drumline contest #1

after playing only the first half of her soccer game this morning, little sister rushed off to a full day at drumline competition.  she rehearsed at the school, loaded the truck, then headed with the band to their competition about one hour away.  big sister and i came later just to help with equipment and take photos.  it was a hot, hot day for me, but i'm sure it was much hotter for the kids in full uniforms.  they basically play the same show music that they play with the full band for halftime & upcoming marching competitions.  of course, the front ensemble is stationary with the drumline in two rows behind them.  no marching, just playing music.

 

they ended up earning 4th place out of the twelve 6A ensembles that competed.

finally in uniform

tonight's home football game featured the marching band back in full uniform!  this has not happened for big sister since the fall of 2019, and never before for little sister.  they sure do look sharp!!

big sister finally sat on the end where i could get a good view of her.

little sister enjoyed playing cadences with the drumline before halftime.

look: both girls in the same pic!! ;-)

once again, i was on the field for warmup and halftime, so i got some great photos.

the football team ended up winning 57-21, bringing their overall record to 4-0.  this is a pretty great winning streak for our school, so everyone is super excited and proud.

first soccer game

 little sister played in her season opener today as we traveled 38 miles to face the thrashers, and came away with a 6-5 win.

then after a short rest, she started back to work and refereed four games!

$$$$

away game 2

with a tiny bit of fall in the air, i decided to chaperone again at tonight's away game.  it's hard to beat the behind-the-scenes access to the band, particularly to my girls.

(they may have a different opinion!)

it was another cramped stadium with no track, so pre-half warmups had to be along the concourse and almost in the parking lot.

after halftime, the truck was loaded and it was back into the stands for the rest of the game.

it was a nail-biter of a finish to the game, which ended with a 35-31 win.

so that takes the football record to 3-0.

***********
i recently came across an explanation of how the tradition of the band playing amazing grace at the end of every game got started:

With only a few parents and fans left in the stands, Little Elm High School football players, cheerleaders, the band, and other students who choose to stand arm-to-arm, stay to sing Amazing Grace.

By this time, the only team left standing on the sideline is the Lobos – unified in their message. That’s one of hope, inspiration, and a reminder that life is good, no matter if they win or lose.  

And after every game for the last six years, it has become a tradition, one that Head Football Coach Kendrick Brown said the students just make happen.

“In 2016 after Theo Nash passed away, that’s when our team wanted to sing this song while the band played it for us at the end of the game. Every year since then, each senior class that comes along knows this is what we do and they just do it. It’s like brushing your teeth in the morning, it happens so naturally for them,” said Brown.

Nash, a football player, was just about to start his senior year at LEHS when he drowned in Lake Lewisville. Although Nash was the inspiration for the tradition, Brown said the song has been inspiring to see. “It has a lot of meaning to a whole lot of people in different ways.”

Last month on the road, the Lobos visited Pennington Field to play L.D. Bell. And just like they do, they locked arms and sang Amazing Grace after the fight song. Watching from a distance was Greg Perry and his wife, who have worked the games for 13 years at Pennington Field. They were blown away at what they had just witnessed and sent a thank you note to the District. “My wife had a huge smile when the band played Amazing Grace at the end. It is a pleasure to see such well-mannered students and the politeness of the faculty. Thank you for the message and witness you brought to Pennington Field,” he wrote.

If you haven’t seen it, plan to stay a little longer after the referee blows the whistle to end the game.  It may just wow you too.

first practice

this will likely not be a common thing, but little sister had her first soccer practice tonight.  it was a pleasant fall evening in the 80s - so very nice and welcome this time of year.

have a great season, ladies!!!

caramel highlights

little sister asked for a real salon visit to get caramel highlights.  she spent almost 3.5 hours there and the results are pretty cute!  here are the before and afters:

first home game

 we didn't have to go far tonight to this week's game.  i went early with the girls so i could help with the pit crew loading the percussion equipment into the game.  daddy came later closer to game time.

i caught little sister playing cymbals during the first quarter.  i love the way she pretends that she cannot see me recording her! ;-)

i always enjoy the stand tunes that the band plays.

halfway thru the second quarter, i moved down to the field to be ready to assist percussion with the halftime setup.  i was also able to get lots of great pics of percussion & little sister.

once halftime started, i had a great view of big sister.

the game ended with an impressive win of 63-20, taking the football team's record to 2-0.