Marching Band Banquet

I know, I know... So much band stuff.  Well, this is the end.  (For marching band, anyway.)  This past weekend was the marching band banquet.  The kids look forward to this fun night every year.  It is a chance to look back at the whole season, receive awards and tell funny stories about their fellow section-mates.  It really is a fun night!

I LOVE these mini versions of the big props that were used during the show!

The table decorations at the banquet were great!!

Ben finally received his band letter!

Every year the section leaders pass out silly awards to their section members.  Ben's was a slightly embarrassing story.  I will spare him the embarrassment here.  :)

This is most of the trombone section.  A great group of kids!!  Ben is really going to miss those seniors next year!

The friendships made in band are priceless!  Ben has made some amazing friends!

Not only friends, but the memories and lessons he has learned in the past 3 1/2 months are ones that he will carry with him for the rest of his life!

It was an exciting, hard, sometimes disappointing, yet, fun marching season.  Now we all enjoy a little break from the chaotic schedule and look forward to next year!

OBA State Contest

OBA is huge!  It is the last contest of the season and puts you up against all of the bands in the state.  We were having a great marching season, so we were all very excited about how things would go this year! 

(I keep trying to add a video of the marching show, but it won't seem to work.  I will try again later.)

 Ben and his "senior" from last year.

Sadly (very sadly!!), things did not go at all like we all thought they would.  The Bruin Brigade did not make it to finals.  I have no idea where they ended up, but it was devastating!  The kids and parents, alike, were all in shock!  We all really thought we had a great show and a great shot at finals.  Apparently, it just wasn't meant to be.  Sad!  These kids worked their tails off all season, so it was hard to see them so deflated.

I guess there's always next year...

Bruin Brigade Takes on St. Louis!

The Bruin Brigade got to travel to St. Louis to compete in the Bands of America Super Regionals at the Edward Jones Dome.

 

When Mom found out that Ben was going to be marching so close to Indianapolis, she knew she had to be there!  I'm glad it's close enough!  

It was only appropriate that the band would have dinner at Hard Rock Cafe!  It was  SO cool!!  They had the entire restaurant!

It's a stack of Ben's!

Look at that boy of mine!

I am such a proud band mom!

The band had a great run of their show!  Unfortunately, out of 64 bands, only 14 were chosen to go to finals.  Bartlesville was not one of them.  But that was ok!  It was fun for them to get to perform in "the dome" and against some great bands!

The highlight of the trip came when the Bruin Brigade was asked to play the National Anthem for the start of finals!  Seriously?!  Yep!  Coolest thing ever!!  Such an honor!

Broken Arrow Invitational

 Unlike the Owasso contest, we had beautiful weather for the Broken Arrow contest!  (Aside from the wind...)

The Brigade had a fantastic prelims performance and was THRILLED to make it to finals that night!

They ended up coming in 11th place (out of 12) but were happy just to make it to finals.  There was some pretty stiff competition there, for sure! 

Next major marching band event... Super Regionals in St. Louis!

8th Grade Band Night

Abby had been waiting for this night for the last two years (since Ben got to do it when he was in 8th grade) and was SO excited when it finally arrived!  The night when the 8th graders get to hang out in the stands with the marching band, as well as, join them on the field at halftime.  

Thanks to Ben being in band, Abby already knows a lot of band kids.  She received a very warm welcome when it came time for her to sit in the stands.  "Abby!!!!"  "Come sit by me, Abby!"  It was a great feeling for my slightly shy girl.

Luke got a nice surprise at the game!  We found his friend, Wade!  Wade was in Luke's class last year.  They became very good friends and miss each other dearly!  Luke was beside himself with excitement when we spotted Wade from way up in the stands!

YAY!!!

Ben was happy for Abby to finally get the chance to get a little taste of marching band.  Both of them are looking forward to being in marching band together next year, which makes this mama very happy!

I love, SO much, that the high school makes this opportunity available to the kids so that they get a taste of what they have to look forward to next year.

To say that Abby had a great time would be a huge understatement!  She couldn't stop talking about her night in the bandstands.  I think being in marching band is going to make my girl come out of her shell!  :) 

Owasso Invitational Marching Contest

Marching season has officially begun!  Ok, it started back in July, but the Bruin Brigade just went to their first contest.  We were all a little concerned that the contest wouldn't happen as it was pouring rain all morning and much into the afternoon.  We left the school, drove to Owasso and sat on school buses for about four hours!  The parents/chaperones were able to feed the kids, but it was definitely a very wet process!  The kids did fantastic and were thrilled to find out that the show would, indeed, go on!  The format would be slightly different, but marching would happen!

