Tennis

I haven't posted to my blog in forever and I still need to go through all the pictures we took on our amazing Czech Christmas trip with my parents, but I know that will take a while and I wanted to add some current pictures from a very busy week for us! 

This week was the ExxonMobil Qatar Tennis tournament and for the first time I was able to go to the players gala.  Somehow Ken has attended this every year, but I've never been his date.  I was excited to "dine" with the best tennis players in the world ... from a distance, behind a rope heavily guarded by security.  It was a very special moment (note the sarcasm).  So we didn't exactly "dine" with the players, but they were in attendance and we went with lovely friends and enjoyed a delicious meal.

left to right: David Ferrer (#7 in the world), Rafael Nadal (#5 in world), Qatari host, Novak Djokovic (#1 in world), Alistair Rutledge (ExxonMobil Lead Country Manager)

Dessert was a highlight of the evening ... looked like a tennis ball

crack it open to find a raspberry topped cream cake ... delicious!

 

 

The first night we attended, we took the kids to watch Nadal play Kuznetsov and a bit of Djokovich's match. I don't even know who Djokovic played since I spent forever in line getting snacks.  By the time I got back to our seats, they were ready to go home.  Such is the life of a parent.  The second night we attended was the semi finals and we opted to get a babysitter for the boys.  We watched the finals for the doubles and then we watch Nadel play Marchenko and Djokovic play Berdych.

 

We had great seats with the kids, but for the semi finals, we didn't know you had to arrive early to get the better seats (since it's an ExxonMobil event, we had complimentary corporate tickets, but seating preference was first come first serve).  So we ended up in the nosebleed section for the semi finals.  The air was a bit thin up there, but on the bright side, we could also keep an eye on our car from our seat!  Yes we were so high, we could see outside the stadium and see precisely where we parked!



The boys and I came straight after school so we wouldn't miss Nadel.  He's the boys favorite!  Ken met us there after he got home from work.

my boys!  So handsome!  Nicholas is always so great at smiling for the camera!!

Rafa's classic "butt pick" ... this is why he is the boys favorite!
He is either ridiculously superstitious or OCD (or maybe both), but he doesn't serve without first picking his butt, then tapping his left shoulder, then his right, then touching his nose, left ear, nose, right ear, with a swipe of the forehead somewhere in the middle.  It's hilarious to watch!!  The boys counted over 100 butt picks in one set a few years ago.  Of course his tennis isn't so bad either!!  Ranked second for the ExxonMobil Qatar Open ... and something like 5th in the world overall.  29 years old, made it to the finals 99 times, and has earned over $75M in prize money in his career.  With all that money, you think he could afford better underwear that doesn't give him a constant wedgie!

I enjoyed playing with our new zoom lens on the camera.  Rafael Nadal in all his serving glory!

action shot

And I love when the stars play with the kids after their match is over.



 

 



Doubles finals as seen from the nosebleed section.  Our car is parked just to the left of the stands opposite us.  Can you see it?  :-)



 

Novak Djokovic in action



Ready for the serve



Another great action shot



Berdych in action ... he played well against Djokovic ... an excellent match!



Love seeing sportsmanship played out in real life.  Berdych played a good match.





Djokovic wins the semi finals and ready to play Nadel tomorrow in the finals.