September: School Spirit, ENGAGED

Welcome to the Trenches, Internet.

Post-work/gym wind-down on the couch - our usual evening ritual. 

September, if anything else, could be considered the 'Back to the Grind' month for us Houghs. Starting out the month, the girls and I are a couple weeks into the School Year, so everyone's schedules have fallen into a steady pace and the house has once again entered 'normal' mode following three, beautiful months off from stress and responsibility.

The leaves are just starting to change (but not all that much), it's still kinda warm out (multiple weeks saw us battling it out in sweaty classrooms without air conditioning, which is always fun), and there's no holidays to break up and pretty monotonous thirty-day run.

A Lego bouquet Abby's boyfriend, Kingston, made for her. 

September is honestly like October's older, not-nearly-as-fun sibling. The one that gets up early and goes to bed early, never gets in trouble, and otherwise bores you to tears.

All in all, not one of my favorite months, but at least at this early stage in the School Year, my kids are on good behavior (seeing how we're in the 'Honeymoon' phase) and so there's not a lot of stress around these parts. Which I'm obviously a fan of.

We barely hung out with our friends this month, as our weekends were laid-back and wide-open, allowing us to ease into the school year without burning the candle at both ends. Lots of down time, so the majority of this month's installment of pics and video are largely comprised of stuff I pulled off the girls' phones.

So, you know. . . . brace yourself for an absurd amount of selfies folks. 

You've been warned. . . .

Towards the beginning of the month, Abby went out to the movies with Ella and Kiersten, then ended up having a sleepover over at Kiersten's house. I'm sure the other patrons enjoyed this flash going off in the middle of the movie theater. . .

Erik and three of the other Kings of the Hill went golfing up north one Sunday, and stopped off at Short's Brewing up in Bellaire (which you may recall from Brocation '21.) I asked Erik to text me some pics of the bar signs they had available in the brewery merch store and asked him to pick me up this one for my home bar in the basement. It's slightly longer than standard tin, bar signs, so fit like a glove in an available spot on the wall. I was stoked (this is one of my favorite Michigan breweries.)

Alayna got a selfie with her boyfriend, Sebastian, when he came in to visit her on her shift at Taco Bell one afternoon.

Showing off an all-pink, fleece lounge outfit she picked up on Amazon. Remember when this kid only wore black a couple year ago? 

Abby, hard at work in Orchestra.

A selfie with Kingston (I assume over at his house.)

Brooklyn and Abby in one of their classes (maybe English?)

Alayna took a pic of both dogs, snuggled up on her bed while she was (hopefully) doing homework.

Homecoming is coming up early next month (stay tuned), so of course we're in full-blown dress-shopping mode around these parts on the weekends. Kris and Courtney take point on this, and on this first outing oversaw these two partners in crime trying on a wide assortment of dresses at various locations throughout Saginaw.

FYI - I purposely did not include any pictures of the final dresses either of our girls ended up picking out for this year's Homecoming. Figured I'd just show those when I do the eventual Homecoming post(s) next month.

Being inappropriate out in public. Glad we taught our kids some manners. . .

Abby's holding Kiersten's little sister (or trying to, I don't know.)

Abby and Kiersten

(I don't know why Kris took a picture of Alayna sitting on the floor. I don't get it.)

This is who I ended up marrying, folks.

Samson's in the zone. . .

Cannonball bathroom selfie (featuring a toilet, which is classy.)

Riding around in the backseat of her sister's car. Seat belts are apparently optional on outings like this.

Watson, mid-bone. It's impressive he can still gnaw on these things, considering we had to have several of his teeth extracted by a vet a few years ago.

Abby and. . .  some kid . . .  in one of her classes.

This is the sort of weird crap Abby posts to her TikTok account. This generation is doomed.

Brooklyn and Abby, all suited up for another Midland High home football game.

Sunglasses were part of the get-up this evening, I guess.

For this second game of the season, we made a point of getting into the stands prior to kick off in order to catch Abby's opening performance (which we missed last time 'cause we were outside tail-gating.) Dad and Cindy had been thinking about driving down for this game, and we were half-expecting to sit with them, so when we showed up I texted him asking him if he was coming to this one. He texted me this picture as a response.

Preparing for kick-off.

Abby and some of her MHS Varsity Pom teammates.

As the pom and cheer team launched into their opening performances, and the band played the Fight Song, the usual two, shirtless flag-carriers sprinted down the track with the school and American flags. 

Nica, Abby and Brooklyn, huddled under blankets as the temperature cooled off.

