Parenting and loving the Lakers: teachings from a surprising resource!

Last night was a momentous night in our household! Even if you don't follow national basketball (NBA), just turn on any national news program and you will know the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics in a seven game series (for those not basketball savvy that's playing up to 7 straight games almost every other day until one team achieves 4 wins, whew) for the 2010 Championships!

Being a Southern California transplant, I brought my love for the Lakers with me to Northern California. It's few and far between to find another adult Laker fan in my area so I've succumbed to breeding Laker fans to share in my interest with Spaghetti and Meatball. At this point, you may giggle at the thought, you may even find it slightly amusing but if you've never experienced being a sports fan of any kind, I assure you, you are missing out.

Why, you may ask? Because at this point, for me, being a Laker fan is not just something you watch, it's something you live. For 9 months out of the year, my household is dedicated to following this team, sharing in their wins and losses, feeling the pain of their injuries, appreciating the glimpses into their personal lives and revel as they take the national championship! The best thing about it all? Someone else 'out there' that may come from a totally different lifestyle, gender, environment, socio-economic level, religious belief, whatever it may be feels the exact same way. Imagine being in a sports arena, with 19,000 other fans feeling the exact same way!?! That kind of positive energy is tremendous, infectious, and inspirational. Being a fan is also not a yearly event, I've been a part of a fan base that has had the opportunity to watch Kobe Bryant grow through tremendous pains and obstacles from his days as a rookie, to a spoiled rock star, to the scandals in the press, to his rise as a leader filled with maturity and humility. And the funny thing is I'm not even a Kobe fan but this provides an example of the many story lines that follow a basketball team.

Sportsmanship, commitment to something you believe in, the sense of belonging to something bigger that them through the camaraderie of fans are all things I have learned and felt from being a fan and enjoy it so much I'm happy to breed Spaghetti and Meatball into fans to share in the experience. Even if they don't understand the game to the fullest just yet, they enjoy the cheering, the booing, the clapping, the shouting and the special connection we have through the experience.

I can't speak enough about how I much elation I feel, so much pride in my hometown and for my home team, but I definitely can't encapsulate it all in one blog posts since there seems to be so many different aspects to why I enjoy it so much and share that joy with my girls.

(top photo: Meatball, age 3, 2005, Staples Center; bottom photo: Spaghetti, age 2, 2010, our newest fan)

Disclosure: Although Pretty Pants can appreciate my dedication to the Los Angeles Lakers and supports raising the girls as Laker fans let it be known he is a Golden State Warriors fan. Thank you.

Girls Night Out reinvented

I dare go out on weeknights for any reason. It's just way too exhausting for me to have to lug around two girls (who are just as tired and hungry after a long day of school) after hours at the office and a brief commute to pick them up, all I ever really want to do is go home. Maybe because I know it doesn't end there. Once we arrive home, I've got a couple more hours until the girls are fed, bathed and put to sleep until I can exhale. Only to do it all over again the next day.

Sometimes there will be one rare yet random night, that I feel a little brave and actually take the girls out after school. Mind you, my weariness runs an extra lap around my head as I hope and pray that taking the girls out doesn't backfire to the point where I'm crossing my fingers for no tantrums during our outing.Yes, going out on a weeknight, stresses me out that much. So as we sat down for a weeknight meal outside the home the server approaches and says, "Ah, Girls Night Out I see." My eyes peered up toward her from the menu confused at her statement. Girls Night Out?!? But I'm with... oh wait... I am with my girls! I smiled and looked at my lovely daughters, who at that moment looked just as exhausted and hungry as they always do on a weekday until they felt the positive energy from my smile and mirrored it right back. "Let's order champagne!" I suggest to the server, "Oh and two milks for them, thanks." Thank goodness for that server who changed my perception on taking the girls out on weeknights. Girls night out, indeed.