November Recap

High school football ended in October, but there was still quite a bit of college football left to be played. Wheaton JV played against North Central JV on an absolutely frigid Monday night. It was about 15 degrees at game time! That didn’t stop the O-Line from going undershirt-less. They bore those big arms with pride.

The field had to be plowed just prior to the game because of all the snow that had fallen throughout the day.

I made another drive up to Wisconsin to see Derek play against Carroll College.

Four of Derek’s teammates are sons of men with whom Jim played football at Wheaton 25 years ago. Here are the dads:

Someone got a shot of three of the dads with their rejoicing sons after winning the conference championship. It says a lot about the program when you see sons following in the footsteps of their fathers!

It was a good day to celebrate.

Speaking of former college football teammates, Jim got together with three others to support Neal coaching his Eastern Michigan University team.

Jim and I drove home early from Michigan Thanksgiving weekend so we could cheer Derek on as he played in the second round of NCAA playoffs. It was cold and rainy, but that didn’t damper our spirits. Ah, football in November.

Another victory!

Loyal fan club:

We took Derek out to eat at a place nearby. We had a Groupon. The reviews were great. Let’s just say the experience was…interesting. We were literally the only customers because the place ended up being a night club. 6:00 was a tad early for the later-arriving party-goers. This was not mentioned in the description. At least the food and company were good!

In other college football news, Air Force beat Army! Jake and Tiffany were cheering for their respective branches. Tiffany was at the game, serving at the Army ROTC table at the tailgate.

Jake went on another field trip with his test flight class to Edwards Air Force base in California. It was the most exciting experience in his life, by his account, as some of the students got to fly in F-16s! They simulated a dog fight, went supersonic, flew through valleys, and experienced a mid-flight refuel. Jake took a selfie during the flight.

In case you were wondering, there is most certainly an ear-to-ear grin on that face!

We celebrated Ruth’s birthday (again) with my parents. It was her third tenth birthday.

After having it for 2.5 years, the front chandelier was finally put in. You can see why it took a while to build up the gumption to install it.

We had the WA football banquet. Peter was awarded the Hammer Award for being the hardest working o-lineman of the season.

He also played percussion in church one Sunday morning.

We traveled to Michigan for Thanksgiving weekend once again. Though because Jake and Tiffany celebrated the holiday in Colorado, and Derek had practice all through the weekend, our numbers were light this year.

Ruth and Mom preparing food in the kitchen:

Thursday morning was the annual Giere Classic 5K/optional distance run/jog/walk event. We put on the bib numbers,

warmed up with some calisthenics,

and posed for a group shot.

Without Jake and Derek leading the pack in running and competition, most took a more leisurely pace along the trail.

It was no less fun, however.

After the race, the boys hung out at the house, playing games,

while the girls went back to the Gieres’ to do hair and get dressed before dinner.

My cousin Jackie brought her two precious little ones to dinner, and oh how we loved loving on them.

The girls!

They had so much fun playing with this little guy too. Cars, trucks, and hide-and-seek.

Oh, and we enjoyed a delicious dinner. Derek drove up after practice Thursday and made it just in time. Unfortunately, he had to leave first thing the following morning, but it was so good to have him there for at least a short time.