Happy Birthday, Jeremy!

Last year, we went to Mount Airy for Jeremy's birthday. This year, the timing worked out for us to do something that was (in my opinion) even more awesome - we got to go watch basketball alum from his hue
of blue play against basketball alum from MY hue of blue.

The fact that this game was scheduled for Jeremy's birthday weekend was proof to me that we just HAD to go, so go we did, leaving Jones and Freddie at the Pressleys' and stopping in Knoxville to watch Tennessee's HEARTBREAKING loss to Oklahoma on the way.

photo creds: Jeremy Pressley!

First, of course, we celebrated on his actual birthday.  We (sorta) ate cinnamon rolls in bed, while Jeremy opened the gifts wrapped in the Wahken paper that Jones picked out. Then, we ate lunch with him at Bogart's (Freddie calls it "din-din"). His big family celebration came Friday nite, and he and I left for our weekend away after putting the boys down for their Saturday naps.

Though we got to Knoxville almost three hours before kick-off, we were almost late to the game, because of the parking situation in K-town. Not even joking, our hour-long drive through downtown Knoxville was the closest we've come to divorce. We finally ended up parking about two and a half miles from Neyland in what was, presumably, the last available spot this side of the Cumberland River. On the bright side, though, the spot only cost five dollars, and the van spent the evening parked in the capable care of some man with meth mouth.

Comforting.

97% of the game experience was amazing. We had terrific seats - and the weather was PERFECT for football. It wasn't too hot, but it wasn't too cold, either. It was EXQUISITE.  The atmosphere was the best I've ever experienced at Neyland - and I've experienced some good games at Neyland! Then came the fourth quarter ... and things went south pretty quickly.

We stayed to the bitter end, though, and finally made it back to Meth Mouth around 11 p.m. Somehow, Jeremy had us in Lexington by 1. I don't even want to know how he did it.

On Sunday morning, I slept until 10 AM. Don't judge. Then we went out to eat at the Keeneland Track Kitchen. This is a regular stop for my trips to Lexington, but I've never before been during a Yearling Sale. THAT.WAS.AWESOME. Again, it was a beautiful morning. That definitely enhanced our experience, but to see those beautiful animals, paraded around for potential buyers - and to see the stalls all dressed up, like a jockey in a stunning silk - it was an unexpected surprise of the trip.

Then came the Main Event. We got to the UK / UNC game almost 90 minutes early, which is precisely how I like to arrive.  It was absolutely amazing to see the guys again. As I tweeted during the event, I felt like a mama whose boys were home from college on their fall break. It was a giddy kind of, I-can't-quit-smiling sort of feeling.

And the Cats gave me lots to smile about, but since this is a post about JEREMY'S birthday, I'll leave that part out.

After the game, we ate at Qdoba (which is how I knew he loved me) and headed home. It was a great weekend, and though I thought about the boys every single second and couldn't quit looking at pictures of them, I'm so thankful for some time away with their sweet daddy.

Jones calls him "Wahken;" Freddie calls him "Keen,"
which makes more sense to me.

Most stadiums and arenas have a rule now that you can't
bring in cameras with detachable lenses.
I'm not exactly sure why, but it means we only have
iPhone photos of the games we saw.
This, of course, came close to ruining my weekend.