Are You Ready for some FOOTBALL???

We are well into football season!! YAY!!!! Here are my cheerleaders in a pyramid at our pep rally!! Go Eagles.
At that same pep rally, Rozzie and her dance team performed. Roz is so thrilled to be able to do a headstand now. Last year she was unable to hold a headstand and I worked with her a lot this summer on it. She practiced and was able to do it well enough to be put in a headstand for the dance. Notice the girl in the front in the hand stand. She can hold it forever. I marked Roz with her name, but it is hard to see. I have since figured out how to change from "pen" to "paint brush" as you will see on the next pictures.

That same night, I got this shot of the dance team on the field. Roz is more identifiable.

Tuesday night took us down to Green Cove Springs Junior High to watch the Cougars and listen to the Cougar Band. They are a small band by what we are used to up north, but it is what we have and they love what they do. I like it when they play, "I Got A Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas. Go Cougars!!

Here is a close up of Maddie playing the trumpet!! She really likes this.

Last night was the BYU/Utah game. We won't talk about the score and the horrors that unfolded on the gridiron. However, this was Morgan's first time marching on the field at LaVell Edwards Stadium in uniform. We talked to her today and got a full run-down of the day. She loved it. She was very excited and she reported being a little nervous. She loved the largeness of it all and had a fun time at the game. Go Cougars!!

Morgan's cousin, Katie, went to the game and took these great pictures for me. I have promised to knit her something. She was fortunate to be sitting on the side closest to Morgan, too. What a fun experience for Morgan to have, despite the horrible, worst-ever game.

This is a shot of the half-time performance. Both the BYU and Utah bands were on the field in a show of unity or something.

Morgan reports liking school and being happy. She is very glad to be out doing something different from Florida. She likes meeting new people and going to her fantastic religion classes. And she is happy to still be marching. One funny note: Morgan wore the same marching shoes from 8th grade through 12th grade. Her feet never grew. We got our money's worth out of those $20 shoes. She had to buy new white shoes at BYU. I guess she had earned it!!

Trav is headed back to Toronto this week. Wish I could go.

And Now For Something Completely Similar

Nothing has changed. Twenty-two years later, we are still married. And happy about it. Thing that are different include: hair color, weight, additional people in the family. We celebrated by going out to eat at La Napolera with Rozzie and Maddie, dropping them off at dance, and going grocery shopping at Winn Dixie. Be very jealous! This weekend, we had lunch at Maggiano's which is a favorite of Trav's (he loves Italian). I like Maggiano's, too. The stuffed mushrooms are my favorite!

The anniversary was Thursday night. The football game was Friday night. The first official game of the year is our big county rival, Clay High School. If you saw the movie "Easy A", that is where the story actually happened. Yes folks, down there in Green Cove Springs, Florida, home of the Blue Devils. We brought a crowd down there. Everyone wore white. The fans ordered 50 green vuvuzelas and green cowbells and used them all night. My favorite accessory is the eagle perched on the vuvuzela back there. He seems to show up at most of the games and is pretty hideous looking. The fans were in an uproar, but the game started out rough for FIHS. We were pretty nervous. Clay came out fighting.

#8 Brontrell is one of my students. He was very excited to be a captain for this big game. He looks pretty funny with his red mouthguard sticking out. He is extremely athletic and has great potential.

Along with the cheerleaders, the mascots fall under my jurisdiction. Imagine wearing those things in this Florida heat. They were troopers, though, and did a great job!! There is way to much to keep track of in this position. I was a nervous wreck.

The crowds were so thick that Travis, Maddie, and I sat down on the track for the game and really enjoyed being up close and personal. We went and sat on the football benches to cheer Rozzie on with the dance team. Here she is pictured on the far left. She seems much more confident out there this year.

This is my dear friend and co-worker, Cheri. She embodies school spirit. She is and English teacher and the drama teacher. She heads up all the musicals and stuff. She is easily the most beloved teacher on campus. And she is my dear friend. Morgan had her for English her freshman year. Cheri loves and supports everyone. She also confessed that she is the one who initially told the administration that they should ask me to be the cheer coach. I still love her.

Fleming Island pulled out the win in the end. After half-time, Clay seemed to run out of gas. It was a great game and a lot of fun to be there. It was really nice to sit by Travis for once! Maddie hung out with us for a while until she met up with a friend and toddled off.

BYU played Ole Miss yesterday. We watched the game and all of us were texting Morgan at the same time. Morgan and friends went to the Wilkenson Center (Student Union) to watch the game in the ballroom on a big screen with hundreds of other students. It was a nail-biter to the finish. Morgan called so we could hear all the screaming. She was very happy. She enjoyed her first week of classes. She loves marching band, although band camp was very hot and a lot of hard work. She is excited to get on the field at a home game.

So, thing are as they have been. You'll see more dance pictures and you'll think they look the same as the ones from last year. They aren't. I was sure glad to sleep in the past two days and am very grateful to have tomorrow off, too.