Happy 13th Birthday, Rowen!
This has been a best-ever, best friend birthday; and Rowen
is all smiles as I’m writing this and we’re snuggled under the covers of the
bed in our hotel room.
I’ve had so many favorite moments today, but let’s start
with Rowen’s first birthday surprise at the Inn
during the breakfast buffet. The
football news that everyone else in town cares about most today can wait.
Rowen was sure that going out for breakfast was entirely
because her parents couldn’t do anything else with her while working the big
sale day at the computer store, so watching her open that first card from her
parents with the gift of a ticket to the championship game and spending money
was priceless. That surprise quickly
moved to number two on the best gift list for the day with Tim’s gifts. She loves the necklace a lot, but it was the
‘One Boyfriend – Your Choice’ coupon in his card that won the
best-gift-ever-so-far prize.
I thought that was fairly romantic coming from a thirteen-year
old boy, and while that could mean that Michael helped Tim out with that part
of their surprise; the ‘fine print’ was likely all Tim. “This offer is exclusively for Rowen Emerson,
and is redeemable only on her thirteenth birthday. Terms and conditions are negotiable. Some conditions apply. Attending Championship football game is
mandatory.”
Just for the sake of wondering, Rowen; what do you think Tim
would’ve done if you’d tried to redeem that coupon but told him you wanted him
to get you some other guy – like Jake Stone?
Yeah, probably not a good plan – especially when you’ve waited this long
for Tim to come to his senses. I do want
to be there when you show that coupon to your mother tomorrow, though; and drop
the boyfriend news on both of your parents – if that news doesn’t reach them
before we get back.
Rowen liked the rest of the gifts she opened while we had
breakfast, but nothing could top the boyfriend gift – even though she didn’t
technically redeem that coupon until we were on our way to the football
game. I think that they were both
waiting until we were out of town before trying out things like holding hands
in public. They’d moved along to
cuddling in hotel room beds by the end of the evening – just a little while ago
– so I’d say they’ve made decent progress in that department since this
morning; but I’m getting way ahead of the story.
The breakfast buffet was a bit of a rush for us – and then
some for Michael. He’d come to the Inn
with his parents to help out for a while before joining us for Rowen’s birthday
breakfast when the first waves of food were delivered to the buffet
tables. While other members of our
collective families had to hurry through their meals for other reasons, we needed
to eat; have Rowen open her gifts; and be on the road by shortly after eight
o’clock.
Since word wasn’t out yet, I’m sure that anyone who saw
Rowen and Tim leave with his Aunt, Uncle, and Carolyn assumed they were going
for the ride together so that Michael and I could be together while getting a
ride to the game with Sally, Joshua, and her parents. While they weren’t holding hands or cuddling
during the trip, I’m sure that Rowen and Tim were both happy about spending
that time together; and Michael, Joshua, Sally, and I all had fun too during
the two and a half hours it took to get to the Central State stadium. Sally and Joshua weren’t in on the entire
birthday surprise, but we were able to talk about the post-football plans; and
their parents didn’t have a problem with them joining us for Rowen’s birthday
dinner and a play evening at the sports entertainment center.
We were at the stadium with lots of time to spare before the
game, but Lee needed to be early enough for the pre-game pep talk that he was
doing with our team; and Sally’s parents wanted to wish her brothers good luck
again before the game too. Once we were
in the stadium, Sally was given a cell phone; and the six of us were set free
to wander around, pick up some souvenirs, and eventually buy some drinks and
snacks before meeting up with a group of parents and going to find our
seats. Rowen and Tim were both all
smiles while finally getting around to holding hands while we did a tour of the
stadium. That tiny little change was the
difference between being there as six friends and hanging out as three couples;
and I can assure you that it was a big deal for Rowen – especially since it was
her first time being one half of a teen couple.
There were a few souvenirs that we all wanted to get, and
it’s amazing how much customized gear the organizers can come up with in just
one week. I’m sure they have things like
player’s photos and bios, team logos, and the season stats; but that still
means everything from programs to pins and wearables are put together in under
seven days once the competing teams were decided last week. Of course, for our game, Clairmont may have
been added early since this was their fourth trip in a row to the big game; but
our team getting here for a second year was only slightly less shocking than
our surprise run last year – at least to anyone who hadn’t seen Kyle play yet.