Due to the rain, the normal prelims/finals format would not happen.  Each band would march once and be judged solely on that run.  Honestly, the kids were just happy to do what they love!

Ben has a fantastic section this year!  I was one very happy mom when I asked Ben if I could take a picture of his section and he was happy to say yes!  No teenage boys sighs.  He quickly gathered his crew and let me take a picture.

The kids even asked for a silly picture!  A great group of "bone-heads"!

Finally time for some marching!

Look at my boy!  My heart just swells with pride when I see him doing what he loves!

  

(I am thankful for to have a photographer friend!)

Mr. Claussen giving his traditional post-performance speech.

These boys love each other so much!

 Could they be any cuter in their matching shirts?!  :)

The bruin Brigade had a super start to their season!  They received the Best Visual Performance award for their class.  Placed 3rd in their class. And placed 10th overall.  There is still plenty of work to be done and progress to make, but this was a great start!  It would have been nice to see how the results would have turned out if the prelims/finals format had taken place.  I am super proud of all of these band kids and the hard work they have dedicated so far this season!  I can't wait to see what's to come!

The Big Trip ~ IRELAND!!

I can hardly believe that one month ago today I was standing on the streets of Dublin watching Ben march in the St. Patrick's Day parade.  How has the time gone by so fast?

Yes, we had an amazing time.

Yes, it was beautiful.

No, we weren't ready to come home.

I feel completely blessed that we were able to go on and be part of such an amazing trip.  I am thrilled that Jon and I were able to share this once in a lifetime trip with Ben.

Obviously I can't post all of the pictures on here, so if you want to see more, you can look here.

As soon as we left the airport we hopped on tour buses and began our tour.  Our first stop on the tour was a little fishing town called, Howth.  (Like "both" but with an "H".)

 Our tour guide raved about the fish and chips. and we were thee for lunch, so...fish and chips it was!  YUM!!

 Of course, after an entire day of travel, we were all exhausted!  Almost everybody slept on the bus.

I have to mention that Ben, having decided not to eat dinner or breakfast at the airport or on the plane, ended up getting sick on the bus.  What a way to start the trip!  Thankfully, we were able to get him to (finally) eat something and he slowly started to feel better.

 We visited the Trinity College library and saw the Book of Kells.

 As we were walking around Dublin we stumbled upon several street performers.  So neat!

 Aren't we adorable?  This was in front of our first hotel of the trip.

Ready for to head out to the parade!

The morning of St. Patrick's Day started out with snow, sleet and rain.  Nothing could dampen the spirits of the kids as they rehearsed and headed to the parade.  They worked so hard to be there!  The neat thing is, the rain managed to stop long enough for the parade, and then picked back up afterward.  Thank you, Lord for the little break!

This was such a proud moment!  To be standing on the streets of Dublin, hearing the Bruin Brigade playing "Oklahoma" and the school fight song...there are no words.  Only a feeling of extreme pride and awe.  I couldn't me more proud or feel more blessed to be there and be part of this experience.

This is mine and Jon's view from where we were standing!
AMAZING!

This is a really crummy video, but you get the picture.  Jon and I went up to our hotel room to relax for a little bit, turned on the tv and could heard "Oklahoma" playing.  It just so happened that the "float" that was in front of the Bruin Brigade" was on the screen!  We turned the tv on at just the right time!  Ben is in the front row on the right hand side and you can see him multiple times!  I couldn't believe we caught it!

Have I mentioned that I might be a little bit proud???

 One of the really pretty things in Dublin was the colorful Doors of Dublin.  It was hard not to take a picture of every door!  (One of these doors isn't in Dublin...but I couldn't resist including it.)

 According to our bus driver/tour guide, this is the most photographed door in Dublin.  It really is beautiful.

Next stop:  St. Patrick's Cathedral

Oh...what beauty!

The choir had the opportunity to perform a concert inside St. Patrick's Cathedral.  What an amazing experience for them!  (And for those of us that got to listen!)

On our way to southern Ireland we stopped at The Rock of Cashel. 

The scaffolding is up, not for restoration purposes, but to, hopefully, slow down the deterioration process.

