Happy Thanksgiving

 I will have to admit, this week has been a little wonky only working 3 days, but here goes nothing!

Running was great thanks to the highs in the 50s and lows in the 20-30s.  This is what fall is suppose to be like!  We got a couple of 3s in and a longish run of 8, including our own version of a Turkey Trot at home with Rockin Robin and the doodle girls.  

Thanksgiving did not start out as we had planned.  Tony had a bad night with a puking headache and not much sleep and Andrew, who had had some boughts with diarrhea the day before, woke up with severe tummy pain and more diarrhea.  I kept telling myself that Thanksgiving doesn't have to be ON thanksgiving day and to not get upset and just focus on getting both boys well.  I wanted both boys to feel better and enjoy the day.  We watched the parade and the dog show together, something we never get to do as Tony is cooking,  before I headed out to run a 5K.  When I came back both boys were feeling much better and eating and drinking.  We ended up not having a turkey (which I am totally fine with, not a fan of turkey) but having all of the other good stuff instead for an early dinner.  Everyone got over whatever they both had and I didn't catch it, so it was a win win!  

It was so nice to have two days off but I still did some work on Friday just to stay a little caught up so that Monday wouldn't be too much of a cluster.  We also got Stella bathed at one of our local farm stores.  I don't have a great way to bath dogs as one tub is a whirlpool tub that just has a faucet that no adapter can handle and the tub downstairs has a shower enclosure.  The best I can do is basically be in the tub with them and use the shower on both of us which requires a ton of bending over for me and I ain't no spring chicken anymore.  Stella's groomer retired and now I know why LOL!  Stella is a big baby when it comes to baths and pretty much cries and barks the ENTIRE time.  Pretty sure the whole store had to come and see what was going on while we were in there.  It felt like a life time, but was probably only 10 minutes tops and I probably got as wet as Stella thanks to Andrew having the sprayer.   Luckily my hubby showed up, got this perfect shot, and then took over because I was barely tall enough to reach over the sides.  She got a great brush out post drying and looks a million times better even if I still have a lot of work to do with her pants.  Don't get aussies unless you are ready for lots of grooming!

The rest of the weekend was dominated by football.  We had the Red Raiders (our local high school) in the state championship.  The ending was not what we wanted and they fought so hard, but in the endna little rural high school has no chance against a giant, inner city private school that recruits players and hands out scholarships.  I am so proud of the Red Raiders for hanging in as long as they did.  The entire town came out to our little downtown to send them off.

Then we all hopped in our cars and made a huge caravan to the game.  I couldn't get a good picture of the cars behind us.  

We had a HUGE community tailgate in the parking lot.   So much Wamego pride!  First time EVER in the program's history of us making it there.  Something HUGE to be proud of.  

I think I had heard we had around one thousand people in the stands and at the game.  Not sure how accurate that is, but we sure did pack the stadium full!

This picture was taken before that outer edge filled up with middle school football kids.  Our business alone donated 100 bucks and challenged others to do the same, so that high school and middle kids could get tickets and be there to be loud and proud. 

I love what our current football coach has done for our program and our community.  I love that he has the kids volunteering in various programs around the community to make it better. I love the camps and the work outs he gives our kids to make them stronger and healthier.  We already had an amazing state winning coach in cross country and track, but to have another program going to state consistently only brings buzz, donations, and support to this little community.  

And bonus!  We didn't freeze to death and the rain stayed away!

Going to miss cheering with the two ladies in the back ground.  We still have kid's wrestling together, but we don't do as many tournaments as they do with their kiddos, so I won't get to see them as much.  We have braved the cold, the wind, the rain, and the extreme heat all in metal bleachers this year.  We have cheered, almost kicked some asses literally, and had fun in the parking lot.  This is why I love doing sports, it's not just making friends for the kiddos, it's making friends for us, which is sometimes hard to do as an adult!  Till next year ladies!

Second place is NOTHING to sneeze at and I know these boys are down right now, but we love them, we support them, and we can't wait to cheer many of them on next year both in the high school and collegiate levels!

After the game we headed to a brewery to drown our sorrows and get ready for the KSU vs KU game.  Usually KU is nothing in football, but the sunflower showdown was a big deal this year.  Both teams had started off the season really well and while both had kind of fizzled with some tough losses, it was still going to be a big game for both teams.  

We ended the night with two more bars.  No, we are not bar hoppers, but one bar closed at half time so we had to change to another for the 2nd half.  The cats came away victorious after a very back and forth game and the Vols also ended the season with a win routing Vandy.  All in all, a great weekend for football.  

The glorious holiday weekend came to an end with more football in the Chiefs playing (and winning) and then our annual football banquet.  This year the boys won the league so they got rings.  Since Andrew hasn't even played in a traveling team where rings are a common thing for winning tournaments, he was pretty PUMPED about getting one.  Our head coach's wife Cassie even made a season ending hype video with almost every kid featured in one play, but all of the BIG plays being on it and it made the whole room get  super excited!

It just feels so good to have football back in our lives.  I lived it and breathed it when my brother played JR high ball, high school ball, college ball and NFL.  Football is one of my favorite sports  with baseball being a close second tied now with wrestling.  We went to every one of his games including games home and away, went to every play off game and every bowl game except the national championship we won, as my parents went without me.  I regret not getting to see any of my brother's NFL games in person, but I watched on the tv every.single.week.  I missed it.  Big time.  Glad it's back and glad my kiddo is slowly finding his love for a sport I so love thanks to great coaches and great friends who believe in him.  

I am also looking forward to starting the Joy to the Run program offered through Another Mother Runner again this year and starting my training for my next race, a  12 hour timed loop event, since I officially signed up for the race in March of 2023.  Yes, I have lost my mind, but I couldn't pass up a great black Friday deal (I know, I am a sucker) and I know I can get at least a 50K in 12 hours if not more, so maybe another 50 is coming if I play my cards right and train smart?

Have a wonderful week y'all!