For the Love of Football {and a cute date}

This past weekend we journeyed to the Holyland, our affectionate term for Aggieland, home of Texas A&M. I know, it’s a sickness. While I’ve been to College Station several times since Gianna was born, this was the first football game I attended since her birth. And boy, was it sweet.

The Simmons family was gracious enough to host our crew for the weekend. Not many people are willing to double their house size overnight, but they really went above and beyond. We love staying with them and our kids do, too.

Every fall, the Association of Former Yell Leaders hosts its annual reunion. Let me tell you, it’s always a trip to be in room where “everybody has a story.” Imagine a room full of 75 extroverts and I know you feel me.

Because it was Bama weekend, there was so much excitement surrounding all the game festivities. Friday night, we braved all those college students and, against better judgment, stayed up WAY past our bedtime and went to Midnight Yell Practice. Yes, it’s really at midnight. And yes, there were really 40,000+ people in attendance. Loads. Of. Fun.

yell leader reunion1

yell leader reunion2

Photos compliments of the TAMU Facebook Page

Back in the day, my “seats” at Midnight Yell were on the track with Scott, as he led yells (A&M doesn’t have cheerleaders, that’s way too mainstream for us!). As an alumni, we get VIP seats at yell practice and our kids get to tag along. We joke that it’s the only yell leader perk you get once you graduate, because it sure doesn’t mean we get free football tickets!

AFYL, blog_3861

Thankfully, we had the 2:30pm game slot which meant we didn’t have to be out of bed with the chickens, even though the kids failed to get that memo. After a bit of kid wrangling and babysitter fenangling, we got ourselves to the stadium, tailgates and all the rest with only two kids in tow. Glorious!

One of the coolest parts of the weekend? THIS.

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AFYL, blog_4079

Every 5-7 years, all the former yell leaders lead the “big 3” yells (Gig ’em, Aggies and Farmers Fight) on the football field. They line them up, oldest to youngest. It’s just so cool to see how things have grown and changed in leading yells, right before your eyes. Nothing like it. For many of those guys, I’ve known them longer than their wives! I adore them all. It was most certainly a proud wife moment. And also? That new stadium is deafening. We had people screaming at us from just a few rows up and never heard them. It wasn’t until we got the texts later that we realized just how much we didn’t hear. HA!

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Aggies, blog_4131

Even though our QB threw the touchdown pass to the wrong team, three times, a Dos Equis, some good conversation and a few great tailgates made it a little better. I will say that special teams killed it. Coach Banks, if you happen to read this, don’t leave College Station. Ever. You’re doing it right.

Aggies, blog_4138 Aggies, blog_4140

It was an added bonus to hug the necks of some of our sweet friends from Indy. Michael, the son of Clare’s Godmother, is considering A&M. We pretty much had him moved in and applying for his Aggie ring. From the looks of things, I think he had a great time.

Aggies, blog_3871

We ended our weekend at St. Mary’s with Mass. I love this photo. Fr. David fits right in with the kids. Hey, vocation recruiting starts young, I guess. It was a thumbs up kinda weekend. Bravo, Aggieland. You treated Team Whitaker right.

Aggies, blog_4148

8 Comments

  1. Nicole on October 21, 2015 at 8:48 am

    I love that you find so much joy in heading back to your alma mater. And the way you share it is infectious!

    • Kathryn on October 27, 2015 at 12:37 am

      Awww, what a sweet thing to say.

  2. Verdina on October 21, 2015 at 9:57 am

    Sounds like a great weekend… but NOTHING can compare to yesterday at St. Maria Goretti! Unbelievable! Even though I’ve been to Netuna three times and seen the youngest saint, her house, and the hospital where she died, I can’t tell you how it felt to kneel before her in our own St. Maria Goretti in Westfield, IN. Glorious! It was a beautiful day; the church was literally packed for vespers (the church holds 1,500 “Hoosier butts”).

    Enjoy your trip to Dallas!

    God bless!
    V

  3. karen on October 21, 2015 at 10:48 am

    Say hi to my boy for me. He’ll be easy to spot. Short hair, tan shirt and pants, black shoes, white belt.
    Hubby and I are going to our first game in Nov, can’t wait. 😀

    • Kathryn on October 27, 2015 at 12:36 am

      Oh you’ll have an absolute blast. ENJOY!!

  4. Kimberly on October 22, 2015 at 2:50 pm

    Such a fun weekend! I love the picture of Dr David with the kids. When we go back to College Station, I always make sure I’m there for Mass. I miss that place!

  5. Sarah Fearn Johnson on November 4, 2015 at 6:59 am

    I really enjoy reading the BIS reflections every AM and then going to find out more about the gal who wrote that day’s. I am not sure how I found BIS but the first gal I met was Kendra Tierney. Now I am reading your blog. The thing I find most fun is that Catholic Mommas can have some reall good times, especially around Football season. I am a rabid fan. My husband and I have season tickets to the Naval Academy games. My husband played football while he was a Midshipman which was a million years ago. Kendra is a Navy fan and you like Texas A and M. Anyway, A and M is one of our favorites, too, because of the Corps of Cadets. Well, I just wanted to let you know that an old Momma in Yorktown, Virginia is really enjoying meeting all you gals through BIS and other Catholic based websites that I have stumbled upon while browsing the Internet. Thank you for putting yourself out there for all of your fans.

    • Kathryn on November 7, 2015 at 9:46 pm

      Huge college football fans here – even when the going gets tough I just can’t look away! Navy and A&M definitely have a lot in common. So glad you’re here!

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