A September Post....

My sister's been prodding me to get a post in before September is over...so here goes:

The month has flown by rather quickly. I depart tomorrow morning very early for a 5 day weekend to Maine!! I've never been there and am joining 9 other Mary Kay director buddies of mine for a Girl's Weekend...it should be a blast. Our host has great things planned for us so I'll probably need a vacation when I get back...

September has been filled with football, football and more football. Our son, Jake plays on the youth football team for LLHS....He's a big boy ( 5'10" and 225 lbs.) He looks more like a highschool player than a 7th grader. Here's a shot of him--he's #90:



Their team lost their first 2 games and have won the last 2. It's great seeing them come together and work together and have a desire to win. Jake plays both on the offensive and defensive line and when he comes out for a break it is definitely noticeable....definitely. Scott coaches him and last week's game didn't start out very well. I saw Scott pull him off to the sidelines and really (I mean REALLY) get in his face and scream, "Jake, it is simply NOT acceptable how you are blocking. Now are you gonna go in there and do your job or do I have to find someone else that can?" You could hear it in the stands, Scott hollered that loudly. I cringed. I heard some parents in the stands comment....and then I saw Jake rise to the occasion, go back in and play football like he knows how to play football. Now Scott could have coddled him, but he didn't. He's actually probably harder on Jake than any other member of the team. I asked Jake once if he liked Dad as his coach. He said, "Yeah, Mom, I do. He's the only coach I have had so far that can get the most out of all of us." What a life lesson. Scott always worries that someday Jake may hate him for how hard of a coach he is and yet I think Jake will look back and say that he spent a lot of time, side by side with his Dad on a football field learning many life lessons.....

The other football games we've been watching are the LLHS Warriors (where our daughter goes to highschool). Her boyfriend is a starting offensive lineman and does quite well. He's 6'4" and 205 lbs....quite a difference from her petite frame. Both of them were just selected as the junior reps for homecoming court. It's an honor. They'll get to ride in the homecoming parade (except her boyfriend won't because he's on the football team and the parade is at 5 pm and the game at 7 pm). Maybe, just maybe, when the couples are presented at halftime he'll be able to escort Stef on the field in his uniform. I doubt it....our coaches are pretty intense and I think they feel that homecoming festivities take away the team's ability to focus. Maybe they're right....I'm not sure....So Stef said that she's going to have a life-size blowup doll ride with her in the convertible and then put Phil's jersey on it....it's a good idea anyway. So, here's a picture of the "homecoming couple" (from our last trip up to the cabin):



And here's a picture of Phil on the line: (He's #51...a left offensive tackle. The picture quality is quite poor....sorry for that. Phil's got on the long sleeve white underarmor...maybe that'll help)



Their team is 5-0 so far and ranked in the state.....it's a huge thing and the pressure builds each week....hhhmmmm....maybe a state-bound football team...Time will tell.

I just wanted to put this pic in. I always take a picture of the first day of school with the kids on the front steps. Here is this year's.....Jake used to be much littler than Stef....not anymore:



Oh, and one more football activity worth mentioning. Stef took Phil to a Packer game. His first regular season game at Lambeau Field. It was an exciting game because the rookie kicker kicked a field goal to win the game with like 2 seconds left. A great game to go to. Scott and Jake joined them. Here are a couple of photos:








There you have it....September in a nutshell. Or should I say in a football helmet?