Happy Halloween! Band Senior Night

This was a very interesting Halloween for us. The girls had a football game, so that was the extent of their night. Greg and I went to the ward's Trunk or Treat before heading over to the game. I do enjoy seeing all the cute kids, but must admit Halloween is just not as much fun as it was when our kids were little.

One fun part of having a football game on Halloween was that the cheerleaders got to wear costumes. Here is my favorite--a sumo wrestler. It was too funny watching her cheer all night in this!

On Senior Night, the Seniors get very special treatment. First of all they don't have to wear their marching uniforms. Instead they get to wear their letter jackets and a t-shirt representing which college they plan to attend. Most seniors where official school shirts like these:

But Megan, Laureen, Rachel and Elizabeth wore these shirts

They made them because none of them know where they want to go to college.

The Seniors were also recognized at half time, and we got to go down on the field with Rachel

Some parents brought their daughters flowers. I gave Rachel a Tootsie Pop from the trunk or treat. I'm such a fun mom!

Although they missed out on trick or treating, I think the girls managed to have a good time.

After Creek beat Jersey Village 38 - 0, the seniors were allowed to go down on the field to sing the school song.

Then Senior Night was over--and Cory, Rachel and Justin were left to continplate their futures.

Melissa Survives the GRE

While preparing to apply to graduate school, Melissa has been studying for the GRE. When she visited Harvard they told her GRE scores aren't one of the things they are most interested in when considering applicants. But even though they made the importance of the test seem low, she really wanted to do well and has been working hard to be prepared for it. Well she took it today and since it was computerized she was able to see her scores immediately following the test and she scored very well. She does have to wait for her writing scores, but feels very good about how she did on that portion to. And she is thrilled to have it over and done with. So now she can breath a sigh of relief.--at least until she has to finish her application essays.

UIL Area Competition

Today was the UIL Area Competition for the band. We thought they marched really well--even better than last week. But the judges didn't like their program as much as we did and they tied for 10th. Since only the tope 7 got to move into the finals, that meant the competiton season was over. It was kind of sad, but the girls did feel like they did well, so at least they didn't have to feel bad about the season ending because they perform poorly. It has been really fun to have both the girls marching this season. We are very proud of how well they did.

A Netflix Senior Moment

Oh my poor, old and failing brain. On Saturday, Greg and I went to the post office with things to mail to Joe as well as 3 Netflix DVDs that I wanted to return. I had run out of Priority Mail boxes at home, so had Joe's items (a sweater and some miscellaneous goodies) in a grocery bag. When we got to the post office, I couldn't find a box so I ended up putting his things into a priority mail envelope instead. The post office was crowded, so instead of packing up the envelope and then weighing it for the postage, I stacked everything on the scale, printed the postage and then moved off of the scale to place everything inside and seal it up. I was a little disorganized, but soon had the envelope packed and ready to go.

Once we got the postage and mailing label on the envelope, we went to leave. I then remembered the DVD's and looked around for them, but couldn't see them in the area I was working. No biggie, I just assumed I had left them out in the truck and sent Greg out to get them while I cleaned up my work space and dropped Joe's package in the mail slot. I was a little surprised when Greg wasn't back with the DVDs when I was finished. I walked out to the truck to see what was taking him so long. He was still digging around in the truck and had not been able to find and of the NetFlix envelopes. I was surprised because I clearly remembered having them in my hand when we left. In fact, I had gone back to the desk to pick them up before leaving the house. So I decided I had better go back and make sure I hadn't missed them in the post office, but once again they were not there.

Now, we had changed cars at the last minute on this trip. When we had started the Beretta, it made a really bad grinding sound. When Greg checked under the hood he decided the water pump had gone out and that we had better not drive it. So I didn't completely panic because there was a chance that I had left the DVDs in the Beretta. But once we got home we learned that they weren't there either. Greg had me check in the house to make sure I had really picked them up and once again, no luck in finding them. Since I was sure that I had carried them out to the car, I went and searched both the Beretta and the truck again, but was unsuccessful at finding my 3 lost red envelopes. Ugh!

So now the big question was what happened to my movies. I figure there were 3 options for what happened. First, I could have dropped them in the mail box and not remember it. I was 99% positive this had not happened. Second, I put them in Joe's box and unintentionally mailed him illegal contraband. Third, I left them on the counter at the post office and someone picked them up. If the first thing happened (which I didn't think likely), they would have shown up on our account yesterday or today. No such luck. If the second thing happened, I would have to write to Joe explaining why I sent him movies that he obviously can't watch on your mission, apologize and ask him to drop them in the mail for me. I did this, and received was told in his email today that he did not have any movies in his package. This was quite a bummer, because that meant that the third thing most likely happened. And because my account had not been credited for the DVDs return, the person who found them did not mail them but took them home instead. Not good, because if that is what happened then I get to pay to replace them. We have broken a DVD before and I just went to the video store and bought a used copy because it was much cheaper than paying NetFlix their replacement cost. In this case I wouldn't get off so cheap because on of the movies was a new release Emma Smith, My Story, so it would be very difficult to find a discounted copy.

