I bundled up Friday night, but I still felt the chill of the winter wind! There were some silly young things dressed in shorts and little shirts , but most of us huddled up into our warm gear! One dad looked up to see his young son dressed in just his shorts. It seems the end zone game had become a little too hot and he had removed his jacket and shirt. Minutes later the young man was bundled up and getting a little heat from the scolding he received!

I have to say it is more fun watching a football game all cuddled into a blanket. It’s just not my favorite type of weather. Our daughter Tracy was down to watch the game. It is a long trip from Houston, but she wanted to make sure Russ received his birthday gift. She brought him some good tasting honey from Fain’s. I have to say we are not planning anything special for this momentous birthday. He is 70 years young this Friday. I’m sitting here typing away to the sounds of deep snoring in the living room. I’m just not sure who’s doing the snoring. I think we have a father-daughter duet in progress! We also had the pleasure of Miss Pearl Cantrell’s company Friday. Bob & Mary MacLean and Nedra Morgan accompanied her to watch the big win.

The 5th Quarter after the game was a resounding success! My goodness there were masses of people there. One family had come in from the coast. I’m not sure who they were visiting but they came over for some yummy tacos and fixings. The lady explained she had never been to a football game where they fed everyone afterwards. I suspect that was true, but we like our boys and our fans in this town. We have one more 5th Quarter this Friday. We haven’t yet decided on the menu.

If you haven’t made it to the Christmas musical practice, please

come on over. The practice is on Wednesday from 6:30pm until 7:45pm. The quilting ladies are coming over right after Bible study. It makes for a long, but fulfilling day! The book, What Happens When Women Pray, is just awe inspiring. We are learning to strengthen our prayer time, and are beginning to see the results of praying in one accord. Both practice and Bible study are open to anyone in the area who wants to share in the activities.

If you didn’t see the San Angelo paper, the Coyotes were the featured game of the week. The Rochelle fans came in on a wave of optimism that was not sustainable. Within minutes the Coyotes had scored twice. The game was out of reach by the end of the 1st quarter. The final score was 74 to 6. I cannot say enough about the Rochelle fans and players. There were no bad attitudes, the coach was marvelous, and I can tell you that their fans were really nice people. I wish for their sake that the game had been a little closer. Those young men work so hard all week; it seems a shame to go home in defeat. Oh quit it! I can hear all you guys making raspberry noises. It’s a mother thing!

Our band played wonderfully. Last week the band performed under the direction of Sara Hedley, since our band director was

in New Mexico. He should be very proud of Sara and the group for doing such a great job. Last but certainly not least, are the varsity cheerleaders. It may be my imagination, but they just seem to be getting better. They have had great sponsors for years in Mrs. Brockman, and now Mrs. Starr, but they seem to have matured into a team minded group. There are no “show off stars”, they all shine together. It makes for a great show!

I have to make an unplanned trip to Dallas and back Sunday, so I’m writing this a little early. I picked all the pears today. Tracy, Russ, and I cleaned that tree off. This is the first year we managed to get pears from at least one of our trees. Every other year, the coons have picked the trees clean. They haven’t even left damaged ones! This year we beat them to the fruit. Hurray, the people won!

As the holiday season approaches, it becomes even more important that we pray for our sick. We have several families who have lost loved ones recently. Thanksgiving and Christmas joy will be significantly diminished this year for them. Please keep the Brand, Bush, Lord, Robbins, and Cummings families in your thoughts as they face this family time with a loved one missing. The Evans family needs our prayers for David and his battle with cancer. The Draper family needs prayer for Elisa and Josh. If you have a chance, why not go by one of the homebound folks in your church or neighborhood and spend a few minutes visiting? Don’t forget our wonderful troops and their families. Christmas and Thanksgiving are difficult times for them also. Please take the time to vote in the tax election on the first Tuesday in November. A for vote keeps the tax rate the same as last year. An

against vote rolls the tax back to the 2007 rate, which is a small raise for us, but could be disastrous for our school budget. Please pray for our government and our President. Have a blessed week everyone.

See you at the game Friday.