The BNP Paribas Open

As Sienna posted previously, the family took our annual trek to the California desert to attend the BNP Paribas Open, or to tennis aficionados, the '5th Grand Slam'.  My brother Danny works for Tennis Warehouse, a sponsor of the tournament, and hooked us up with awesome courtside seats.  Sienna was very interested in watching tennis as she loved our Tucson tennis extravaganza and now is an official tennis enthusiast.  Spenser?  Well he couldn't be bothered to watch tennis, even if the players are the best in the world.  So he stayed with Papa and Papa Rose and did what young boys like to do, play basketball, swim, and just be active.  Here is a recap of the highlights!

Here is Sienna at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden entrance.  We waited there for Uncle Danny to bring us our tickets and credentials.  Aren't we special?  The picture is not an illusion, she is that tall!

My brother Danny is the reason we like to visit this tournament every year.  Of course I've always loved the game of tennis but the appeal of free tickets to see the pros play is a deal that can't be passed up.  The tournament itself is amazing, and the venue beautiful, as some of the pictures portray.  And I being a sun worshiper, absolutely love the weather.  Tennis Warehouse does a fantastic job with not only retail, but also player signings, and product exhibitions.  So a huge shout-out to Tennis Warehouse.  If you or anyone else is in need of anything tennis, visit them at http://www.tenniswarehouse.com/.  You won't be disappointed!  You can also click on shoe reviews, or the video vault, and find many videos of my brother advertising and demoing products.  You can see him play too, and witness the talent in the bloodline.

 
Here we are in front of the Tennis Warehouse retail tent and the same place where the pros do their signings.

We watched several matches over the course of two days, and got to see the eventual champions in both mens and womens play.  Here is Jelena Jankovic, the women's champ, and Ivan Lubijic, the men's champion.

                                                                                                  

We were only able to get one signing this trip, but it was a biggie.  Andy Roddick, an American tennis player with the fastest serve recorded, was the autograph we scored.  We watched him play as well, and he even got to the final, but lost to Lubijic pictured above.  Here is Andy and Sienna with our autographed items.

Another tennis player of note we watched was Rafael Nadal, otherwise known as Rafa.  We saw him play singles, and to our surprise he was also playing doubles.  That is a rare treat.  Here we are at the doubles match.  By the way, they won this match, and eventually won the tournament.

I got pretty close to Rafa as he left the doubles match! Unfortunately, he wasn't signing anything of mine!

Here is a picture of Rob to prove he was there with us!  Thankfully he was happy to be there, partake in the sights and sounds, and be our photographer.  Here we are outside the stadium and on the peaceful grounds.

Another neat thing is while on the grounds, you never know who you'll run into.  Here I am with a famous former tennis player behind me.  She's the blonde.  Do you know who it is?

Well if you don't know, that's o.k.  It's Tracy Austin.  Here is Sienna getting in on the action as well.

We ended our two day session with a stop at the Tennis Warehouse tent to say goodbye to brother Dan.  While there Sienna enjoyed one of the cool props.  It was a fun trip for all and we hope to expand the family attendance next year to include Grandma Rose and Tots. 

California Fun

Hey everyone! Sienna here, coming to you from, oh ya, California! Spenser and I are staying at Papa's house. All of us met in Palm Springs and stayed at Thousand Trails trailer park, so we could go watch tennis. Big shout out to Uncle Dan. He got us great quart side tickets, to watch Nadal, Roddick, and other tennis stars! Spenser and I arrived in Arroyo Grande on Saturday, and went to Round Table Pizza for dinner that night. On Sunday, we got up and went to breakfast at Denny's. Then we rushed to the movie theater to go see Avatar. PapaRose had told me that we were going to the Fremont. We arrive and park at the Downtown Cinemas, and then I say,'Weren't we supposed to go to the Fremont?' so we go to the Fremont. The ticket booth guy said that Avatar, was not playing at that theater. So, we had to drive all the way back, and had to wait five minutes for someone to actually sell us the tickets. Overall, the movie was good. Sometimes confusing, but overall good. After the movie, we visted our lovely great Grandma Rose. We visited for an hour or two, and watched Roddick take on Ljubicic. I was sad because Roddick had lost to Ljubicic. Well, it happens, right? Last night, we watched New Moon, after we bought the movie. Go Team Edward!

Anyway, here are some pitures from the BNP Paribas!

Here is me at the BNP Paribas. We got our hat and tennis ball signed by, guess who? Andy Roddick! Oh ya! Stood in line for 45 minutes! It was all worth it! Go Roddick!

Here is Rafael Nadal signing autographs at the end of the night match!

Having a good time in Cali on spring break! Peace Out! :) :) :) :)

The Harlem Globetrotters

The Harlem Globetrotters were in town and since Spenser has taken an interest in basketball, Rob thought attending would be a fun, family experience. Everyone was looking forward to it. Unfortunately, my monthly migraine showed up on the day of the show, so there was some last minute phone-calling to get someone to go, instead of waste a $56 ticket. Thankfully, Miranda from across the street was available. Here they are having some fun!



And here they are inside the arena!



I saw the Globetrotters when I was a child, so it's cool that this tradition continues. Here is a video of what the 'trotters' do best: