Tradition

Learning lots of new traditions during our short time here in Texas!  Some I like, some I just don't get!

One of my favorite things that I had never seen before is painted senior parking spaces at the high school. When KJ and I were house hunting at Easter we drove around one of the area high schools and noticed that some of the student parking spots were personalized.  Of course KJ was all over it and declared this was where she wanted to go to school  The kids were pretty creative ... lots of sports team logos, some school spirit, some of the girls did Lilly or Vineyard Vines, some chevron monograms, etc.  A couple of weekends ago at one of KJ's volleyball tournaments at a neighboring school district, all the seniors and their families were painting their spaces. It looked like so much fun!  They had music blaring, entire families were out there, they had food ... it was a big deal. At this particular high school though, you could only use the 3 school approved colors for your space -- blue, orange and white.  Still, the kids were extremely creative. KJ's school also does the painted parking spaces but I've noticed the kids don't have to use just the high school spirit colors, they can do anything they want.  She's only a sophomore but I have a feeling my girl is already planning her parking space for senior year.

So another tradition we've stumbled upon is spirit week. Or maybe it should be called spirit season because during the entire length of football season, the kids dress up almost every damn day, not just during homecoming week.  And of course KJ is loving it.  Friday was Hawaiian day, today is tacky tourist Tuesday, I can't remember what Wednesday is, I know this Friday is patriot day, one of the days is a preppy day, one day is a fishing day (don't ask), of course there's a farmer day thrown in there somewhere as well as the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's. Oh and there's Axe Day (big cross-town rivalry and the winner gets to display the coveted Axe for the entire school year). So apparently on Axe Day the kids dress up in overalls and the girls, of course, decorate their overalls all cute with ribbon and lace and paint their graduating class year down their leg. So guess who had to run around town today looking for a pair of overalls for daughter #2 to wear?????

Next up is the homecoming mums and garters. Now, growing up in the North I've always thought mums were a fall flower.  I did kinda know that years and years ago guys would give a girl a mum to wear to football games or maybe to a college homecoming game (mums being that hardy fall flower). Well, in Texas apparently they take it to a whole new level. Nowadays it is a big and I mean HUGE flower, like, we're talking the size of a dinner plate and tons and tons of ribbon and little trinkets. Like everything else in Texas, bigger is better ... the stars at night, cowboy hats, belt buckles, trucks and homecoming mums.

What a great weekend! The weather was spectacular and we spent as much time as possible outside. I think yesterday we had breakfast, lunch & dinner outside and the girls both had lax practice so everyone got plenty of fresh air.

Friday wrapped up T's senior homecoming week and was a busy day for T. She had fun with toga day, the homecoming pep rally and the dinner the Buccanettes hosted for the Freshman dance team. Cafe Iz catered and we had so much fun w/ the decor and theme. I still wasn't feeling great and fighting this horrible cough and cold so I didn't go to the game but Hoover won so all is good. T got to see her friend who is a Thompson cheerleader but plays lax for Hoover since her school doesn't have a lax team. Saturday she worked up at the store earlier in the day, KJ had vball (her team lost both games) and Cosmo & I got the house ready for the homecoming after-party.

She had homecoming photos w/ her group around 4 PM, they went to Bonefish for dinner and then back to someone house to watch some football before going to the dance. R's truck was acting up so his mom let them take her Camaro for the night. It is a very cool car! After the dance the kids all came back to our house for a bonfire, hot dogs, s'mores, etc. Very nice group of kids, they had a lot of fun and everyone was very polite and thanked us when they left (the boys went out of their way to tell Cosmo & I goodnight which I thought was funny. You know their mom's told them "Make sure you tell T's parents thank you for having you!"). One of the girls wasn't feeling too good after dinner and got a little sick in the middle of the night and T & I drove her home around 3 AM. I was wide awake anyway and didn't fall asleep until sometime after 5 AM Sunday morning. My wonderful hubby let me sleep while he got bagels for breakfast and we had a relaxing morning before everyone went off to lacrosse practice.

I started my fall decorating Friday night while everyone was at the game and got some more done yesterday while they were at lax. I luv, luv, luv this time of year. It's still been a little warm but the humidity is gone and I can't wait to start opening some windows.

Since we've got a busy, busy weekend coming up Cosmo & KJ decided to make me a special b-day dinner a week early and made a scallops appetizer, steaks and we had mini cheesecakes for dessert. It really was a GREAT weekend!

Toga! Toga! Toga!

So tomorrow is the day Tbone has been waiting four long years for . . . Toga Day! Friday ends the weeklong Homecoming festivities at her school and after dressing up all week, the Seniors get to celebrate by wearing Togas (it has something to do with salad dressing . . . if I remember correctly, the underclassmen wear "Ranch" and the Seniors are supposed to be "Caesar" or something like that). Because she was on a college visit she missed Neon Monday and Wizard Tuesday (not that she was going to dress up as a wizard in a million years....). Yesterday was Middle School day and today is Holiday. Earlier in the week was the Powder Puff game and from what I hear the Seniors prevailed. T did not participate because we weren't sure if she'd be home from FL in time for the game. She was a little bummed but did go after Bnettes to cheer her classmates on.

