Last night, we partied like it was early 2007. Yes, we had our first Oliver-free night. I obtained a pair of tickets to the Arch Rivalry game (Mizzou vs. Illinois) at the Dome, so we asked Sarah's parents to watch the boy overnight. To my surprise, they took us up on the offer with no hesitation.

After our near-tearful departure from our child, we headed downtown. It took a while to find the right spot, but we tailgated with a work group before the game. That was fun, but the game was, well, "funner."

The crowd was extremely loud. My head ached as I fought off claustrophobia and we crammed into the building. Here's a picture of people awaiting the turnstiles:



That's a pretty good visual, but to get a sense of the loudness, check out this short video:

 

So here's a question for you ... Who has the toughest job when his team scores 52 points? Well, it's the Mizzou mascot of course. That's because he does one push-up for every point on the scoreboard when the team scores. Here he's on about No. 45:



And finally, here's a picture of happy Mommy and Daddy at the game (the night went well, in case you were wondering, and Oliver's now back with us all safe and sound and snug into this own bed for the night):