So now that I knew I did not mail them to Joe, I went online to find out how much I was going to have to spend to replace these three movies. It looked like it would run me about $20. I wasn't happy about that, but it was cheaper than the $60+ NetFlix was going to charge me. But before I ordered the replacements I decided I would search the truck one last time. And wouldn't you know it, I found the DVDs in the split between the driver and the the passenger part of the front seat. I could not believe it. Both Greg and I had searched the truck multiple times and I swear they were not there! Must have been those stupid house elves again! But at least they returned them before I spent any money.

Marching Band UIL

Rachel and Erin had their UIL competition today. They did excellent and scored all 1s for their performance. This is the first time since Rachel has been in the band that they have scored all 1s at UIL, so she was very excited. Plus they got all kinds of comments about how they were the best Cy Creek Band ever. Their scores also qualified them to compete next weekend at area competition. Both the girls were very pleased and are really hoping to do well enough next week to qualify for state!

A funny side note--Greg and I had discovered this season that the Berry Center takes credit cards for football games. This is so nice because I am always running around trying to find cash so we can go to the games. Today when we headed to the UIL competition, we didn't have enough cash to get in. No biggie, we'll just put it on a credit card. Or so we thought. Turns out for the UIL competition they are only accepting cash. We look in Greg's wallet and we are about $2 short of the admission price. So we walk back to the truck, grumbling all they way about how we are going to have to go to a nearby gas station and pay an ATM fee to get cash. When we get to the truck we decide to dig through the ashtray to see if there is enough change to get us in. We empty it out, and are 5 cents short. 5 cents--can you believe it. We decide to try to get in with what we have--even if we have to ask someone for a nickle. So we start to walk back to the ticket window and I see a man walking up behind us. I swallow my pride, and ask this total stranger if I can have a nickel. He laughed, dug through his pockets and gave me 5 pennies. A bit embarrassing, but we were able to get inside in time to see the girls march and we didn't have to go hit an ATM.

This week's football update: Creek beat Cy Fair 42 - 21. They are still undefeated in the district and have already qualified for the playoffs. Creek football is definitely better than last year!

A Visit with Family

Since it has been so slow at work, Continental has been giving a lot of advanced auto. I decided it had been too long since I had seen my parents, so I took several days off and flew into Salt Lake on Monday. It was a really great trip and I enjoyed being able to catch up with Kevin and Michelle & their family as well as Mom and Dad.

Monday night I went to a community theatre with Kevin and Michelle and saw Jekyll and Hyde-which was pretty good. Nick is going to school at Weber State and working at the scout shop. He is taking Lacrosse as his PE credit and has a bit of a black eye from that. Catherine loves to play on her keyboard and create cd's using software that changes the keyboard playing into other instruments. She gave me a cd when they picked me up for the airport--it is pretty cute. Michelle won another blue ribbon at the Utah State Fair in their quilting sampler competition. She is such a good quilter! We went to one of her quilting classes on Tuesday, and I can see where it could become an addictive hobby. A trip to Kevin & Michelle's house is never complete without playing Ticket to Ride. This trip was no different. Kevin threatened to give me a Joe Beating last Tuesday night when we played the Switzerland version. He did beat me, but not by much--it was Michelle that got the beating. On Wednesday Michelle and I went to a Quilting Shop Hop, visiting several fabric stores that were having sales and give aways. I won a new rotary cutter at one of the shops which was pretty cool. I was a little worried about getting it through security on my flight home, but it turned out not to be a problem.


It was a fun and relaxing couple of days, and it was really good to see my family. This trip also reminded me how lucky I am to have my job with Continental! I hope I get to work for them for a long, long time!

Melissa and the Red River Shootout

Melissa was one of the lucky students that drew out for tickets to this year's Red River Shootout--the traditional battle between UT and OU. She was so excited to be able to go. She and Erin Martinez got their tickets, painted their coolers, loaded her car and drove to Dallas for an excellent weekend of football and fun. What a lucky Longhorn!

The party started on Wednesday at the Torchlight Rally. Here is what Melissa considers "kind of the best photo I've ever taken".

You have to have an awesome cooler to haul your drinks to the game. The tradition is for the girls to paint the cooler and the guys to fill it. Melissa and Erin painted a cooler for each other and then filled them with Diet Coke. Here are pictures of the one Melissa recieved:

Game day brought a lot of excitment.

Melissa put her game face on...

and the girls donned their game day attire

Then it was off to the Cotton Bowl

Hook 'Em!

It was a very exciting game and the girls got to see their Horns beat up on the Sooners!

A great day to be a Longhorn!

And some great senior memories for Melissa!

