Color Guard!! (As if Mallerie needed one.more.thing.)
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| They were a THRILLER to watch.... |
When Mallerie was in American Fork for a Cross Country race back in August she noticed the AF Color Guard practicing on the football field with the Marching Band. She thought they were amazing! She said to herself, "Our school needs that!" She poked around Wasatch High School and found the flags! On club sign-up day she decided to create two clubs. She sat at a table with a Harry Potter Club sign-up and a Color Guard sign-up. She got 126 names for the Harry Potter club and about two for Color Guard. Girls thought it sounded awesome and agreed that Wasatch needed one, they just didn't want to
do it. By watching a YouTube coaching session they decided they needed six girls so they could at least form a V. They were able to get just enough. By watching this tutorial they learned moves such as the back scratcher and the pizza cutter. She was showing us her moves in the back yard and Matt said, "Oh, I gotta come see this!" Their first performance was during halftime at the next home Football game. It was so fun to see the performance she had been working on with her new teammates.
We cheered her on. We cheered when she was in sync with the other gils. We cheered when she
wasn't. We cheered when she dropped her flag completely to the ground.
She came home later that night with a bunch of friends and burst through the door, "Mom! I did so bad!" I said, "No you didn't, it was great!" I could have flicked her friend in the forehead when he admitted "The people I was sitting next to said, 'They look pretty good if it weren't for Mallerie and that other girl.'" Mallerie is a good sport and just laughed (she actually laughed
hard at that comment.) I was hoping she wouldn't ask if we filmed it....because Matt did. She grabbed his phone and I held my breath as she watched. When she was done she said, "I wasn't
that bad!" That's the spirit!
HO-CO Oct 9-10th 2015
Mallerie's next endeavor was during the Homecoming Assembly where she was nominated for Homecoming Court. She and her date lip-synced to a portion of The Lizzy McGuire Movie "Have you ever seen such a beautiful night..." Her date Chad did a great imitation of Paolo's squeaky voice. Really, I was so impressed with what a great sport he was about all of it. He told Mallerie, "I will do whatever you need me to do....let's get that crown on your head!"
Theses little ones are watching and learning. What is in store for them...
Mallerie was nominated as
2nd attendant by her classmates and rode in the
Parade the following
Friday.
*I had been asked to help decorate the bus for Cross Country Region. I was assigned balloons. I went to the dollar store and found balloons in the school colors. My plan was to fill them up the morning before the parade, then the dumbest thing happened while I was changing the cat's water. I bent over and out went my back. Like out. I laid on the couch with a hand pump and filled up two black trashcan bags of balloons and tied them in bundles of three to tie on the bus. Matt worked from home that day so he was able to take me to the bus yard. Once there we learned that balloons are not allowed (safety reasons). Well, wouldn't that have been nice to know five hours earlier. So I grabbed a bundle out of the bag to take to the parade to cheer Mallerie on (like they were pom-poms).
When I see this picture all I can really remember is the amount of pain I was in (so frustrating). But Mallerie was a doll sitting on the back of the vintage red truck.
We checked out Binnie to come watch and cheer. After some hinting, Matt treated us to lunch. She and I kept making comments about how good the food smelled as we sat on Dairy Keen's lawn. He caught on:)
The tricky part of the day was that the Homecoming parade was the same day that the Cross Country team was going to run Region in Springville. The bus was set to leave right as the parade ended. Matt drove to the finish line and Mallerie hopped in the car, the bus was waiting for her at the school. She braided her hair and changed as fast as she possibly could.
We didn't need to leave for a few hours to meet her.
Matt told me I should rest by back but I said, "NO way!" I knew how much running in region meant to Mallerie and I did not want to miss it. Last year region was at Kiwanis Park and she fell when she was tripped by a stray kid. The whole team had issues and they did not make it to State. This was their last chance!
I don't think she knows that when she runs it makes me cry.
There were more than just my tears though when the team got FIRST PLACE!!!!!!!
I was bent in half but I was there, and it felt like a party!
Mallerie was actually sad we had to whisk her away again because the team was going out afterwards. However, she had to be back in Heber to be presented at half-time as part of the Homecoming Court. We peeled into town and saw that the time on the scoreboard at the football game read 11 minutes till half-time. She hopped in the shower when we got home,
un-braided her hair, and changed back into her dress. I dropped she and Matt off at the entrance while I found parking. We made it with
minutes to spare.
Mallerie needed two other clones of herself that day. If she wasn't in the Homecoming Court she would have been performing with the Color Guard at halftime! It was a joyous day all around but I'll admit I have never been so happy to crawl into bed and put on a movie as I was that evening.
All this and the Homecoming Dance hadn't even happened yet! I so appreciated Mallerie's willingness to wear Katrina's Christmas dress so I didn't have to sew or buy something new.
The next day I helped her with her make-up and nails. I used one of the yellow roses from her Homecoming Court bouquet to make a boutonniere for her date. I'm not paying nine bucks a pop for those anymore.
Mallerie and her dashing date, Chad Patterson.
What a whirlwind. But then again, if you choose to get involved with Mallerie's life....that's what it is.
*I was glad the two bags of balloons were still in the back of the van when Mallerie texted me a few days later, "Don't do anything with those balloons!" She used them to tie all over a guy's car to ask him to Preference. At least the air pumping wasn't all for naught.
STATE!!!!!!! October 21, 2015
The night before Mallerie was to run State I got home late from presidency meeting and saw a note on my bathroom mirror. Her bedroom is right under ours and she thinks I make too much noise! I carefully took my toothbrush to the kids bathroom.
The next morning I hosted the team breakfast at our house. I wasn't sure exactly what I was supposed to do for this. Turns out not much! The team came in and said "We are going to take over your kitchen." They did! They had pancakes grilling, hash-browns frying, and smoothies blending. I wanted to be of some assistance so I got some eggs scrambling. They went downstairs afterwards and watched the rest of McFarland USA. I thought they had changed their mind and were playing a game with how much cheering was going on. Turns out it was just the movie. I guess I need to see it.
State Cross Country has been held in Sugarhouse for as many years as anyone can remember. I debated weather I should check the kids out to join me but decided it would be much easier to navigate on my own. I was glad I did because I had to walk a ways after I parked to meet up with Matt.
The energy, the excitement!
Team huddle:
Getting ready,
geting set...
GO!!!!!
The course winds around the park in such a way that you can run back and forth and watch and cheer. That was Mallerie's favorite thing, to get to run through the tunnels of cheering fans.
The course ends in the stadium. Different parts of the crowd erupted as their runner burst through the trees. I probably had veins popping out of my neck as each Wasatch runner emerged.
Finishing Strong!
The team goal was to finish in Top Ten. They places SIXTH!
My heart could hardly stand to see this chapter of Mallerie's life come to an end. Wasatch Cross Country is her life, her heart, her passion, HER.
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"604.39 miles later I ran my first and last state cross-country meet. Blessed with the best!" -Mallerie |
Fun Mallerie story: She eats chips and salsa like the cat eats...well, cat food. Really, she could just eat this one thing and be happy pappy. I often buy packets of salsa mix that I just have to add red onion and roma tomatoes to. I bought a pound of roma's for the salsa and some vine tomatoes for a salad. She used the vine tomatoes in the salsa and it didn't taste as good. As I explained the difference to her she said, "I didn't know there were two kinds of tomatoes okay??"
Tomatoes: There are more than 3,000 varieties of heirloom or heritage tomatoes in active cultivation worldwide and more than 10,000 known varieties.
Mallerie....