So we’re ready for the championship game part of the recap.
Mom and I didn’t ever go to any stadiums for either sports
or concerts, so Central
State’s facilities seemed
very big to me; though I also know that they have a fairly modest building
compared to the really big colleges or professional team buildings. ‘Our’ little block of seats also seemed small
even compared to where the Clairmont fans were sitting on the other side of the
field from us; but then we’d have needed to pretty much empty Witch Falls to
use up all of the seating that we could have reserved – and about half of the
Ridge River District too. There were
several thousand spectators, but most were not supporting one team or the
other. There were media crews, college
scouts, and fans, family, and players from other teams; along with mostly local
residents or college students looking for some cheap sports entertainment for
the afternoon.
We didn’t get a warm, balmy weather day for the game, but it
was nice out; and enough above freezing to not be seriously uncomfortable. Since holding hands and cuddling was now an
option for Rowen and Tim; I don’t think they’d have cared if it was below
freezing this afternoon. One good thing
about high school matches like this is that we had great seats just to one side
of the fifty yard line. We weren’t the
only teens in the Witch Falls contingent, but the six of us had quite a few
adults between us and the next closest kids or teens; and Sally and Joshua were
only with Rowen, Tim, Michael, and me because of a seat switch so we could sit
together.
Even for a championship game, there isn’t all that much
pre-game fanfare at the high school level, so it wasn’t much past noon when the
opening kick-off was booted by the Clairmont kicker to our team. This was our first playoff game of the season
where we were the ‘away’ team, and while Clairmont won the coin toss and chose
to defer and get the ball for the start of the second half; I’m not sure if
that was normal for them, or if there was a particular reason why they chose
not to start the match with what was the better half of their team according to
the stats – their offense.
Whatever the reason, it looked like a good decision when our
offense only managed to pick up twenty-three yards before needing to punt on
our first drive. The Clairmont players
and coaches all looked very happy with that result – and stayed happy right up
until Kyle flattened their quarterback on their second offensive play; scooped
up the fumble; and then bulled his way into the end zone for our first
touchdown.
Clairmont was a three-time champion, and I’m not going to
take anything away from them because they played like champions through the
entire game – even when there wasn’t any reasonable chance for them to make up
the points deficit in the fourth quarter.
They came right back from that mistake and managed a field goal on their
next drive; and a touchdown near the end of the second quarter. Those were the only highlights for them,
though, and there were a lot of bad moments.
Kyle led the way, but the entire defense really stepped it up; and if
they weren’t scoring touchdowns, they were leaving our offense with great field
position. We were ahead thirty-one to
ten by half-time.
Our cheerleaders took to the field next, and while Jenny and
the other girls had fun, did their best, and looked good out there; their
little routine seemed very small in that big stadium – and compared to the show
the much larger Clairmont squad performed a few minutes later. I know their school is bigger than ours too,
but I’ll guess that having a winning team more often than not helps with the
cheerleader recruiting as much as it would for the players.
Getting the ball first in the third quarter didn’t work out
at all for Clairmont. Kyle sacked their
quarterback on the first play; and then we got another interception on a
hurried throw when the poor guy was trying desperately not to get pounded into
the ground a second time in a row. Our
offense may have averaged less than twenty-five yards per possession, but
that’s not a problem when half of your drives start in your opponent’s red
zone.
Kyle followed that up with a defensive takeaway and
touchdown on the next Clairmont drive, and with a forty-five to ten lead at
that point; we started kicking field goals for the rest of the game – one
before the end of the third, and three in the fourth. As I mentioned, Clairmont didn’t give up, and
played hard right to the end. They
managed to earn ten more points, including a touchdown on a busted play at the
start of the fourth quarter; but there was no doubt which was the better team
this year. The final score was
fifty-seven to twenty; and Kyle was the easy MVP pick with five defensive turnovers,
three touchdowns, and six sacks. That
didn’t even include tackles, tackles for losses, or passes he broke up but
didn’t intercept. Other guys on our
defense had good numbers too, but in most cases; they had Kyle to thank for the
opportunities.
Kyle got a fair bit of media and scout attention after the
game, but the scouts at least were disappointed to find out that he planned on
playing ball for his father’s college.
The press loved that, and at least some of them were probably searching
for Lee’s old college football records to add to the ‘small-town-kid plays big’
story.
