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Robert Knowles, fifth grade: "I would buy tether balls and a new slide."

Tanner Smith, third grade: "Tether ball and new monkey bars. All the kids like to play with those."

By Alex Lewis  ¦   The Parkade Elementary School playground is getting an upgrade, thanks to a $15,000 grant approved by the City Council.

By JOSHUA A. BICKEL  ¦   From left, 4-year-olds Emery Snyder, Gillian Barrett and Brooke Herron pose for pictures with Belle from the TRYPS production of "Beauty and the Beast," played by 17-year-old Karis Crosby, during a fundraiser on Saturday at the Upper Crust.

By REBECCA H. ROMANO/Missourian  ¦   The Taiwanese Student Association take a bow after their game against the Arabian Student Association at the MU World Cup soccer tournament Friday The Taiwanese Student Association lost 3-0.

By ALEX LEWIS  ¦   After trimming off excess leaves, Delbert Porter hammers the bottom of the lilac stems. Porter explains that this process helps water easily flow into the flower.

By ALEX LEWIS  ¦   Delbert, front, and Maxine, back, work together to get their lilac bunches ready for sale. Delbert trims excess foliage off the stems while Maxine puts the bunches together.

By JOSHUA A. BICKEL  ¦   Five-year-old Jillian Bryant, dressed as the character Belle from "Beauty and the Beast," listens for her name to be called during a prize giveaway at a fundraiser for the TRYPS children's theater Saturday morning at the Upper Crust Ballroom.

By REBECCA H. ROMANO/Missourian  ¦   Favis Alhavbi, left, battles for the ball against Thiti Vanitbuncha at the MU World Cup soccer tournament Friday at MU's Stankowski Field in Columbia, Mo. The Arabian Student Association won 3-0 against the Taiwanese Student Association. As part of international week, the Mizzou International Coalition hosted the first ever soccer tournament where student associations competed for the title.

By ALEX LEWIS  ¦   Buds on one of the Porter's lilac bushes wait to open on Saturday. The Porters have so many of the bushes, they line the edge of the couple's backyard.

By ALEX LEWIS  ¦   Buckets of lilac bunches adorn Delbert and Maxine Porter's home on Russell Street on Saturday. The Porters sell the flowers every spring when the bushes come into bloom.

By MICHAEL STONACEK/Missourian  ¦   Nick Little, a second basemen for Rock Bridge, tosses a baseball on the steps of the dugout during a minigame the team played during Friday's rain delay. The goal of the game is to get the ball to rest on a higher step. Like a modified game of baseball, the first step counts as first base, second step as second base, and if it can rest on the top step without rolling into the turf, it counts as a home run. Some team members have been playing it since the seniors were freshman.

By Photo courtesy of Munashe Chigerwe  ¦   Munashe Chigerwe, third from the right, grew up on his family’s farm in Chivhu, Zimbabwe. As a child, he woke up early to tend to the fields and cattle until 6:30 a.m. He then bathed in a crocodile-infested river before traveling seven miles by foot to school.

By MICHAEL STONACEK/Missourian  ¦   Rock Bridge baseball team members stand in gusty winds before a storm passes through during a rain delay on Friday afternoon. The delay separated the double header, which the Bruins split, beating Camdenton4-3 in the first game and losing to Vianny in the second, 11-9.

By Meghan Krane/Missourian  ¦   Andy Emerson, Phil Schaefer, Kris Hagglund and Munashe Chigerwe pose after a Columbia Multi-Sport Club morning run. “I find them claustrophobic,” explains Munashe about his lack of a hat or pants in the sub-freezing temperatures.

By CITY OF COLUMBIA  ¦   A draft of options discussed at the meeting.

By TARA BALLENGER/Missourian  ¦   After a 5:30 a.m. run, MU veterinary student Munashe Chigerwe stops with his running group at Panera Bread in downtown Columbia to eat a bagel.

By MICHAEL STONACEK/Missourian  ¦   Nick Little, second from right, tosses a baseball on the dugout steps during a game the Rock Bridge team plays to pass time during a rain delay on Friday afternoon. The goal of the game is to toss the ball onto the steps, and depending on the step it lands on and sticks, it correlates to a base, just like baseball.

By Photo courtesy of Munashe Chigerwe  ¦   As a child, Munashe Chigerwe ran barefoot on this and other trails in Zimbabwe. Running on the MKT Trail reminds Chigerwe of his native land.