September

The foliage has been losing its freshness through the month of August, and here and there a yellow leaf shows itself like the first gray hair amidst the locks of a beauty who has seen one season too many. ~Oliver Wendell Holmes

Hard to believe we're a few days into September already. I can't wait for the weather to cool down a bit so we can open some windows. I love sitting outside on a fall night. I love sweatshirt weather. On Saturdays Cosmo puts the TV outside so we can watch college football (PSU game this weekend!) and he usually has a fire going and KJ likes to do s'mores. Aaaahhh! Fall!
T & Cosmo are flying to FL this coming weekend for a college visit. I'm very excited for T! The coach seems really nice and I think this could be a good fit for her....great communications program, PERFECT location and spectacular campus, awesome internship opportunities. We'll see. She has the PA visit in October and the coach from MD has been campaigning hard for T to visit the campus. She even offered to fly down here to talk to the three of us if T couldn't get up there (which totally blows my mind!). She had sent T an e-mail after seeing T play in the fall at a tournament and told her back then she was one of their top recruits. I don't think Cosmo or I took her very seriously at the time. The OH university doesn't have her major so she had to politely decline an invitation to visit at this time. The coach even went so far as to offer to have T meet with the head of the journalism department to discuss possibilities.

I'm getting my hair cut & colored next weekend so it will look great for A's wedding. I can NOT wait to see everyone! I love the dress I bought for the wedding and just hope the weather holds out. I still need shoes and KJ still needs a dress.

Homecoming is less than 2 weeks away. I don't think T's "group" has finalized their plans yet. As of right now, they talked about photos, the Alabama game and dinner (maybe not necessarily in that order). Not sure yet what the "after party" plans are. Sigh. Last highschool homecoming for T.

Going Vintage?

What a great, busy, fun weekend! As always, they go way too fast!


Friday night KJ threw a little surprise party for her friend LG at the pool. I think LG truly was surprised. Nice group of kids, it was low-key and they had a good time in the pool. It was so freakin' hot that night. A couple of the mom's stayed and we had a good time chatting and catching up.


Friday Cosmo & T did a campus tour in the AM. This was the college she had absolutely ZERO interest in attending but after Friday's visit, I think it's moved up the ranks a bit. She was incredibly impressed with the communications department and got a much better feel for the campus. Being on campus on game day is very different than on a school day and she needed to see that.


After her tour she hightailed it over to our crosstown "rival" to interview some of the coaching staff and student body for a feature she's doing on this week's game. Then, she hauled butt back over to our side of town for dance team practice. From there she went to the pep rally at Beef's and went out to dinner afterward with a group of friends. The Boy picked her up and they went to the state fair later that evening. She was very disappointed....no monkeys riding dogs.





T woke up super early Saturday morning to attend a mini ACT class before she takes the test in September. She's already got a great ACT score, she just wants to get one or two more points to solidify scholarship opportunities. She had to be "field ready" (full hair & make-up and costume) by 1:30 PM so she was cutting it close.


The football game was SO much fun! I was totally dreading the heat, the crowds, the parking but everything worked out GREAT! We parked at the Met, took the shuttle to the stadium, the bus driver dropped us off right out front, and we found great seats during the 4th Quarter of the Prattville game. It was not near as hot as I thought it would be and was actually quite pleasant. KJ met up with some friends so she ran rampant during the game and we had a lot of laughs with our seatmates. Our defense played awesome and one of Cosmo's "boys" made a huge hit late in the game that got everyone really riled up.


After the game, T went out to eat with a group of friends and Cosmo, KJ & I went to Mugshots for dinner. I have to say, that was probably one of the best burgers I've ever had in my entire life. I luv, luv, luv Baha Burger but this totally blew Baha Burger out of the water.


Sunday T & I went homecoming dress shopping and bought the very first dress she tried on. Honestly, it took us longer to drive to the store and find a parking spot than it did for her to find a dress. She took 2 dresses in the dressing room and I picked out 2. We both fell in love with the very first one. She didn't even both trying on my selections so I put them back on the rack. Then, she tried on dress #2. A totally different direction from dress #1 and we both loved it. It had a vintage, 1950's prom dress feel but was updated and a little sassy. It was a strapless, ivory tulle with black appliques on the bodice and a flirty, floaty bottom. The minute she tried it on, this image popped into my head:

In the end, she went with dress #1. She said it was her last homecoming and she wanted to go out with a bang. She is so easy to shop with. She knows what she wants and, more importantly, what she doesn't.

Whoa !!!

Busy week and a big weekend coming up. Trixie had a much need groom yesterday, T got new Bnettes boots and I had to pick them up from the shoe place, KJ's had volleyball this week and we've been having fun planning her friend's surprise party. Tomorrow, along with the rest of Hoover, we'll be sweating our butts off at the big game. I've also been doing some errands/shopping for the annual Bnette/Freshman Dance Team dinner. I like to do the table decor.


Of course, I'm really looking forward to the actual football game, sitting with friends, watching T at half-time. The first game of the year is always exciting and the ESPN factor makes it even more thrilling! I'm just not looking forward to the crowds, the parking situation and the God awful heat!

Last night T was asked to homecoming so at some point this weekend we'll be dress shopping. She's usually pretty good to shop with. She usually goes in with an idea or a color in mind and runs with it.

Today she & Cosmo are on a college visit (under duress). Seriously though, it's her first campus tour and it will give her a good comparison for when she goes on her campus visits up north 2 weeks from now. I still cannot wrap my head around the fact that she's a senior. Last night a friend sent an e-mail about early planning stages of the the big grad party. I'm excited for T for the all the fun things she'll experience this year but part of me wants to take it really, really slow. I know this year will go by waaaaaay too fast.

After the campus tour, T has to head over to our cross-town "rivals" to interview some of the football coaching staff, players and students to get their prespective on next week's game. She interviewed Nibs the other day and asked his opinion on the "rivalry." She said she was going to walk around Spain Park in her orange sparkley, Bnette boots and interview everyone while holding the huge Bucs logo field flag. The kid's got spunk, that's for sure!