Sun'land 'till I die...

So despite being absolutely shattered by 8pm, I stayed up until last night to watch the football. Sunderland v Man Utd in the semi final of the cup. I couldn't sit down, I was nervous, I had my fist in my mouth at one point to stop myself from shouting out and waking the baby. Henry decided that the 3rd Sunderland penalty would be a good time to wake up so I watched the last penalties in the dark hallway whilst feeding and rocking him back to sleep. After I eventually got to bed, I couldn't sleep, I was so happy for the lads, our first final in the 'new' Wembley.

'Just a game' I hear you say. I'm afraid you couldn't be more wrong.

My whole family are mackems, it's in the blood. We started going to the games when we were really young. I can remember my brother, cousins and I dressed in our matching Sunderland tracksuits sitting in Roker Park in the bitter cold. I don't think we paid too much attention to the actual football, we were more into soaking up the atmosphere, giggling at the swearing and tucking into our mix ups and little bottles of Villa pop. A few years later we had season tickets at the new and improved Stadium of Light (minus the wooden floor for stamping, unfortunately) and it turned into a family event every fortnight. We'd go to Gran and Grandad's house on the way home for tea every week and I have such fond memories of those times. I remember crying all the way home from London to Durham when we lost in the play off final against Charlton...despite my Auntie telling me that only Geordies cried. I remember being promoted and going to watch the team's bus through Sunderland, the whole seafront packed with fans dressed in red and white. I remember holding Kevin Ball's hand and walking out as a mascot against Middlesborough and having a little kick about with Michael Gray, my favourite ever player. I remember the little section of grass in our old back garden...authentic Roker Park turf bought when we moved to the new stadium. I remember the feeling of winning a big game...against Newcastle ideally! My childhood is littered with memories of this football club.

So you see, it isn't just a game. It's a way of life. It's where memories are made and where you experience every emotion possible.

Now to get my hands on a ticket for the final...