Fall is in the Air

You can feel a change in the air here in Ohio.  The breezes are cooler and the temperatures lower.  

 It's time for football, 

tailgating, and

before long, apple picking. 

Friday was the first game of my nephew Joel's (#2) senior season playing varsity football.  

Joel's scrimmage number is 4

We were thrilled to hear mid-week that he was chosen a team captain.  He and another captain decided to cut their hair especially for the game.

Most of the family turned out for Friday's game as did of Columbus' local news stations. 

It was a fun game and Joel's team, the underdog, won the game 34-21.

  GO COMETS!

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MAKE IT A GREAT DAY! 

Worth the Wait

Boy, it was a BUSY but fun weekend.

My nephew Joel worked hard day in and day out at football practice this season. Friday, all his hard work paid off. He had a wonderful game and quite a fan base at his last game of the season in Delaware.

Most of the family turned out for this game and we could not have been prouder of him.

It was freezing, but Joel (#2)

made it worth withstanding the cold.

Unfortunately, the Elgin Comets
lost to the Buckeye Valley Barons,
but that didn't keep us from
having a postgame celebration!

CONGRATULATIONS JOEL!

I'm linking to Outdoor Wednesdays at a Southern Dreamer.

Michigan Weekend with Jordan

Happy Monday!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are ready to greet the new week. Jordan and I spent Friday and Saturday in Michigan. We had a fantastic time, but I'm a little worn out.

We left Friday morning after Jordan got home from work. Our first stop was Dundee, Michigan. Jordan is a new hunter and he wanted to stop at Cabela's to buy some new arrows for his crossbow.

While Jordan's new arrows were being cut, we looked around. Cabela's is an outdoorsman's dream with all its hunting and camping gear. They did have some rustic home decor and I was able to pick up some autumnal napkins at a reasonable price. Overall, their prices seemed a little steep.

Frankenmuth was our final destination for Friday. Michigan's Little Bavaria sits on the Cass River between Flint and Saginaw. We ALWAYS stay at the Bavarian Inn Lodge. Everything you could possibly want in a resort is right here at the lodge. The lodge sits on 13 acres and offers 5 indoor pools, 3 whirlpools, a huge arcade area where you can win tickets that can be turned in for prizes, indoor 18-hole miniature golf course, and a play village for the little ones.

Normally, we spend a lot of time making use of all these amenities. This was a whirlwind trip so we were unable to spend any time playing. Jordan worked Thursday night so he was tired and was fighting a cold. He definitely needed a nap.

While he slept for a couple of hours, I headed to one of Frankenmuth's most celebrated locations, Bronner's! It is Christmas at Bronner's year round. Visiting Bronner's is always the highlight of my trip to Frankenmuth. It is huge! The store is the length of 1 1/2 football fields and offers 50,000 seasonal trims and gifts.


Saturday, we got up early and headed back south to Ann Arbor for the Michigan v Bowling Green football game. As I explained here, Jordan is a Michigan fan living in an Ohio State family. I wanted to take him to a game for a very long time, but this is the first opportunity, thanks to my brother Brad, we had to actually go.

Pregame warm-ups

The bands each played

The Maize and Blue come onto the field to Hail to the Victors

Final score? Michigan - 65, Bowling Green - 21,

Mom and Jordan - ONE GREAT WEEKEND!

GO BLUE!

I will be linking to Mosaic Monday and Blue Monday.

There's One in Every Crowd

As you know, my entire family is comprised of diehard Ohio State fans. Well, almost the entire family. Jordan is not. Is he an Iowa Hawkeye fan? No. Is he an Oklahoma Sooner fan? Nope. USC Trojan fan? Nada. My pride and joy – the apple of my eye – the object of all my maternal affection is a Michigan Wolverine fan (Ohio State’s biggest rival).

It doesn’t matter that Jordan is a sweet person. It doesn’t matter that Jordan has a good job. It doesn’t matter that he is very attentive to his mother. In the eyes of my family, I am a parenting failure.

I don’t know where things went awry. When he was little he had Brutus Buckeye bibs, bottles and blankies (except for the IU outfit my friend from Fort Wayne bought him). We taught him to say TOUCHDOWN BUCKEYES! when he was just tiny.

He’s nearly 21 years old so what’s a mother to do? I can tell you what I’m gonna do…I’m taking him to the Big House (not prison, the stadium). Jordan and I are going to Ann Arbor for the Michigan v. Bowling Green game this weekend. No, I won’t be wearing scarlet and gray to the game.


We’re driving up to Frankenmuth (Jordan’s favorite place on earth) Friday and then to the game Saturday. I will have lots to share with you next week.

Have a fabulous weekend! La

First Tailgate Party of the Season

Our company encourages us to decorate our work stations with different themes each month. Last month the theme was The Beach. September's theme is Football because our office is in the Columbus, Ohio area and most of us are Buckeye fans. Thursday was the first Ohio State football game of the 2010 season. To celebrate the opener, everyone on the third floor of our office enjoyed a tailgate party. There was so much food; we could have fed the entire office. Here are a few pictures from our tailgate.

Office Decor

Brutus Buckeye serves as hall monitor

I love this plaque depicting
cheerleaders spelling O-H-I-O

Jordan's girlfriend Ashlee and her cousins
spell O-H-I-O at Harding Memorial

Tailgate Food

Little pigskins in a blanket on a stadium platter
with tons of desserts in the background

In the foreground are some olives rolled in
cream cheese and nuts (I will see if I can get the recipe)

No Ohio State tailgate party would be complete with
the traditional Buckeye candy
(peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate).

Central Ohio Spartans

Anyone who knows me will tell you I have two passions; my family and football. When I can combine the two, it makes for a very happy Me.

I love football on all levels and have watched Jordan and my nephews play for years. Last Saturday I was able to turn back the clock and watch my nephew, Curt play in a semi-professional football game against a team from Kentucky. It's been some 15 years since Curt was on the sidelines in high school, but he still has some moves.

His team, the Central Ohio Spartans, are based in Columbus and have put together an impressive record at 8-1. With only a few regular season games left, they are looking forward to the playoffs.

Here are some pictures from Saturday's 27-26 win over the Kentucky Stallions.

Curt waiting to go in

Huddle up!

In the middle of the action!

They don't call it a contact sport for nothin'


Taking a breather.
This game takes a lot out of a 30-something man.

GO SPARTANS!