March Madness and a very belated Mardi Gras

I absolutely love March Madness. Admittedly, I find it difficult to be a devoted fan of the many games during the regular season, but when it comes to mid-March, I am all about some basketball. I used to think my excitement for the tournament had a lot to do with the change from winter to spring, the flowers blooming, the first days of throwing open the windows...but, it still feels like November here in Seattle, and my excitement is no more muted. Well, it is more muted than last year when the first day of March Madness, St. Patrick's Day, coincided with Match Day!. It's hard for me to believe that it was a year ago when we gathered at Emory, opened the envelope, screamed from happiness and disbelief, and started wrapping our minds around the idea of becoming Seattlites...wow! This year Davidson is in the tournament again, so I will be cheering loudly on Thursday morning (behind my office door!) for my beloved Wildcats and wishing that I could just hop in the car and drive the 3 hours to Portland to root for them in person...! Seems a crime that they got the only west coast draw and we can't go...

My bracket is filled out and submitted (and, yes, I filled it out with my heart instead of my head, having my Florida Gators meet my Davidson Wildcats in the Elite 8...I dream big!!!) and, come Thursday night, you will be able to find me close to my TV with bracket and highlighters nearby cheering for my picks to make it all the way to April 2nd.

And, while I'm in a celebratory mood, a little step back to February to share photos of our King Cake decorating from Mardi Gras. My parents so generously sent us an amazingly sweet, berry-filled King Cake which Jack absolutely loved!

Happy March Madness to all of you!