Go team(s)!

High school football is a big deal around here. On a Friday night, it’s the place to be. So this week, we decided to head to the local high school and check out the game. Kaitlyn has never seen a football game before.

It was packed. We parked a quarter of a mile from the stadium and hiked there… all the while I was wishing I’d followed a neighbor’s advice and grabbed a flashlight for the walk back at the end of the night.

And I have to say I’m impressed by the school itself. Beautiful new building. Good to see where our tax dollars are going. Strange to think that it very well may be where Kaitlyn goes to high school. We’ve never lived somewhere before where we could walk past a high school and think that. (We knew we’d move from Durham before she started school and in Wake County the kids are moved so much even the brand new school a stone’s throw from our house wasn’t a guarantee.)

We paid our ten bucks to get in and it was like stepping back in time 25 years. High school football games haven’t changed that much since the last time I attended one. Although I don’t remember my stadium having a shack selling sweatshirts and jackets with the school name on them. The school colors are maroon and gold; not a color combo you’ll ever find me wearing. But the thought crossed my mind that we could buy a sweatshirt for Kaitlyn. Before I could even suggest it (speaking of purchasing aloud would have made it impossible to then avoid), Bill was leading us to the visitor side. His former boss and current co-worker was there to watch his son play. We found him in the crowd, managed to wave and nothing more because it was too crowded. After a stop for popcorn and nachos, we went back to the home team’s side, only to find the bleachers had filled. Rather than squeeze ourselves into a seat (which was my assumption), we wandered around, standing along the fence to watch the game. It was ok, but it was kinda hard to see. Kaitlyn asked a lot of understandable questions about what was going on. She also cheered for whichever team was currently doing better. I told her you traditionally pick one team and root for them, thick or thin. She told me she’s just a kid and can do it her way. She will not be a good UCLA fan if she’s going to be that quick to abandon the team just to cheer for the winner.

By just before halftime, all that standing and not understanding was getting to Kaitlyn and she was ready to go. I suggested we stay for the show. The teenagers left their seats when the game stopped and we snagged a spot in the first row to watch.

When the band made its way out onto the field, Kaitlyn asked if there would be horses. Horses? (I’m not a fan of horses at football games, as you can imagine.) Horses. Like with the band at that castle in Italy. Band at a castle in Italy? “You mean the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace in London?” Yea, that one. No, no horses. And I guess that is the only other version of a marching band she’s seen.

Kaitlyn enjoyed the show. Bill spent it comparing the performance to when he was in his high school’s marching band. We also stayed to watch the dancers and then the cheerleaders.

Then Kaitlyn had enough. She didn’t care which team won, since she was rooting for both anyway. So we made the trek back through the dark to the car and came home. I think Kaitlyn liked her first football game. She’s determined “when she’s a teenager” to be the team mascot. An eagle. (There isn’t one now) So she has been practicing flapping her arms and squawking. Lucky us.

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