Hey, what's the football team doing on the marching field?

My kids are in the marching band.  That means that from August 1 until early December I spend a good chunk of time watching them.  It really is great because the band is like a family.  A loud family.  With instruments and lots of bodily functions.  But seriously it's pretty great.  This is my fourth year as a Band Mom but for the past two years I've worked in the uniform department.  This year I narrowed it down to the color guard uniforms.  Color guard uniforms involve four main components...

1. The unitard.  Ours are black.  The girls lovingly refer to them as trash bags.  They are made of Lycra so they are super stretchy.  They require hemming.  It is a huge pain.  They also make everyone feel bad about the way they look.
2. The tunic.  That's the sparkly part.  They are sleeveless.  They aren't bad.  I'd kinda like to have one. They are also 70 bucks each and require hand washing.  So I freak out if I see someone eating something while wearing one. 
3. The shoes.  This may be the most important thing.  These girls are no joke.  They are running across that field, flipping flags and doing splits.  Sometimes the field is wet.  Sometimes it's 30 degrees outside.  Good shoes = good guard.
4. The hair and make up.  I don't have words to explain how important the hair and make up is to a guard girl.  I mean it's a team of 22 girls. That should sum things up.

My job is to fit all 22 girls in unitards, tunics and shoes.  Everyone tries everything on.  Every pant gets hemmed and pressed.  Repairs are made.  Garment bags and rain coats are labeled.  Things are ordered and labeled and organized.  It's quite the undertaking. But really, the uniform closet is the best place to be.  The best thing I've learned....stretch the fabric slightly as you send it under the needle.  It's really the only way to get a good hem in there.

This past Friday night was the first night we rolled out in full uniform.  GLORIOUS!  Every hair in place.  Every tunic washed.  Every shoe laced.  Every girl (okay band too) looking like a million bucks.  Those kids have worked so hard for so many weeks and they looked SO SHARP!  Since my kids are juniors I only have one more season to be a Uniform Mom.  I'm not sure what I'll do with my Friday nights.  Or my Saturdays.  Or the other days of the week either.  Is the a home for band less Band Moms?

Ahhh... FALL!

Perhaps it's my station in life (as a larger woman) but I do so enjoy the cooler fall weather. Quite frankly, I've been afraid I was going to sweat myself to death before a cold front rolled into Virginia. But fall seems to be opening the door and coming on inside and I welcome it with a cup of coffee and warm cookie.

Fall brings football and marching band and while I watch the Vice Presidential debate this evening, I'm getting ready for tomorrow night's big homecoming game. The Millers will be tailgating before the game, so the Miller Mom is making a big pot of white chilli and some yummy corn bread. I'm also using my Cricut to make some fabulous signs for the game. Everyone will know who the Millers are cheering for. I can only hope that the temperatures dip low after the sun goes down so that I have a good excuse to snuggle with the Hubby in the stands.

GO PANTHERS!!!!!!