On Friday night, Kate and I had the opportunity to join more than 12,000 other basketball fans as the Sprint Center hosted the Atlanta Hawks and the Portland Trail Blazers in an NBA exhibition game. Between the two of us, we took 2 husbands and 4 children…and everyone had a great time. As you might expect from 5, 6 and 7-year-olds, the real thrill came not from the game itself, but from the unicycle-riding, porcelain-bowl-balancing beauty who entertained us at halftime! The courtside musical chairs game and the Crimson Girls from KU were hits, as well.

It was fitting that we were able to take our families to an event which marked Sprint Center’s one-year anniversary in Kansas City. Even though an anchor tenant has yet to be signed, I think the arena has been a huge success and has brought some fantastic family-friendly programming and events to our city. There’s lots yet to come…including two huge December events: The Cheetah Girls, and the world famous Radio City Rockettes performing their Christmas Spectacular! You’ll want to take advantage of the special discounts given to our readers by utilizing our GROUP RATE CODE when purchasing your tickets to the Rockettes’ Show!

And coming November 16, fresh from their stunning performances at the Beijing Summer Olympics, are Nastia Liukin, Shawn Johnson and company, as part of The 2008 Tour of Gymnastics Superstars. Billed as an extraordinary sports and music extravaganza, this is sure to be a fun-filled, unique night for the entire family! The “music” part comes courtesy of live performances by teen sensations Jordan Pruitt and KSM. Also featured will be songs from Walt Disney Records’ Disney Girlz Rock 2 CD.

It’s not too early to start thinking about how you are going to spend those cold late fall and early winter nights…why not load the family up in the car and head down to the Sprint Center for a fun night?!? There’s lots of fun to be had, and KC Kids Fun will make sure you don’t miss a beat!

The NBA is coming to Sprint Center on Friday, October 10th - and guess who is going to be there?

Courtesy of KC Kids Fun, the following three lucky readers won our random drawing for family four-packs of tickets to the game:

• Amy R. of Overland Park, KS

• Tomiko W. of Kansas City, MO

• Bett F. of Lathrop, MO

Congratulations ladies! We hope you have a great time at the game with your families!

For those of you who weren’t so lucky, you still have time to score DISCOUNTED TICKETS to the game - now thru Friday, October 3rd, KC Kids Fun readers can take advantage of a special offer - just click HERE and enter “kckids” when prompted for a special code!

*********THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. WINNERS WILL BE CHOSEN AT RANDOM AND NOTIFIED VIA EMAIL THIS WEEKEND. TICKET DISCOUNTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE THRU OCTOBER 3 BY CLICKING HERE AND ENTERING “kckids” WHEN PROMPTED FOR A SPECIAL CODE.***********

The NBA makes its Sprint Center debut on Friday night, October 10th. The Portland Trailblazers will take on the Atlanta Hawks. It’s a Friday night, folks! Not a school night! And it’s pro basketball in Kansas City!

And did I mention we’ve got tickets to give away?

KC Kids Fun has three (3) family four-packs of tickets that we would LOVE to give to you guys!

Enter today thru Friday night! TELL YOUR FRIENDS! You could win FOUR FREE TICKETS to the Hawks-Trailblazers game - a value of $120!

So, here’s what you need to do to enter the random drawing - (1) submit a comment by clicking the Comments link at the end of this article; (2) the form will require a valid email address which will NOT be made public with your comment; (3) just tell us your favorite fall activity in the Kansas City metro and you’re entered!

**Or if you’d just like ticket discounts - Click on this link to discounted NBA tickets at Sprint Center and enter “kckids” when prompted for a Special Offer code. This discount offer is good through October 3rd at 7:00 pm or until supplies last.

RULES: Comments/entries must be submitted before 11:59pm CDT on Friday, September 26, 2008. Three winning entries will be drawn at random and the winners will be notified by KC Kids Fun via email.

Must be 21 years of age to enter and win. Only one entry per household will be considered. No substitutions or transfers. Giveaway prize is not redeemable for cash. By entering, winner consents to allow the use of his/her name for promotional purposes without further compensation. Winner releases all sponsors of liability regarding use and enjoyment of the prize. No purchase necessary to enter or win.