A Great Celebration

Some of you may know that about 2 1/2 years ago, I came home to my husband with a crazy idea that I'd like to sell our house.  My reasoning was to have a better situation for our girls in the not-so-distant future.  We lived about 35 minutes away from their current school, friends, and after school activities. I knew in just a few short years our oldest daughter was going to be driving (gasp!) and the thought of her driving on back country roads, 40+ minutes to school, during Michigan winters, wasn't exactly my idea of a good situation.  It took some tough conversations between the two of us, but he eventually hopped on the "moving" train. We set a target date to be moved before our oldest daughter went to Middle School.

We put our house up for sale, the one we'd bought just before we got married, put an addition on, brought our babies home to, and made many, many great memories.  It wasn't an easy decision at all, and there were several times I'd considered ditching the whole idea, and just staying put.  But, we didn't. We put our faith and future in God's hands and trusted in His plan for our family.

While going through the initial stages with our realtor and general contractor, both long-time friends of the family, I sent out a text.  It said, "If we can make this dream a reality, we'll celebrate on a Saturday in the fall in Ann Arbor." Because, after all, is there a better time or place to celebrate?!  I think not.

We finally saw His plan for us and we moved into our beautiful, brand new home on August 25th, just four days before our oldest daughter started Middle School. It was time to celebrate.

What initially was going to be a small celebration and thank you, turned into a rather large, extravagant display of my husband's culinary prowess.   We had over 50 people and a five course menu that would put any seasoned "eater" into a food coma. We had 48 hour Rubens, prime rib w/ au jus and horseradish creme, BBQ pulled pork, shrimp and grits with blue crab gravy, and s'mores on a stick. And that doesn't even include the three side dishes.  Many of you are probably wondering how we pulled this off in the middle of a golf course out of the bed of a truck, and to be honest, I don't know.  But we did, with the help of many, and one amazing chef.

To top it all off, Michigan came away with a convincing win to open the Big 10 season and some momentum for the upcoming challenges that lie ahead.

Go Blue!
~Bekki

Pick Six comments from the tailgate:
1. "How do you not weigh 500 pounds with a husband that's a chef?" Answer: He's never home to cook, he's always cooking for other people.
2. "I bet your kids are disappointed when you cook." Nah, they're used to it, we eat spaghetti with Ragu' just like everyone else.
3. "I want to marry that blue crab gravy." I had no comment, just giggled.
4. "I'll pay you a million dollars to teach me how to make those grits." I'll let you pay him a million dollars to teach you, and you can even learn in my kitchen.
5. "Who else has prime rib and jumbo lump crab at their tailgate?" Mmmm, probably not many.

Sorry Bout That

I've never been one that has been able to hide my emotions very well.  When I'm sad, the tears well up in my eyes. When I'm scared, my pupils dilate to the size of dimes. When I'm nervous, my voice is weak and shaky. When I'm happy, my joker smile can be seen for miles.  When I'm mad, the furrowed brow gives me wrinkles deeper than Lake Superior. And when I'm excited, well I tackle people.

At the game on Saturday, the first quarter wasn't all that exciting, in fact, it was quite humbling.  But that didn't stop the excitement the entire stadium felt every time Jabrill Peppers was back to receive a punt.  We all knew his time was coming to run one back.  Everyone was trying to predict when his time would be, it was inevitable that someone would get it right.  Well, his time finally came during the fourth quarter.  He caught a line drive punt that didn't give any defenders time to make it downfield.  And there it was, a hole big enough for a bus to drive through.  And he took advantage. He shot through it like an arrow, made a couple jukes, pushed a couple defenders away, and straight into the endzone.  It was right in front of us and as quickly as the play happened, it all seemed like slow motion.

That's when it all went down hill.  I'd been standing next to my brother Eric the whole game.  We'd shoot comments back and forth, do our own critiquing of what was happening, slap fives, hoot and holler and just have a grand 'ole time. And then......I tackled him.  Now, I'm not a very big person. I stand a mere 5'6" tall while he is a towering 6'4". But, in that moment and with all that excitement in my body, seeing that Jabrill was finally going to make it into the endzone....I erupted. Lost my composure, and tackled him. I can't explain how it happened, it just did.

