basketball

Our First WNBA Game–Awesomeness!

by Monica on August 2, 2009

You may or may not recall that I was in a bit of a conundrum over my son’s desire to be a basketball when he grows up. Well, just imagine his sheer delight when I told him we were going to a professional basketball game!

Thursday night was such a treat for our family! We were guests of One2One and the WNBA at the matchup of The Atlanta Dream and The Phoenix Mercury. And what a game! Admittedly, I knew nothing of either team and had no idea what to expect. The Dream team was PHENOMENAL!

dream team collage

We had amazing seats. On the court! Yes, ON the court. And the kids were given t-shirts, thunder sticks, and a mini team basketball. Since it was “Go Green” night, we also got reusable water bottles at the door. The highlight for them, though, was sitting so close to the cheerleaders. Split Pea kept tapping them on the shoulder to talk to them. FLIRT.

cheerleader collage

Oh, and the “vewy soft” mascot was a hit. Well, for the boys. Sweet Pea was “so scayed” of him. And by “scayed,” I mean she freaked out and buried her face in Pop’s chest every time the big fuzzy thing came near her.

Dream mascot collage

I also had one of the best sandwiches ever…a buffalo chicken sandwich with bleu cheese slaw. Oh the yumminess. It was just divine. I’ve already dreamt of it. But I digress. The game. Back to the game.

It was exciting! It was fun! It was a blast to see the kids (and my husband and father, aka “Pop”…who went along to be the third peapod squad “handler”) enjoying themselves so much.

If there’s a WNBA game near you, you should definitely check it out. And you can even find AMAZING deals HERE. It was a great family event. And I love the message of the WNBA. I appreciated the wonderful opportunity to show my daughter that she can dream big.

And speaking of dreams, now Snap Pea doesn’t want to be a basketball when he grows up. No, now he wants to be a cheerleader. A new conundrum indeed.

I’m so thankful for a FUN night out with my sweet family.

kids collage

http://www.wnba.com/dream/

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The One Where I Don’t Encourage my Son’s Dreams

by Monica on July 5, 2009

basketball

A really tough part of parenting is figuring out how to deal with the gray areas. And there are MANY of them. Take the issue of encouraging your children to realize their dreams, for example. Sometimes, it’s just not helpful. Sometimes it really is more loving to be honest. To squelch the dream. To underscore the reality.

Sound awful? Consider this.

When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, Split Pea will say “a basketball player.” Well…Daddy is a bit on the vertically-challenged side so this dream may not immediately seem attainable, but one just never knows. And I say, “That’s awesome, honey! I bet you’d be a great basketball player!” He’s proud. Self-esteem developed. All that stuff.

When the same question is posed, Snap Pea will grin and say “a basketball.” OK. Umm…that’s just not possible. Nope. Never gonna’ happen. I don’t care what specialized school or training camp we send the kid to. He is NEVER going to be a basketball. Becoming an inanimate object is not something I see in his future. So, here’s the conflict. Do I encourage him? “That’s awesome, honey! I bet you’d be a great basketball!” And then what? One day he comes home from school completely distraught because someone with half a brain pointed out the obvious? Now his dreams are dashed AND his friends think he’s a freak. What good have I done? No, I keep telling him “Sweetie…basketballs are pretty cool and all, but you can’t be a ball.” And then I hold him while he sucks his thumb for comfort.

I’ve read more parenting books, articles, blogs than I care to admit and have found NOTHING helpful on this subject. No one tells you what to do when your son wants to be a basketball. No one.

(photo by RAWKUS)

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