Dean on the bus ride over to WestWorld in Scottsdale. He thought the bus was "so awesome". Could life get any better than a bus ride for this kid? Yes Dean, it can and will...wait for it. Grandpa Richards joined us for the excitement.
After we got there, we checked in with Eileen from the JDRF. She said that the auction was running behind schedule so we didn't need to meet with the other members of our group until 6:45. We had some time to hang out and look around at all the vendor booths.
We looked at many, many cars. I think that from the looks of this photo, Dean might be on the verge of being too cool for his mom to kiss him in public....please....NOOOOO! Shut your mouth and say it ain't so!
This was the car that was advertised to sell for the JDRF- A Shelby Mustang. It was pulled from the auction at the last minute and never sold. The old switch-a-roo was put into play. There must be some "Auction Psychology" that I'm not aware of that if you switch cars at the last minute for a better car you will get it sold for a higher price for the charity...not sure but it doesn't really matter.
Luckily we got this picture of Deano with the Cobra Jet that ended up being the car that was sold, which was very exciting because it WAS the coolest car there. It was signed by John Force and Mike Neff.
We met with our group and the kids all received their Ford shirts to wear on stage. We had to do a lot of waiting around because apparently you just can't predict how fast an auction will go. The Ford Big Wigs were feeling bad that it was taking so long and it was getting kind of late for all these kids. They took us to the Ford motor home and gave all the parents Ford T-shirts to wear. They wined and dined us (with sodas and snacks) and gave the kids Ford hot wheels. Pretty much treated us like royalty. The cutest moment was when 2 of the kids with "the Sugars" was hunched over this giant bowl of snacks. They were both reading the nutrition labels to figure out serving sizes and carbs. It was such a poignant moment for me. What other little kids know how to read a nutrition label? Little kids shouldn't have to do that if you ask me. I was so grateful at that instant that the JDRF gives these kids opportunities to do special and exciting things that make life with diabetes somehow easier.
We still had time to kill so we watched the auction for awhile while we waited. Deano got restless so we went outside to wait with our group.
Deano had so much FUN playing with the other kids. It's a treat for him to be around other kids that have to go through the same things he does. At the same time, it was nice for me to be able to talk to some of the other parents. The kids were so hyper and wound up...you wouldn't have been able to guess that it was really late!
Dean made some good little friends. One of the boys lives in the QC too, so I can't wait for them to get together and play.
When it was time, they put all the kids in the back of the Ford Raptor which was going to be auctioned off first for the JDRF. They drove it up on the auction block. All the parents were supposed to run around the back of the stage to meet the kids on the other side. As we turned around to go, the Cobra drives by us to get in line behind the truck. Eric looks at me with stars in his eyes and says, "THAT'S JOHN FORCE DRIVING THAT CAR!" I say, "NO WAY, but we have to go to the other side now, Eric! Let's go!" He just stood there like he was paralyzed or something. I completely abandoned him and left him in his catatonic state. I was running to the other side, looking behind me and when I was finally there I turn around and see Eric finally running, too. I don't think he knew what to do with himself he was just too overwhelmed.
They lined all the kids up in front of the truck and auctioned it off. It went for $130,000. Of course, I couldn't get Dean to look at the camera.
The General Manager of Ford getting Dean to clap and raise his hands to help increase the bidding.
After the truck sold, John Force drives the Cobra Jet onto the auction block and gives the car a few revs to get the crowd excited. He gets up on the stage and explains a lottle (not a little) about the car and encourages people to buy this car "for the kids. It's all about the kids."
They get the bidding started and bring the kids back up. The car was finally sold for $375,000!
I took this picture as the car was being auctioned. OK- I know for a fact that Eric was running on pure adrenaline. Do you know how I know? Never in my life have I seen this man shoot me the peace sign for a picture. Not his style. He was feeling the love and all was right in the world in this moment of time. A peace sign is appropriate, then, if you ask me. Can't everyone just get along and be happy? I mean, we are on stage at Barrett-Jackson and in John Force's presence for pete's sake! The greatest drag racer of all time! Eric's lifetime hero! This can't be happening to him, things like this don't happen to him, they happen to other people. We knew beforehand that a celebrity was going to be there to help auction off the car but never in our wildest dreams would we have thought that it would be John Force! Unbelievable!
We hung back after the car was sold hoping to get the chance to meet John. (I'm going to call him John from this point forward because Best Friends have the right to call each other by their first name.) As he came around the corner, Eric stopped John and introduced himself and told him that he's been a fan 4-EVER! In my mind, what Eric told John translates to "I love you, John Force. I have loved you forever, and I always will. There's a chance that I have a "Man-Crush" on you." Maybe it was just me, but I'm pretty sure that's what he meant.
I was so disappointed that this picture turned out bleary! I guess I can't have it all. Eric told me that John Force sure was snuggley.
I'm sure he wanted to, but John couldn't stand around talking to Eric and Deano all day...he had an interview to do with the man who bought the car, Brent Hyack (seen in the blue shirt to the right of the giant noggin in the middle of the picture).
Yes, we are having a good time...Bing!