There was about an hour available in between each
championship game, and while some of the members of our Witch Falls group had
other plans – or were even heading home again after the game; we had tickets
for the next match – as did all of the players, coaches, and cheerleaders. We had enough time to wander around, stretch
our legs, and get drink and snack refills before moving to another set of
seats. Most of the parents, including
Sally’s and Joshua’s, were still with our team when the next game started, so
there were some empty seats around us until about mid-way through the first
quarter. All of our players earned
cheers when they joined us, and though that was out of place and not timed with
any action on the field; nobody seemed to mind.
Maybe that happened regularly at these championship events.
Tim didn’t get to spend much time with his cousin, but Kyle
did talk with us for a couple of minutes before going to sit with Erin and most
of the other guys on the team – and their girlfriends. Jason obviously didn’t have his girlfriend
there, but I have no idea how he felt about that because he completely ignored
Michael and me.
With all of the older teens around, Rowen started going into
shy mode, but Tim stayed close; and kept hold of her hand when she tried a few
times to let go and avoid drawing any attention to them. I know that some of the girls noticed, but if
any of the guys did; it was only after hearing about it from a girlfriend
first. I don’t blame them for that –
after all, they’d just won a championship; and there was also a football game
in progress that was way more interesting than who was holding hands with whom
in the junior teen ranks.
I’m going to completely skip the second game re-cap; since I
didn’t know anything about either team. Michael,
Tim, and Joshua were as into the game as the rest of the guys; but Rowen,
Sally, and I mostly just chatted quietly and enjoyed being there with our
boyfriends.
That’s right, Rowen, you’ve joined the club. Give it a little time; and you’ll get used to
the idea.
Before I wrap up the football news, I should back up a bit
and mention that Sally and Joshua had some celebration time with their brothers
during that second game. Sally’s older
brother, Alex, is in his second year on the team, so this win was a bigger deal
for him – just as it was for all of the guys who had lost to Clairmont in the
game last season. Sally’s other brother,
Mark, and Joshua’s older brother, Ray, are both in Grade Ten and this is their
first year on the team, so while they don’t have the history; they’re very
excited to now be part of Witch Falls football history. They each spent a little time with us too;
but were nearly as busy as Kyle was.
Finally, we obviously know all of the players, but didn’t get a chance
to talk with all of them this afternoon – or congratulate them.
We talked to Caleb and Erica, and they may have made a point
of checking in with us after spending the afternoon together on
Thanksgiving. Jeff Morris talked to us
too, but that was because he was with Carolyn after the game when she came
looking for us to get Tim and Rowen for the ride over to the hotel. Cody Carter was the only other guy to talk to
us; and he actually sat down for a few minutes at the start of the third
quarter. That little moment was fun
because we talked horses more than football; but then he was off to hang out
with the other, older teens; and we were on our own again.
We headed to the hotel after the ‘bonus’ game, and while
someone had already done the check-in for the players, cheerleaders, and
coaches; most of the families that were staying overnight needed to do that
before going to our rooms. Sarah Landry
needed to do that for Rowen and me; though our bill was going onto Mom’s
pre-authorized account. Once we were in
our room, Rowen and I only had time to freshen up a bit, do our hair, and get
dressed for dinner before needing to meet up with Michael, Tim, Sally, and
Joshua. Since the players, their
girlfriends, and most of their parents were attending special dinners and
league events; we were on our own for Rowen’s birthday dinner – though Sally
was given a cell phone again in case of emergency; we had hotel transportation
to the restaurant; and pre-arranged pick-up from the sports entertainment
center at eleven o’clock for a ride back to the hotel.
That said; the six of us felt like we’d been set free in the
big city for the first time ever. The
good news for our parents is that we also took the trust being shown to us
seriously; and didn’t take the opportunity to get into any trouble – no matter
how much Tim joked about doing just that.
We’d picked out a surf and turf restaurant that was nice but not in any
kind of budget range that would have shocked our friends. Then again, Sally and Joshua were surprised
to find out that I was buying for all of us; though they probably assumed that
some parental support went into my bank account ahead of time to have that kind
of money available on my debit card. My
perspective on that is different for sure; but then I spent about fifteen
million dollars this week on some family business work; so that isn’t really
fair comparing my view on money compared to most kids or teens.
