We got back from our annual trip to the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament yesterday and this year we came away from Atlanta feeling happy and well… not actually hating Atlanta.

This year we changed up our vacation strategy by staying in a Bed and Breakfast which proved to save money and take away a ton of stress I didn’t recognize we had until it was missing.

The tournament was fun, even though Auburn lost their first game. The kids loved riding the MARTA, we found restaurants that weren’t crowded and had good food, and Tebow found fans in the stands while he enjoyed the games. And if he looks like this, why wouldn’t he have fans?

Fuller’s football season isn’t the only football we have enjoyed this fall. As an Auburn fan family we were thrilled to watch the Tigers play this season. We didn’t get to go to Auburn as much as we hoped, but as I have mentioned before, it was a little lesson in honoring commitment (and a little bit of cursing at CBS for broadcasting their games in the afternoon instead of night).

Well, tonight our family gathered around the media center and cheered the Tigers on to victory during the SEC championship game.

Earlier this week I was able to get a little video of Fuller singing the “Tunnel Video” song. The Tunnel Video is the video shown on the jumbotron at home games, right before the players take the field. It has hand motions (as indicated by the words “everybody’s hands go up” and “up, down, up, down, up”), which we have taught Tebow but have never successfully recorded on video. (He even sings some of the words, specifically “win” which is so darn cute and you just have to be here to see it, I guess.)

Well, we still have Fuller singing the song. Which I think is equally adorable because if you have seen the tunnel video, you know that there is a sound bite from Coach Chizik regarding the fans (that’s US!). Fuller doesn’t just sing the song, he says the sound bite too!

Here’s the original video:

It was a fun game and I’m so happy the Tigers were able to win, win, win their way to the Championship and now we just need to get through bowl season and see them win the national title! War Eagle!

Technorati Tags: war eagle, Auburn football, Auburn tunnel video

Soon after we got to Lake Martin last week, I mentioned wanting to go to one of the Auburn basketball games. It happened that Auburn would be playing Kentucky, so we got excited and made plans. But apparently a lot of other people got excited as well (probably mostly Kentucky fans) and when I checked the ticket site on Saturday morning I found out the general tickets were all sold out.

Rain dashed our ideas of buying from scalpers so Albert and Linda generously gave their tickets to Fuller and me.

This gift was generous because Albert and Linda have magic tickets that not only get them entrance to the games but access to the hospitality suite (aka free food, drinks, and Fuller’s favorite: POPCORN!). Also, it meant they were going to keep Tebow while Fuller and had a mother-son date. It all adds up to generous giving.
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Before we took our trip to Alabama, Damon saw the Auburn Raptor Center was now offering demonstrations of its rehabilitated raptors every Friday before a home game. He suggested that Grandma and I take Fuller to see the show on Friday, and I thought it sounded pretty good.

The Auburn Raptor Center does their demonstrations at the SRC Amphitheater. For some reason, it never occurred to me amphitheater = outdoors. So when we arrived there and saw the outdoor seating, I had a slight panic. No sunscreen, no hat for Fuller, and I didn’t bring my water bottle.

Fortunately, the admission stand ($5 per person for the show) had cold bottled water for $1.15. Damon said $1.15 for cold bottled water was much better than the $4 a bottle we would pay the next day at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

The demonstration was really amazing. We saw owls, hawks, falcons, a vulture and an eagle. The handlers showed us how the raptors fly, hunt, and eat. Some of the raptors are tethered when they fly and others are trained so well they are not tethered.

Fuller learned one bird call, which at the moment he can’t duplicate, but when he did… it was cute!

In case you are not aware, Auburn’s war cry is “War Eagle!” Part of the legend has a Golden Eagle circling the football field when Auburn was playing Georgia, causing the fans to yell “War Eagle!”

As part of the pre-game ceremony at Auburn home games, an eagle is released to circle above Jordan-Hare Stadium and flies down to the field. They swap out the eagles, and currently Spirit, a Bald Eagle, is being used in the early games of 2008-2009 season. However, in the tradition of War Eagles, War Eagle VII, aka Nova, is the Golden Eagle we were able to see up close last Friday. He will fly later in the season at home games. We were able to see him released and fly around the amphitheater once.

It really was a fun experience. Damon was able to join us, so it made it easier on me to take pictures and for Grandma to enjoy herself as well. While it was hot, we stayed hydrated and happily fanned ourselves with complimentary fans to keep a bit cooler. If you are ever in Auburn on a home game Friday, make plans to see the raptors. It really is an awe inspiring event.

Technorati Tags: Auburn, Auburn Raptor Center, Raptors, War Eagle

I’m almost ready, but Fuller keeps trying to climb in the car so we can go now. We are embarking on our new stage of family life- Auburn Season Ticket holders. This weekend is the kickoff and we plan on going to Lake Martin for the hospitality of D’s parents. While Fuller is enjoying some grandparent time, Damon Auburn Elvis and I will be at Auburn enjoying the fans, atmosphere, and some football.

Fuller has been looking forward to football season just because it meant one more trip to the lake.

A few weeks ago I approached by a fellow Auburn fan who saw the Auburn sticker on our car. His car was covered in Auburn magnets and stickers. He is the grandfather of Bailey Woods, a red shirt freshman who will be one of Auburn’s tight ends this season (number 48). Grandpa Woods was going on and on about Bailey, giving me stats and a little family history (Bailey’s dad and grandpa both played for Georgia Tech, Bailey bucked tradition).

It was nice to see someone so proud and excited for his grandson. It made me think forward to the future and how Fuller’s grandpas will probably talk about him when he plays for Auburn too. And it got me even more excited for the season, since I have a little something personal to hang on to. I guess I’m one of those spectators who likes the color commentary and back story on players, a lot more than stats and speculation.

So, our family will drive south with our Tiger Tail out the trunk and ready to shout “War Eagle!” to every Auburn fan we pass on the road.

Guess where we will be this weekend?