Once we got up and celebrated with the other people in the surrounding vicinity, I apologized, "Sorry bout that." And with a smile as big as mine, he said, "That's alright. It was fun. You finally paid me back."

In a nutshell, that is what Michigan Football does for this family. We get so excited, we tackle each other.

Go Blue!
~Bekki

It's Been A Long Time

Ahhh, we're finally back, in many ways. Back to playing football. Back to being in one of my most favorite places on earth. Back to being in the conversation. Back to being relevant. And back to the Top 5.

It's been a long time since our guys were on the field. The summer is such a wonderful time to spend with family and friends, vacationing, playing in the water, and basically doing whatever we want. But man, I sure love Saturdays in the fall.  There isn't a feeling like it in the world walking in to that stadium. There was a certain buzz in the air, no doubt due to the happenings this summer.

It has been a long time since Michigan has been back in the conversation of being a top team in the nation. It still doesn't quite seem real to me, like I'm waiting for the wheels to fall off this brand new car.  But then I remind myself, we have a '17 Bentley, not an '86 Honda Civic Hatchback. Being considered a national championship contender is something that the Michigan fans of old were used to, but it's been a long time since we've been here.  I kinda like it, I hope we stay.  It's taken a long time to get there, many hardships, set backs, and well......embarrassments. But let's not live in the past.  Let's just enjoy the present.

It's been a long time since I watched my team win by 30+ points and wasn't thrilled. Happy? Yes. But I wasn't thrilled.  This is how Michigan fans used to be....pissed when they win by 30. I've grown accustomed to just being happy they pulled out a W. Not any more, now I want perfection.  I hated that the backfield, what was left of it after Don Brown's unending blitzes, got shredded and gave up so many yards.  I hate that in the previous two games, the defense gave up a field goal and two touchdowns.  I want shutouts. Total. And. Complete. Dominance.

It's been a long time since I've been confident going in to every game.  Now, I'm confident and a little cocky with a hint of arrogance.  And, I'm going to let it all hang out once we start getting into the meat of the schedule and beating the smithereens out of our opponents.  I've never been a cocky arrogant fan, but with what I've endured during the Rich Rod and Brady Hoke eras, I'd say I've earned it.  I kept my cool, with my head held high, defending my team, and staying loyal during those embarrassing times.  Opponents' fans never once missed an opportunity to rub in my face how awful my team was and made a mockery of them.  Well.....now it's time for paybacks. You know what they say about Karma. It might look like passive-aggressive paybacks, but only I know my thoughts behind the smirk I'll wear on my face. And that is a good thing.

So, to the other loyal Michigan fans, sit back and enjoy the ride.  It's Been A Long Time.

Go Blue!
~Bekki

The Eve of Football

I'll never be able to top the season opener post from last year. If you haven't read, I biasedly recommend that you do, I kinda like it and it says all the right things.  It's titled 'Twas the Night Before Football.

Here's my best shot at this year's season opener post:

You know Bama and Sparty and Texas and Buckeyes,
Badgers, and Clemson, and Trojans and Hawkeyes,
But do you recall
The most prestigious school of all?
The University of Michigan,
Just off from I-94
Outfitted by the Jumpman
Who could ever ask for more?
All of the other schools
Wish that they could be like us
They try to put our coach down,
but we revel in the fuss.
Then one sunny bright fall day
Jimmy came to say
"Players with your maize and blue
Let's show them what we can do!"
And how the fans just loved them
As they shouted, "Let's Go Blue!"
The University of Michigan
I just want to say "Thank You!"

~Go Blue!
Bekki

Pick 6 things I love about Michigan:
1. That winged helmet
2. The honor, pride, and integrity of the university
3. The Victors
4. The tradition
5. The success
6. The Big House