The Rock of Cashel was one of my favorite places that we visited. It was one (if not the only one) of the places that has not been restored or renovated over the years.  It is falling apart, but it is just absolutely gorgeous.  I also couldn't help but feel a slightly eery feeling, as well.  Perhaps it was the large ravens that were circling overhead.

On tap in Blarney:  A traditional Irish Ceili.  What is a ceili?  It is a traditional Gaelic social gathering, which usually involves playing Gaelic folk music and dancing.  A live band was brought in and a dance team that would demonstrate and teach the kids the dances.  FUN!!

Ben and Emily had the best time at the ceili!  If you ask Ben what his favorite part of the trip was, he will tell you it was the ceili.  It was so much fun to watch the kids dancing and having the time of their lives!  Just priceless!

We visited Charles Fort in Kinsale.  It is so hard to put words to all of these places and experiences. 

Charles Fort was one of Jon's favorite places.

The fort on the tip on the left is James Fort, located just across the harbour from Charles Fort.

Me and Ben with Kinsale Harbour in the background.

Of course, we had to visit Blarney Castle and kiss the famous Blarney Stone.

We all went to Blarney Castle, but we didn't all kiss the famous Blarney Stone.  Jon and I got in line with Ben, but when we found out that, once we made it inside the first door that we had another hour before we made it to the top, Jon and I decided that we would pass on that opportunity.  We had a limited amount of time in Blarney for the day and Jon and I wanted to do some shopping.  We were told that the shopping in Blarney was great and the prices were much better than in other areas we had visited.  How could we pass that up?

Thankfully, Ben seized the opportunity to kiss the Blarney Stone!  I am so glad he stayed in line and didn't miss out.

Off to Kilkenny!

While in Kilkenny we visited Kilkenny Castle.  It was pretty and all, but it has been partially destroyed once and renovated and remodeled several times that it kind of lost something for me.  Having recently watched Downton Abbey, I couldn't help but think about that as we were touring the castle.  (:

 Such a great group!

 We had quite a bit of free time in Kilkenny.  Since it was our last day in Ireland, Jon and I chose to forego the complimentary packed lunch and have lunch on our own.  We really wanted to take the opportunity to have fish and chips one last time.  We stopped at a "city info" office and asked for a recommendation for a place to eat lunch.  What better than a local's opinion?!

Our lunch was super!  When the waitress asked what I would like to drink, I told her that what I would really like was an iced tea, but I knew they didn't do that there.  (I was going through iced tea withdrawal!)  The other worker piped up and mentioned that she was a waitress "in the States" for 12 years and knew exactly what I wanted.  Let me just say...it was the best tea ever!  I'm not sure if it was, in fact, great tea, or just the fact that I hadn't had any in a week.  However, it was great!  Jon took the opportunity to try out a local brew.  (Neither one of us like the taste of alcohol, but how do you go to Ireland and not give it a try???)  We were both shocked that it, actually, wasn't terrible.  (I'm definitely not hooked.)

Also, while in Kilkenny, the choir and the orchestra performed a concert at St. Canice's Cathedral.

The amazing Bartlesville band directors!

We love these two!  Mr. Claussen and Ms. Benford have been excellent teachers and directors!  We just love them!

This is one of my favorite (non-people) pictures from the trip.

Kilkenny Castle in the background.

This is all of the marching band, color guard and directors, as well as, some of the parents that went on the trip.  I love it!

Some things I learned on the trip:

Irish people are some of the most friendly people.

St. Patrick's Day in Dublin is crazy!  (I'm pretty sure some kids got quite an education watching the locals celebrate their holiday!)

Irish people really do like to drink.  It's not just a myth.

If you tend to drink a lot of caffeine and then don't drink any at all, you will have massive headaches.

The shamrock is not really the symbol of Ireland, it is the harp.

A 7 hour flight on a full airplane is not enjoyable.  Plans to sleep are ridiculous.

Irish people know their history.  And their history goes back so far.  We, in the U.S. don't have a clue and our country doesn't have nearly the length of history.

Ireland looks just as you imagine!  Green, lush, cloudy and beautiful!

Would I do this trip again?  ABSOLUTELY!  In a heartbeat!  I would do it again a hundred times over!  I still can't believe that I got to go!  Even more, I can't believe that Jon and I were able to go and share this experience this with Ben.  We made memories that will last a lifetime!  I can't express how thankful I am!