Homecoming 2008

THE BIG GAME: FRIDAY, OCT 10

Homecoming was this weekend, and the girls had a very busy couple of days. The football game was yesterday. Creek played Cy Woods and won 54-25. Always exciting to win your Homecoming game and this win was even better because it was their third in a row. Creek is undefeated in district play and is starting to looking like a powerhouse this season.

Play that funky music white girls!

Because of all the Homecoming festivities, the band didn't march during the game. Normally they would march after the game, but since they had a contest this morning the directors didn't want to keep them out later than they had to. In the end our girls got home after midnight and had to be back at school by 6 am. So glad they gave them an early night!

HOMECOMING DANCE: SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11

It really was strange to have Erin involved with homecoming activities The girls made their mums at our house with friends. Mums are probably one of my favorite ridiculous Texas traditions. They really are unique.

Here are pictures of Erin's mum. For some reason we didn't manage to get any pictures of her wearing it. Mums can be very expensive. We get around this by making our own instead of buying premade ones. I love Erins mum because it was made out of parts from one of Rachel's old mums (which was made out of parts from one of Melissa's old mums). Hurray for recycling!

Both of the girls went to dinner and the dance with groups of friends. They both looked beautiful and had both had a really fun night.

Rachel can't believe her baby sister is so grown up!

Erin's went with four of her friends, Ashton, Hannah, Grace and Jessica, and their dates. (Jessica and her date arrived late for pictures). They went to the Macaroni Grill for dinner where Erin enjoy some excellent Lasagna. They then went to the dance and had a really good time.

Erin, Ashton, Hannah, and Grace

Erin, Mason, Ashton, JD, Grace, Chris and Hannah

Rachel went with Lauren, Lindsey and Megan. They had a great time taking a ton of photos at different locations. They had dinner at the Cafe Red Onion, which Rachel absolutely loved. The dance was fun too, although definately not the highlight of the night.

Katy Marching Contest

Today was the Katy Marching Contest, which is the band's warm-up competition for UIL. The day was perfect for marching and the band did an excellent job. After performing the kids loaded up on their buses to go to the mall for some lunch. We heard their scores right before we left and texted the girls with the good news--they had scored all 1s. Erin called me to make sure I had told her the correct scores. When I assured her we had heard it over the loudspeaker, she told her bus and the kids exploded in celebration. It was pretty cool to hear how excited they were. Good job Creek Band!

Consecration

When Joe first left on his mission and I couldn't call and talk to him whenever I wanted, I wasn't sure missions were a good thing. But from the very beginning, he has written letters have shown me how much the Lord blesses you when you commit to serve Him and do His will, and I quickly gained a testimony of missions. Reading about Joe's experiences always make me want to do better at being in tune with the spirit.

I went to the temple last week with Cindy Solgere and was impressed by the teachings on Consecration. So I came home and decided to study that topic a bit--not the law of consecration, but the act of spiritual consecration. I found a talk by Neil A Maxwell, who said the "ultimate consecration is the yielding up of oneself to God" and "The best way to valiantly testify of Jesus is to become steadily more like Him, and it is that consecration that carves out the emulative character". No wonder Joe has such amazing experiences on his mission and we have see so much spiritual growth in his letters. He truly has consecrated himself to the Lord, and the blessings are evident.

So my goal for the rest of the year is to work on consecrating myself and becoming steadily more like the Savior. Hopefully that effort will bless me as well.

I Love Conference!

General Conference was this weekend, and it was the highlight of my week. I love that we have a living prophet that speaks to us on a regular basis. I love that the Lord knows each one of us individually, and knows what counsel we need to hear. I can't even tell you what my favorite talk was--I just loved all the messages and the spirit that I felt as I listened to each session. I really needed that spiritual feeding. I felt like a lot of the messages were given just for me, so my testimony of the leadership of the church was strengthened.

It was also exciting to see the gospel continue to spread across the earth. President Monson announced the building of 5 new temples Saturday morning. They will be built throughout the world--in Calgary, Canada; Cordoba, Argentina; the greater Kansas City area; Philadelphia; and Rome, Italy. Exact locations will be announced later, but the Kansas City and Rome temples were very exciting to me. Rome, because who would have ever thought we see a temple there, and Kansas City because of the potential for it to be in Jackson County. Once these temples are completed, there will be 145 operating temples throughout the world. It seems like only yesterday we hit the 100 temple mark. It is such a blessing to live at this time, and witness the work of the Lord spread across the world and the blessing of the Temple become accessible to more and more people. The Lord truly loves his children!

Another big win for Creek

Cy Creek had another great game tonight and beat Cy Ridge 31 - 21. Ridge was the district champions last year so this was a big win for our team.

As always we enjoyed watching the girls perform.

And Rachel helped Justin Pyper ask Amanda Gillihan to Homecoming.

It was an enjoyable way to spend a Friday evening.