Happy College Football Season!

I find myself thinking this more and more the older I get: where the crap has the year gone?! Are we seriously in September already?! Not that I'm complaining...between the ridiculous heat and my general distaste for summer [and my general LOVE of fall], I'm ready for it to be September. Maybe it will bring temps in the - gasp - 90s. Ya know, temps that we were supposed to see all summer instead of this 113 degrees ish.

Anyway, so it's September. Which means one thing y'all:

IT'S COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON BABY!!!!!!!!!

Yes. I'm THAT excited about it that it warranted all caps. Ever since the national championship game way back in January, my life has felt a little empty without college ball. I miss Saturdays camped out in front of the TV [or at Boone Pickens Stadium, if there's a home game], watching games, seeing Lee Corso put the mascot head on during College Gameday, wearing orange around my crimson-dominant hometown...it just hasn't been the same. But, starting today and all the way through January 2012, college football will be back in my life. I'm so, so, so excited. First home game is on Saturday, and I'm totally ready for it. I've got my outfit picked out, our tickets ready to go...just waiting for game time. :)

But I digress. How was August, you might ask? August was rough - which is why I really didn't blog that much. Between evicting my gallbladder, a car repair every week [literally], having way too much fun in Vegas and school starting, the last 16 days of the month were crazy. Add in a sick kid and hurt back - both happened yesterday - and the month got even crazier. I'm almost positive I pulled a muscle in my back...it hurts like a mug, lemme tell ya. I'll be using heat patches and walking like I need a walker for days, I'm sure.

And don't even get me started on my car. Suspension system was replaced in July...in August, I needed a new A/C compressor [that's finally being replaced this weekend], new transmission pan/gasket [replaced last week], oil change [done last week, 1K miles overdue], I still need to get a safety switch removed since I can't get my car to move out of park since said switch is stuck, and I'm praying there isn't anything else that needs to be done since I hit a speed bump too hard yesterday [I'm still mad about that]. Dropped a good $400 on repairs last month alone, which is ridiculous. My car's nine years old, I've had it for five, and I'm thinking a trade is in the future. Sigh.

But anyway. I'm banking on September being a much better month. Especially since college football is back. So here's to you, college football - I missed you. A lot. Thank you for coming back.

And uh - GO POKES!!!

Sports Sunday: OSU Football

**Note: I started this Sunday, finished Monday morning and published it now. In the future, I'll definitely try to get this out on Sundays!**

I had talked about making my Sunday blogs all about sports - and I think I'm going to do it. We'll see how this goes, and I totally reserve the right to change my mind about it. :)

So. Let's talk a little OSU football. I've been an OSU fan since I started college. Bought season tickets all four years I was in college, skipped out on the 2008 season [hello pregnancy] but still went to games, and we've been season ticket holders since last season. Being an OSU football fan has its ups [going 9-3 last season and heading to the Cotton Bowl] and downs [going 4-7 in 2005 and not winning a single road game]. It's had its man-up moments [gundy's famous speech in 2007] and its weak moments [les miles chuckin' the deuces unexpectedly after the 2004 season]. But overall, I've bled orange from the very, very beginning.

I know that we're not the best football team in the state - that title clearly belongs to OU. And I'm fine with that, because we have other sports [ou fans like to say the other sports don't matter, but that's not what they were saying when their basketball teams were good]. But the thing I love about OSU is that its fans are loyal. It doesn't matter what the season looks like, if we've lost 20+ starters [like we did this year], if we're projected to finish high in the BCS...they stay true year after year. And that's what makes being an OSU fan so fabulous. I know every year for the time being, we'll be sitting by the same season ticket holders because they'll be back. Every year, everyone in Stillwater will be pumped up about football, no matter the preseason projections. Sure, the bandwagon fans exist, but it's not too bad.

This year, we have a new quarterback - 26-year-old Brandon Weeden. I can't tell you how much crap I've gotten from other people about how our school has a quarterback that's considered old by NCAA standards [shoot, he's older than me - and many guys starting in the nfl are around his age or younger]. But he's held his own, even through a thumb injury that many fans are keeping an eye on and holding their breath. In Saturday's game, he threw for 409 yards and six TD's, and he did that in less than three full quarters of play. He was named Big 12 Player of the Week, broke a few records on Saturday and has been splashed on ESPN and on their homepage. I know that it's still very early in the season, but for all the doubters - check it out. OSU is still alive, Weeden's got a killer arm [and confidence], and we're doing OK.

I know that conference play can be a whole 'nother story. We haven't beaten OU or Texas in who knows how many years, we still don't really know if Weeden's thumb will hold up [hoping the bye week helps that], our offense/defense haven't really been tested against a Big 12 powerhouse...but with Big 12 play coming to town next week, the test is coming pretty quick. I just hope that no matter what, we can finish this season and say we did the best that we could given all the changes.

I'm also kinda hoping they play a bowl game in Dallas again. :)

No. 75 in the works - guess where I'm going...

That's right baby - I'm going Bowling. I found out yesterday I actually did get tix to the Cotton Bowl, and I picked them up from UPS today. My bowl form didn't make in before the season ticket priority deadline, so I was pretty sure I wouldn't get any...but then I got the notification yesterday that I actually did get tickets, and I got giddy all over again. The Cotton Bowl's on January 2nd at The House That Jerry Built, and this may be the only time I get to go to a bowl game within driving distance of my hometown...so I'm going. And I'm stoked.

I've also gone Etsy crazy - I bought five pairs of earrings after buying the initial two pairs I have. I got two pairs for my sister for Christmas and the others for me. Maybe I can stop stealing my mom's and sister's earrings now...I'm still looking for more jewelry on there though. I love all this homemade stuff.

It's been a little insane the past couple of weeks, with work and JJ being sick [again] and all this other stuff...I'm more than relieved that Christmas break starts on Wednesday, and I won't be at work for 11 days. I definitely realize that I was spoiled last year when I took off eight weeks around the holiday time for maternity leave...and I'm seriously considering not trying for baby no. two until March 2011 so that we have a better shot of getting a holiday baby and, therefore, can take off more time during the holidays. And that'll still fall within my 101 in 1001 goal of getting pregnant before 2012...it could work!

I'm getting ready to head to Lawton for the rest of the weekend to finally start wrapping presents and make holiday cookies - I'm so excited. It hasn't really felt like Christmas this year because I've been so busy, I haven't had time to enjoy the holiday season. But with only six days until Christmas, I'm going to spend the next few days Christmas-ing it up. I have a self-imposed goal to not let the holidays slip by me next year. Hopefully at this time next year, I won't be as stressed out as I am now.

I'll update more later!