Eric and Dean watched the interview from the side. As John was walking out of the interview area, he stopped at them and said, "Hey- I know these guys!" Then he asked Eric if he was coming to the Pomona races in a few weeks and that he if did, he would give him a personal tour of his pits. Eric told him that he wasn't going because he lives here in Phoenix. John asked Eric if he wanted an autograph or picture or something to which Eric replied, "no, I want to work on your race team!" They laughed ha-ha but Eric was serious...that really would be a dream come true. John signed Dean's shirt, and then Eric got this shot of Dean and John. I love it! Dean was the only kid who even knew who John Force was, and he was so excited to meet him! You can tell from the twinkle in Dean's eye how happy he was.
Yes, Eric has a twinkle in his eyes, too!
We really wanted to thank this man- (I have forgotten his name due to all the excitement) a GM for Ford. He was the one who helped all the kids on stage and directed them as to what they were to do. He was so great with the kids. We went back in the auction tent, and we could see him just leaving. We chased him down, and thanked him for everything. As we were wrapping up our conversation, guess who walks up yet again....yep you guessed it, John Force.
Eric starts talking to him, and John asks him again if he is going to Pomona. Eric tells him again that he can't because he lives here. John tells him that he should come out to the Test and Tune which was going to be the following weekend at Firebird. He tells Eric to give his contact information to his liason (which is the man in the middle) so that we can come and get a tour of his pits. (We ended up not being able to go to the Test and Tune which was unfortunate). We get the man's card, and we thank John for everything. I can't believe how nice he was. I truly believe that he can tell true fans from kisser-uppers, and he really appreciates them.
As we were leaving, we wanted to thank one more of the Ford people that was so nice. We found him at the Ford display. We thanked him and told him how much fun we had, and how excited we were to meet John Force. He gave us his card and told us to get our contact info. to him and he would send us tickets to the races in February. How cool is that? Overall, we had the best day ever. It was so exciting and couldn't have been more perfect. Deano said it was the best day of his life. He felt really special and important and man he looks good on T.V.! It was probably the best day of Eric's life, too, but hopefully he's smart enough not to admit to that! It's amazing to me how sometimes the stars just line up for a perfect day.
The day had a happy start. Sadie had been looking forward to her birthday for a very long time. It's a big deal to turn 7 when you are little girl. We invited lots of cousins over for a "Make-Your-Own Pizza Party". Including our kids, 15 in all. It got a little crazy trying to let each kid make their own pizza. A good idea in theory (a good idea in reality too if things go right). Eric was helping 3 kids at a time make their pizzas. He had one of the little pizzas on a giant spatula (you know the one, Tia. Good purchase.). He scooped it up and turned around really fast to put it in the oven. Unfortunately, Sadie was walking past him at that exact moment. He didn't see her, and she got a pizza pie to the face. Everyone laughed because it was a funny thing that happened. It wasn't funny to Sadie, though. She had sauce, cheese, and toppings on her face and people were laughing. She thought at her. She ran off and hid because she was so embarassed. I finally found her crying under one of Eric's tables outside. I tried everything I could think of to help her feel better. She wasn't having it. Then her friends started coming out to get her to come back to her party. She just wanted to be alone because her whole party and birthday was completely ruined! I went in the house for a minute to talk to Eric, and when I came back to the table she was gone. I had to hunt for her again in 10,000 degree weather. Found her in the giant tire that is our future sandbox. Still wouldn't listen to me or her friends. I told her she had to come in the house before she had heat stroke. She agreed to go to my room and lock the door so no one would bother her. Time was running out. Her party only had an hour left and there was no birthday girl. I checked on her and when I came out, Lisa was standing there. She had something on her face and upon closer inspection, I realized it was pizza sauce. I was like, "Ummm, Lisa, you have something on your face." She wanted to talk to Sadie and she wanted to do it quick because she said her face was on fire. Apparently we make spicy sauce. They were in my room for awhile, and finally Sadie emerged to attend her own party. Sadie had helped Lisa clean her face off and talked to her to make her feel better. Sometimes a girl needs someone else to talk to than her mother.
This was afterwards. No more pizza face talk- Lisa was trying to get Sadie's mind on other things.
Group photo with some of the girl cousins (and Zane). Sadie isn't quite happy yet but she's starting to come around. Zane is very happy on the other hand. Sometimes I wonder.
Victory. She built her own pizza, ate it, and finally was getting into her party.
That extra $10 was an added bonus, Mom. Very exciting. She loved all her presents. Thanks to all who made her birthday great.
Eric made this Hello Kitty cake in an unbelievable amount of time. You should have seen him carve, frost, and decorate. He was a cake making fool. Luckily someone in our family has mad skills. Thanks to Tara for the extra white frosting...who knew Hello Kitty would need so much frosting? Not I. The kids said that Hello Kitty looked evil because of the green eyes. I thought every girl wanted an Evil Hello Kitty cake for her birthday.
This is a picture taken at last year's auction...yes, that is Patrick Dempsey! This car sold for $300,000 and it ALL went to the JDRF! Thank you Ford for donating the car. 
