sitting up in the nosebleed section at mid-court between my dad and Cory (see, I told you we're good sports about each other's teams), I noticed some things about being old and going back to alma mater:

1. I really enjoy sitting. As students, we would stand for practically the entire game. And, I am all for jumping up and getting loud when necessary or when the excitement of a play warrants, but for the majority of the game, I enjoy having a place to sit my behind.

2. Speaking of behinds -- how is it possible that mine is smaller than my shoulders? Has anyone else noticed this? We are all squished together on bench seating, with absolutely no space to spare, but for some reason, I am forced to lean forward because my shoulders don't fit. My butt's fine; it fits in its tiny little spot (not saying my butt is tiny, just that the space they designate for a 'seat' is ridiculously small), but my shoulders do not. Maybe it has something to do with sitting between two guys, but whatever the reason, it's not entirely comfortable to sit leaning forward for almost three hours.

3. I can completely see the reason behind the dorky radios the old men wear while at the games. When I was younger, I just thought they were so ridiculous looking. But, I now see the genius behind them. I will admit, sometimes, I get a little distracted during games. (Watching the crowd, reading signs, laughing at Big Jay and Little Jay's antics, watching the Crimson Girls Rock Chalk Dancers)  Then, all of a sudden, the crowd starts making a ruckus, booing, cheering, and I don't have a clue what just happened. It would be so convenient to have that little radio voice telling me who got called for what foul. I still don't think that I can put aside my vanity to wear them, though.

Me and my sweet tea!

4. I was ridiculously excited that they served McAllister's Sweet Tea at Allen Fieldhouse. It was delicious, and I even got a handy dandy collector's cup. All for the low, low price of $5.

5. Why is it that of all the people who can possibly sit in front of you, you have to get the one guy who is literally (and I mean literally, not the Rachel Zoe form of the word) just as tall as you are while he's standing at least a foot lower on his row. It's gotta be some kind of version of Murphy's Law.

6. Games are SO much more fun in person. The memories had gotten a little hazy since it had been so long, but they came back full-force last night. So much excitement; such a good time.

So, thanks, Dad! I had a blast. And, I've almost completely forgiven you for choosing to take your youngest son (instead of the one child who attend KU) with you to the Final Four. :)

Pardon the poor quality, my phone battery was about to die. It's me and my dad.

And, as a bonus for everyone, here is Molly showing off her Rock Chalk chant skills. (I will admit, she can also do the KSU cheer, but it's my blog, so I only have to show off the videos I want.)