By BRAD KELLAR
Tue, May 13 2008
—
March Madness certainly has settled in at the Estate, as the residents begin to throw off the shackles of winter and launch into the warmth of spring.
In short, we’ve been busy.
— For example, Vida and I took our daughter Jaylynn, almost 9, to the Dallas Mavericks/Charlotte Bobcats game on the evening of March 12.
Accompanying us were our friends Amy and her daughter Madison, and our friend Leslee, along with her children Andrew and Camryn, as well as Leslee’s date. It was a sort-of combination Girl Scouts excursion (as Madison and Camryn are also members of Troop 565 with Jaylynn) and just an outing for the heck of it.
It was Jaylynn’s first-ever basketball game (not counting the few times she got to watch her older brother Nick, 18, play during his single school season) and it was my first time ever to make it to the American Airlines Center. I’ve been a Mavericks fan (OK, not as big a fan as I am for the Dallas Cowboys, and my heart was broken during last year’s NBA playoffs, but I still like the team) for a while and had attended a couple of games at Reunion Arena, so I was anxious to see the difference.
Vida, while she will watch a game of basketball, wasn’t overtly interested in the contest (other than seeing Jason Kidd) and actually brought a book to read.
Well, as anyone who has gone to games at both Reunion and the AAC can tell you, there is simply no comparison. Not only is everything bigger, brighter and bolder at the AAC, just getting into the building was like walking through a carnival.
It was Girl Scouts night, which meant we were eligible for discounted seats, but which also meant the seats we received were ... well lets just say we were seeking Sherpa guides for the ascent and decent, as it was just steep, very steep.
Still, the entire evening was a blast. Jaylynn declared herself a Mavericks fan and cheered loudly for her team at every opportunity, having been provided with plenty of fuel in the form of cotton candy and such. The Mavericks blew out the Bobcats, the game never was in doubt and both Vida and Amy got to ogle Jason Kidd ... albeit from a bit of a distance.
As for me, the experience helped rekindle my devotion to the Mavericks and my desire to see them go farther than the first round of the NBA playoffs this year ... please?
The absolute highlight of the evening came after the game. The Girl Scouts in attendance were invited to come down to the court and each were allowed to take one shot on the basket. I got to take pictures of all of us sitting courtside, although no one believed me the next day when I said I had courtside seats to the game, even with the photographic evidence. Jaylynn’s, Madison’s and Camryn’s moments of basketball history could be summed up in two words — Airball City — and were over in the blink of an eye, but there is no doubt we all had a wonderful time.
Jaylynn’s favorite new shirt? The bright pink one emblazoned with the word Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki’s “41” on the front, which her mother bought with a Girl Scouts discount at the souvenir store.
Now, if can just get her as interested in the Cowboys, we might have something ...
— The other big event of the month, so far, has been the Easter egg hunt. I decided to take Jaylynn and our son Jason, 16 months, to Saturday’s event, sponsored by the newspaper, Mary of Puddin Hill and 93.5 KIK-FM.
Of course, Jaylynn has participated in several prior egg hunts, both in the backyard of the Estate and elsewhere, while it was Jason’s first experience. Saturday morning, Jaylynn was jumping off the walls with excitement at the thought of getting even more candy to eat and her excitement must have rubbed off onto her little brother, because he was doing his “happy dance” virtually non-stop.
We arrived on the scene and Jaylynn took her place with the older kids while I accompanied Jason to the “0-4” area. The appointed moment came and, despite Jaylynn’s best efforts earlier in the day at training Jason in the proper procedure of finding, grabbing and storing the plastic eggs in his bucket, Jason was a little overwhelmed by the number of people milling about. In other words, Jason found no candy-filled eggs, but did manage to acquire some lollipops and a number of discarded plastic Easter egg shells, which delighted him to no end.
Jaylynn cleaned up, filling her large basket with candy and prizes, before hitting the bounce houses. Jason decided that rocks, trash and other debris also belonged in his bucket, so he kept busy while his sister jumped up and down.
We returned home, all of us feeling happy and victorious in our efforts and promising ourselves we were going to have to do it all again next year.
It is the hope of all of us here at the Kellar Estate that all of you had as blessed an Easter as we have had, and continue to do so.
Just a thought ...
Kellar is a Herald-Banner staff writer
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