This is how we do it

A Dream Come True...in BLUE!

For those of you who know my husband, you know he is probably one of the biggest, most devoted BYU fans out there! He is in love with anything BYU and knows more about BYU sports than anyone I know. He reads countless chat rooms, blogs, and sport websites devoted to BYU athletics every day as his "morning paper". Every time one of those trivia questions comes up at the games ie. "who was the only player to blah blah blah in the year blah blah blah playing the position blah blah blah..." You can bet Ronnie knows the answer, plus a few other facts surrounding the question. He wont try and shout it out like those other fans that just happen to know the answer. No, he will sit there with a little smile on his face and it isn't until I ask him what it is that he will quietly tell me the exact details of the answer, long before they announce it. He truly bleeds blue and sometimes I think even his tears come out blue. Each game we attend he says he gets a little "choked up" when the team runs out onto the field. He LOVES to hear Madison sing the BYU fight song and even said it was his proudest moment as a father the first time she stood up on those bleachers with him, at the tender age of two, and belted out the words to "Rise all Loyal Cougars". Our kids have no chance of loving anything but BYU. Madison attended her first BYU game at a mere 17 days old (don't judge yet, it was indoors and she slept through the entire thing) and Beckham came home from the hospital wearing his BYU onesie, wrapped in a BYU blanket. Ronnie says that they can attend any college they choose. However, he also adds that he will strongly encourage them to attend BYU but not force them...physically... at least not too hard.

My husband is no fair weather fan either. He has been known to stick it out through the bitter end. He has sat in freezing temperatures, long after the game ended, alone in the stands, sulking from the loss of a game with snow falling all around him. He has endured a few delayed games, through the pouring rain, never leaving even a minute before time is up even if it isn't close at all. This man supports all BYU athletics, is a member of the Cougar club, has more BYU paraphernalia than even players have, and attends all games he possibly can. We have not lived in Utah for nearly 4 years and still have managed to buy season tickets and attend a good portion of home and away games each year. And if we are not physically there, you better believe this guy is either watching it on TV, the Internet, listening to it on the radio, or if all those fail, having his mom tape it and send him the game via snail mail. Not even a job, 2 kids, a few states to travel through, and a wife who is not always the most supportive can stop him. And don't go thinking he will shirk his other duties just to watch a game. Oh no, not my Ronnie, he never does anything half way. He still manages to be an amazing father, devoted husband, and excellent employee; he may just be wearing blue as he does it.

Sometimes, on those long road trips out to Utah for a game, I will catch him in deep thought, thinking about something else while I am trying to hold a conversation with him. After I have talked to myself for a while, I will ask him what he's thinking about; "Oh nothing, I was just day dreaming." The first time he said this to me I thought he meant he was just thinking of what he needed to do that day or something along those lines. No, he informed me that he will often daydream, imagining himself as the star quarterback of BYU's football team, throwing a long pass to win a close one in a very important championship game. He says he has done many great things for BYU...in his head. He has won football games, gone to bowl games, gotten a few championship rings, even retired and began coaching, bringing a loosing BYU football team around to a winning season. Is this normal? Do all guys do this or should I be worried?

Needless to say, this man is a devoted fan and passionate about his team in blue. So where is all this going you ask? Well, this Thanksgiving, we were ever so lucky to be in Utah visiting family when the Holy War game was being played at home! On this very special weekend, one of Ronnie's many dreams came true.
Mom and dad Chapman (who are just as big of fans as Ronnie) lovingly gave up their tickets to stay at home with their grand kids while Ronnie, Bethie, and I went to the BYU vs. Utah football game. It was a good game, coming down to the last few seconds as it always does, and BYU pulled it off. We went wild along with the other 65 thousand fans in the stadium and everyone rushed the field. We made our way down there and were able to step on that hallow ground. We rubbed shoulders with those heroes and got as many pictures as we could manage. It really was a great scene. Thousands of fans cheering for BYU, hoisting players on their shoulders and celebrating alongside each other. Ronnie was in heaven! I know for a fact that when he wonders what heaven will be like it definitely includes LaVell Edwards stadium, a few choice players, and a sea of white...and blue! He seriously was like a 10 year old. Running around with a humongous grin on his face, patting players on the back and getting them to sign his hat, program, whatever he could find. I think he would have even ripped off his shirt and had Harvey Unga sign his chest if we could have found him. He was so cute, he was on a high the rest of the weekend and kept checking to see that his program signed by Kehl and his hat signed by Poppinga hadn't washed away.

I am so glad that he was able to have that day. He deserves to have all his dreams come true. And somehow, I think they will, he's pretty good at accomplishing whatever he sets his mind to.

I love you Ronnie. I love that you do everything 110%. I love that you are so passionate about the things that are important in your life, and I love that one of those things is me! I look forward to attending many more BYU games with you. I hope we are that cute little old couple holding hands, sitting in our seats that we have sat in for 40 years, decked out in our blue, still cheering our hardest for the Cougs. ily.

Go Cougs!