Dinner was still really good, though not on the same level
as Thanksgiving dinner was yesterday. We
had a couple of extra presents for Rowen; and there was a small birthday cake
for dessert. We were at the restaurant
for a bit more than an hour and a half; and then we walked to the sports
entertainment center – ready to play for a few hours. Michael and I had really loved our visit to
SportsFusion in Crystal Springs when we went there with his family for that
last play day before Jake and Stephanie left for New York, and while this place
wasn’t as big and had some different activities, it was the same type of fun
center; and we all had a blast tonight.
I knew exactly how my best friend would react to some of the
extreme games, and while Sally and Joshua were right there with us for
everything we tried; this was their first real experience with seeing that side
of Rowen – except for maybe if they saw our bike routine during the Fourth of
July parade. They were in the parade
too, though, so they might not have caught that act. There was a rock climbing wall and Laser Tag here,
just as there was at SportsFusion; but no giant zip line or trampoline
basketball. They did have a pair of
large trampolines with bungee cord harnesses that allowed a safe way to try
some pretty cool tricks; an indoor beach volleyball court; and a massive
arcade, where collecting tickets to win prizes.
I won’t comment on how lame those prizes were; since we went through a
lot of tokens to win a few of them.
Tim needed to joke about why Rowen won so many games
tonight, with the top excuse – I mean reason – being that he and the other guys
were taking it easy because it was her birthday. I’m sure that her birthday – and best gift of
the year – did have something to do with why Rowen was so motivated and fired
up; but Rowen also has that thrill-seeker part of her too. Since she doesn’t let that side of her out to
play very often; Tim just keeps forgetting that it’s there – and seems slightly
astonished when she does things like climbing a rock wall while leaving him
scrambling to even keep up. Rowen loved
the trampolines too; and she and I were good enough at that to draw a small
crowd of spectators while we did flips and somersaults for a few minutes. Tim won our games of Laser Tag, but with all
of their practice with video games; the guys had a distinct advantage for that.
That blast of fun was over too soon, but we were outside
with a few minutes to spare before our hotel van service arrived to take us
back to the hotel. Sally and Joshua met
up with their parents then, but Tim could only check in with his aunt and uncle
because they were still out and celebrating with some of the other parents and
teens. Michael and Tim’s room has two
double beds, so we opted to end our evening with watching a movie in their room
– possibly because the guys would have thought that all four of us in the one
bed in our room was too weird.
I’m not sure whether Rowen would have been that daring if
our parents had been at the hotel too, but cuddling in a bed with Tim tonight
when they wouldn’t even have held hands in public this morning really is a big
step; and for the parents reading this – we didn’t do anything more radical
than cuddling while watching the movie.
Well, there were some kisses too; but I wouldn’t classify that as
radical either. Sarah checked in on us
when their group got back to the hotel; and we were still in the boys’ room
then; so I’m sure that news will make the town news network over the
weekend. We obviously weren’t still in
the beds by the time Tim opened the door, but it was also obvious that we had
been, and Sarah didn’t even attempt to hide the smile and laughter as she
advised us that it was time for Rowen and I to go to our own room and for all
of us to get some sleep. She didn’t wait
around to make sure that happened, and while it might have looked suspicious
when Michael walked me to my room so that Tim and Rowen could end her birthday
with a first goodnight kiss with her first boyfriend; he only stayed with me
until Rowen joined us, and then he went back to his room again.
Yes, we took advantage of that time too, Rowen; but I’m sure
you knew that we would – and I did mention already that this has been my
best-ever, best friend’s birthday; so a spectacular goodnight kiss should be a
given.
We took turns in the bathroom; got ready for bed; and have
been talking and surfing the web since then.
Sleeping in – at least from my usual morning routine – is an option; but
Michael and I are going to meet for Tai Chi early enough that we can do that
and still be ready for breakfast at nine o’clock. Rowen is still on cloud nine, and it may be a
while still before we’re able to sleep, but that’s really all I have for
tonight; so I’m going to tuck my computer into its case for the night and maybe
we’ll be able to talk ourselves to sleep.
There’s a really good chance that we’ll both have some very happy dreams
to look forward to; so we really should get to that sooner instead of later.
Live long and prosper, fellow Magi of the Light!
