OLATHE, Kan. — So many fans are ready for Super Bowl Sunday - but one takes that preparation a step further than most.
"Kind of making every game a holiday," explained Denise Mersmann. "It's precious, every game, there are so few."
The Chiefs are part of the family, one that was raised in red.
"We always watch the game together. When they were real little that meant nap time on Sunday afternoon, it was down here, and we would hold you for nap time so that you were here, and usually wake you up three or four times yelling," she recalled.
Even with her family spread out now, including her daughter who lives on the East Coast, they still watch together.
"Now with one in D.C., we have NFL Network, thank goodness, so she's still a hometown fan out there. And, you know, teaching the people of Baltimore and Washington, what a real sports team looks like," Mersmann said.
There's trash talk, and then there are traditions.
"She is much better at it than I am, but we both make and decorate sugar cookies on a very amateur level. Every year for the Super Bowl for probably the past seven years, Kate has made sugar cookies," Mersmann said.
Those treats will be back this Sunday, as well as a permanent fixture Denise added to the house the day of last year’s Super Bowl.
"There needed to be a little something more so I quick ran to the hardware store and bought some red paint and painted the front door red. Just so people would know when they get here," Mersmann said.
Football is part of her family’s foundation, and like many other families, they're ready for the final stop on the Run it Back tour.
"For Kansas City, for all the parents who have been trying to home school and doing so much, I think seeing another victory is huge. I think, again it's seeing the people that we care about succeed," she said.
Mersmann added they won't have their traditional gathering at home for safety, but they're still preparing the usual menu, and for a chance to watch their beloved Chiefs go for a rare Super Bowl repeat.
Kansas City and Tampa Bay kick off Super Bowl LV this Sunday at 5:30 p.m.