TEAM BORICH: The Coaching Life... by a Coach's Wife

GAME DAY AT THE BORICH'S...I thought it might be kind of fun to show everyone what game day is like at our house. It started Friday night when I got home from work at 6:00pm. Joe went to the store for me & picked up the things I needed to make my contributions for the tailgating, homemade macaroni salad & spinach dip. You all know these have to be made the night before to be refrigerated, so when dinner was done, I started cooking. This is when "Hannah Montana" & "Shark Tale" come in handy! Game Day begins at 6:45am when Max wakes up (he usually sleeps until 8ish). I hang out with the kids, cartoons & cereal while Dad gets his final hour of sleep. 8am sharp, Joe is up to shower, shave and dress in a suit (hubba-hubba!) for pre-game meal at the local 4-star restaurant, the Statler. On his way out the door, the kids both say "good luck, Dad" and I haul my butt off the couch (which is becoming more difficult) to say what I say for every game. "Don't second guess yourself and remember who you are and what you stand for." (Shauna-ism) After I calm Max down, who is very sad that "Daddy go to foo-ball game" without him, I get the kids ready, then myself and we head out at 10:10am (Cornell is about 20 minutes away and the ENTIRE ride is filled with "Maxi go to Daddy foo-ball game" over and over) First, I make about 4 trips to haul everything (food, drinks, blankets, warm clothes, etc.) out to the car, including the kids! Mykah & Max are ready for the festivities...10:30am. We arrive on campus to park and throw on hats, etc. Then we walk a short distance to see Daddy in the "parade"...

The Cornell marching band leads the way from the Statler Hotel, up the street and into the stadium, Schoellkopf Field. This is actually the first time we've witnessed this. Gotta say, I thought it was pretty cool!

Here comes the team! These are the kids that I can't get to STOP calling me Mrs. Borich...

My ever-so-hot hubby all dressed up. Some of you might also recognize Bruce Barnum, (friend who dragged us here) the Offensive Coordinator and dear friend. I'm such a big ball of hormones right now that this whole event actually made me teary...there's something about seeing the one you love with every inch of your being in his element, and this is Joe's. It's what he does so well and loves and we are so proud of him!!!

Back up to the parking lot (after kisses from Daddy on his way in the door to prepare for the game) to tailgating activities for the kids,

facepainting for Mykah...

food for Max (maca-woni)

Coach waiting for the kick off (I like to think this is where he subconsciously thinks, "I better rest my voice for a few more minutes, then it's on!")

A little time to SCHMOOZE...something we all know he does so well!

Tailgating was so exhausting...maybe I shouldn't have woken up at 6:45!

Max caught some desperately needed zzzzz's between the bleachers. Kick off is at 1:00pm, which is exactly when he would be napping at home or daycare, so it gets kind of dicey prior to this blessed event!

I won't pretend to have any idea what in the world he's saying to the players...might not have been great, considering the way the game went today.

Shortly after the following picture of Joe & his players, Mykah came back to where I was sitting with the other coach's wives. (She does her own thing with all the other coach's kids throughout the game, so I only see her when she needs $$$) This is the first year Joe has coached on the sidelines and not in the box, which has been very fun for us to watch. Anyway, I digress...Mykah came up to me after this and said,"Mama, I could hear Daddy YELLING at the players. I couldn't hear what he said, but he sounded MAD! He didn't swear, though..."! Awww, those are the tender moments in life, right!?

At the end of the day, Cornell lost the game, but Daddy gets some of the sting taken out of that by basking in the love of his children. They never care if he wins or loses, only that he's their dad and they enjoyed being part of his day, even from the bleachers.

Joe, I love you with all of my heart, my mind and my soul. You are the love of my life and I'm proud of you every day. Thank you for the man that you are, the husband that I cherish and the father that our children are so proud to call "Daddy". We are blessed to have you as ours...