I couldn’t have been more proud of my son.

Last week, the morning after the Florida Gators football won the BCS National Championship game, his first words to me the next morning was “Did the Gators win? Are we the best in the world?” Since he had fallen asleep during the second half, he insisted that I let him watch the DVR of the rest of the game before he went to school. We happily shared a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal while we watched the Gator’s score the winning touchdown and the confetti fall down on the field.

Since before my kids were born, I had been hoping to share my love of Gator football with them. We had an orange and blue newborn outfit ready for each child when we brought them home from the hospital. Over the years, we have purchased Gator jerseys and cheerleader outfits in various sizes so that they could be a part of the Gator nation even though we live several states away. While my kids have not yet been to a Gator football game, they are excited about going to a game in the Swamp in the near future (for those non-Gator fanatics that is the nickname for the Gator’s stadium.)

It’s not that I want my children to be carbon copies of myself or be a prodigy at a specific sport. I simply want to share something that I am passionate about with my children. And if I am really lucky, it will become something that lights up their eyes as well.

But kids have a way of putting an unexpected twist on the carefully laid out plans that you made before you were a parent. I had thought a lot about the things I wanted to teach them and share with them, but I had forgotten about the interests that they would introduce to me. Before children, watching a NASCAR race was not how I would spend a Saturday afternoon, but now that my son loves NASCAR I can actually recognize a few drivers.

My daughter got very interested in American Girl books last year and we began reading them together each evening. I will secretly admit to finishing a book or two after she fell asleep because I couldn’t wait till the next night to find out what happened. I thought she would be mad at me for reading ahead, but instead she was thrilled that I liked the books as much as she did.

I can only hope that when my children are grown that they hold fond memories of playing golf with Daddy and reading books with Mommy. Or even better, they enjoy golf throughout their life and share the same books with their kids. Oh and of course, I really hope that they love Gator football.

Jennifer appears Mondays on TriangleMom2Mom. (Looking for Bonnie and Leigh? Bonnie moved to Saturdays. Leigh moved to Fridays.)