Priorities

Last night I kept my kids out late. I took them out of town on a school night and didn't bring them home until 10:30. When we pulled into the garage they were asleep and it took 10 minutes to wake them all up and to drag them into their rooms to put them to bed. I did all of this with full knowledge that they had full days of school, rehearsals, and practices ahead of them the next morning. I did this with the understanding of all of the research on proper rest and nutrition and the benefits of a structured schedule for kids. To make matters worse, this morning I decided that it was ok for them to sleep in for 30 extra minutes which made them a little late for school.

What was I thinking? I'll tell you what I was thinking: IT'S TOURNAMENT TIME BABY! Intitially, I told Lori that it would be best for them to stay home to make sure everyone got to bed on time. But that wouldn't last long. At about 2:30 Tuesday afternoon, Lori walked into my office and said, "I think we're coming to the game." I simply said, "ok" because I already knew what she was thinking.

You see the night before, I had to attend a game out of town and by the time I got home the kids were asleep. We didn't get to see each other at all and it was a night when my job kept me from being dad. So Tuesday night, we had to consider our options:
1. Send dad to the game alone so everyone can get to bed on time.
2. Spend the evening together, witness a championship game, and make some memories (and possibly be exhausted the next day).

We chose option 2. Thankfully we won the Region Championship and after the game my kids took turns holding the trophy. I talked to Pog today about the game. We talked about the feeling of winning as a result of preparation and hard work. We talked about what it feels like to work really hard at something and to see the hard work pay off.

This weekend we play two important games. If we win, we will earn a trip to Nashville to play for the state Final 4 and State Championship. In the event that it happens, I have no question about my top priority. My top priority will be with me in Nashville, cheering on the TEAM. They will miss a day or two of school, but to me it's worth it.