march MADNESS

This month has FLOWN by. It is already the 22nd. WHAT?!! I am sad to see this wonderful school year end, but I am afraid that is another post altogether. I have also been reminded that we must have the cold to appreciate the beauty of the sun [again, another post].

Part of the reason this month as been so "mad" is because of college basketball. Now, I don't know how it is in your house, but in our humble apartment the tv is on basketball 24/7. Some of you may think this is me complaining...but it's not. I enjoy it. [We actually watched the NBA finals, Celtics vs. Lakers, on our honeymoon!]. And I was geared up to enjoy it even more as our beloved JAYHAWKS earned the number one OVERALL seed in the tournament after easily grabbing the Big 12 title.

The battle cry, "Rock Chalk Jayhawk," could be heard from our apartment, our pride billowing out the door with us anywhere we went. People would ask, "Are you rooting for Kentucky?" And we would shake our head with a proud swagger, quick to answer, "No. Kansas is my team." And we would then see the opponent's face become overcome with understanding, many of which would then respond, "As much as I love my Wildcats, I had to put Kansas winning it all this year in my bracket." To which we would swiftly, and with shoulders thrown back in confidence, respond, "Oh...my Jayhawks will not let you down."

Rock chalk jayhawk.

Fast forward to Saturday afternoon. Kansas vs. University of Northern Iowa. UNI said, "Kansas, we see your one big goofy white guy and we raise you a whole team's worth."

And little by little, the Jayhawks crumbled. Missed shots. Weak rebounding. Lazy defense.

Game over. Lost by 2. Championship season vanished.

Brent was at work. I immediately called with my condolences and to check to make sure he was doing okay. He sounded weak. Invisible. Heartbroken.

So I had a few things waiting for him when he got home:

Now, you must know that Brent and I don't keep sweets/snacks, even chips in the house. We both have zero self control with the stuff, so we just stay away from it. However, he was in mourning, so I made this exception. [Sidenote: The Robin Eggs and Crunch Crisps are already all gone. The ice cream has a sizable dent and two rows of cookies have disappeared, not to mention there are only two snack cakes left. Like I said, we have ZERO self-control.]

Luckily we were not left alone to wallow in our misery, but Kali, Dan, and Caroline were visiting. So I also was able to use a very sleepy Caroline to pose some fun pictures to put a smile on his face [and no... I did not pinch her, but it took a LONG time to get her to cooperate in these pictures. She kept smiling!]

Good thing Caroline is wise in her choice of schools for which to root!

So all in all the distractions were a success... and a smile reappeared on all our faces soon.

[Oh and Caroline was my date to a wedding on Saturday while Kali and Dan enjoyed an afternoon alone together. If you ask me, we make a dashing couple! ]