Will is already a huge Memphis Tigers fan, and he makes us so proud. He has been to five Tigers games in the last year, and he has a blast everytime. Three of those games were when he was still in the womb (the regular season finale against UAB, and then the Final Four and the National Championship games last April). We know he was having fun at the Final Four because the first time Jennifer ever felt him kick was in the middle of the beatdown that Memphis put on UCLA. Will kicked extra hard when CDR dunked right in Kevin Love's face. Will's first game post-birth was the UAB game on January 17, just before he turned four months old. Here is the whole family decked out in our Memphis Tigers gear. It is hard to tell in the picture, but Will is wearing Memphis Tigers socks, polo shirt, and hoodie.
Jennifer and I bought season tickets this year for $100 a piece (they are in the nose-bleeds) even though we were not able to make most of the games. This is much easier than trying to buy individual game tickets on StubHub or from a scalper, and we were able to sell or give away the tickets for the games we didn't go to. So when we took Will to the UAB game, we were only three rows from the top of FedEx Form. As you can see in this picture, Will was a little scared of the height...
Even though he was a little scared at first, Will had a great time. He was mesmerized when they introduced the Tigers' starting line-up (They turned off the lights and had spotlights roaming the arena and had a loud video introducing the players). He also had fun looking around during the game at the 18,000+ people at the Forum, and was intrigued when everyone cheered. It was an exciting experience for all of us, although Will kept us up nearly the entire night after the game because his schedule was so out-of-wack from staying out till nearly midnight. It was well-worth it to enjoy a Memphis Tigers game with our son! We took him back two weeks later for the Houston game, but this time we sat in my dad's company seats and not at the top of the arena. It was much more pleasant only carrying Will to the lower-level, and my dad's company seats are in the handicapped section, meaning we weren't stuck in the middle of a tightly packed row when Will would start to get fussy. At the Houston game Will got scared during the intro video and started to cry because the video was MUCH louder in the lower section of the arena. After that we all once again had a great time. Will loves his Memphis Tigers, and we all look forward to going to lots of games as a family for the rest of our lives! Here are a few more pictures from the UAB game in January.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Our Little Memphis Tiger
Saturday, January 3, 2009
A Long Awaited Update
It has been quite awhile since we last posted on our blog, and many things have changed over the last few weeks. Will has continued to grow like crazy, but not just physically. He had his two-month checkup November 26. He weighed 11 lbs 13 oz and was 21 1/2 inches long. He also got his first shots, so that was a scary experience for all of us! Luckily he calmed down quickly afterward. He goes back for his four-month checkup January 27, and we cannot wait to see how much he has grown because we know it is a lot.
Then Will had his first Thanksgiving. We spent it in Alabama this year. I had to miss one of the family functions, as I was the best man in Ryan and Casie's wedding, but we all went to spend Thanksgiving Day with Jennifer's Dad's side of the family. We ate lots of turkey and ham, and Jennifer ate extra for Will.
After Thanksgiving life became hectic with my final exams and term papers. I pulled more than one all-nighter, as I am known to do, but luckily we all survived and were rewarded with my graduation on Saturday, December 20. It was really exciting to finish college forever and know that I never have to take another test or write another paper again if I do not want to. Jennifer was probably even more excited than I was because now she gets all those extra hours with me that I used to spend in class! I am now officially a master of something, a Master of Theological Studies. We look forward to seeing how God allows me to use all that I have learned and where he takes our family next.
We started the Christmas festivities just a couple hours after my graduation. My parents, along with Grandma, Nani & Pop, and Kristin's twins came up for graduation, and then we all went over to Lauren and David's house for our first Christmas dinner and gifts of the year. Then Sunday we drove down to Alabama for the next couple days. First we celebrated with Jennifer's Dad's family, and then the next day with Jennifer's Mom's family. It was a rushed and busy trip, but very memorable since it was Will's first Christmas experience. Then we headed to Memphis the night before Christmas Eve. Will has gotten to be a very good car-rider, however seven hours on what should be a four hour trip pushed him to the limit. Yes, that is correct, it took us seven hours to get from Guntersville, AL to Collierville, TN because we apparently made a wrong turn or missed something along the way. After driving over an hour the wrong way, we found our way back in the right direction and arrived in Collierville at 10:30 PM after leaving Guntersville at 3:30. We had dinner and presents with my parents, Grandma, Kristin and her twins on Christmas Eve. Then we spent Christmas Day at Nani & Pop's house. This was the first time Will met most of my extended family, so it was an exciting time. My younger cousins and nephews acted out the Christmas story, with Will as the baby Jesus. Jennifer and I were supposedly Mary & Joseph, although all we did was sit there and hold Will.
We headed back to Nashville Christmas night because I had to work on Friday. Since we had been out of town, we called Santa and arranged for him to come the night after Christmas. We set-up a hidden video camera to capture the moment when Santa came to visit Will for the first time. It was quite memorable to say the least. I will even allow all of you who read this blog to see the secret footage in the video below.
All in all, Will's first Christmas was a great experience. Will got lots of new outfits and toys that will keep him well-dressed and entertained in 2009. Now that life has settled down a bit, you can expect to see updates more often on the happenings of our family.