A couple innings (or whatever) later, the Pom team does their halftime routine.

Good luck finding Abby - we tried singling her out earlier and it was impossible with all the girls on her team wearing identical sunglasses, sporting identical uniforms and hairstyles, and being approximately the same size.

Some of the school's 'official' photographer's pictures (feat. Abby. . .)

This was screen-captured off the team's Instagram account (I think.)

A pic my parents got of Abby when she came up to visit us in the stands, once the team was all done with their performance.

Abby and Nica

Celebrating another Midland High touchdown.

(I don't know who this other chick is.)

Following the end of the game (which Midland won), Abby and her friends took the field for their usual group pics.

I was told that it was 'Neon Night,' hence all the reflective vests some of the kids are sporting.

Abby and Kiersten

Abby, Kiersten, Emily, and some other chick.

The next day, while the girls were away at Orchestra Camp (I'll touch on that in a sec), Yours Truly devoted a few hours to cleaning out the shed. I had checked it back in April and then again in July for signs of a ground squirrel infestation, and there was no trace of animals being in there. But last month I noticed walnuts being stowed away in corners, and knew they had come back. So I had to empty out the garage entirely, sweep out all the debris, blow out all the dirt and dust with a leaf blower, then put everything back in. I even saw a few boards and reinforced the large shed doors to prevent rodents from sneaking in, put up mesh wire under the roof to block them from getting in that way, and otherwise fortified the entire structure like Fort Knox. It won't stop them all, I'm sure, but it'll sure as shit slow the little f***ers down. I hope they all starve to death this winter.

Abby and her fellow cellist - and ex-boyfriend - Kayden, taking a break at Orchestra Camp.

Ella, hitching a ride to school over the weekend.

Orchestra Camp is an intense, fundamentals workshop that also has a bunch of team-building time built into it in order to strengthen individual sections of the Orchestra. The kids love it, and take part in it every September. Here's Abby (and Alayna's friend, Lexi), getting in-depth lessons from some professional cellist from CMU (a garbage school you may have heard about before.)

Some team-building stuff going on outside behind the school.

Not sure why these cellists are lying on the floor. Maybe this is team-building, too?

With the kids both away at their camp until like 9pm, Kris and I decided to go out to dinner just the two of us (which rarely happens.) Kris wanted to go to Veedu, and upscale Indian joint in town that our friends rave about. It was pretty good, as far Indian food goes, and while we were there I picked up this super-awesome Imperial Stout.

Every year each section makes a themed poster for the weekend.

Samson stood guard over the shed door like this for about three hours. I'd say we were concerned about behavior like this, but he does crap like this all the time so we don't even raise an eyebrow at stuff like this anymore. He's from Ohio, for Christ's sake.

I spent most of Sunday grading papers, having put it off for a few weeks as I got the plane that is my classroom off and into the air at the beginning of the school year. Between all the schoolwork and doing all my yard chores, I was basically working non-stop all, damn day. That makes for a great recharge going into the following work week.

At the end of every Orchestra Camp, the kids put on a showcase for their parents in the school gym, showing off what they learned throughout the weekend. Kris video'd this for me (and you guys, of course), seeing how I was underwater in school and yard work, but the video was too long so you guys unfortunately can't see it. My apologies.

Later that day, after Orchestra Camp wrapped up, Kris set off to Saginaw for another dress-shopping outing with the girls.

Alayna and Lexi

As you can tell by their expressions, none of these dresses were keepers.

Kingston pops over to pick up Abby one day after school.

Samson, the ever-vigilant.

Abby and some of her friends, hanging out in the bleachers during one of MHS JV Football games.

Later that night, Abby stayed the night over at the Johnson residence. We'd usually say 'no' to sleepovers on a weeknight, as all parents should, but us and the Johnsons figured out back in middle school and when these two stay the night at one another's houses they often do a better job of completing all their homework and getting around for school the next morning. It's weird, certainly, but it works.

The next night, Abby and some of the 'better' performers in her orchestra participated in an all-day, orchestra workshop at CMU. Kinda like Orchestra Camp, but at a collegiate level. Abby performed with a variety of students from all over the state, and played through two pieces with a guest conductor (of some reknown, I guess.) Both videos were too long to upload here, but if you've heard one orchestral piece, you've heard 'em all.

Place was packed, but Kris and I were able to snag some seats once the theater ushers shooed away some college kids that were in there.

About the best pic I managed to get of Abby this evening (she's in long, white sleeves, bending over to pick something up.)

We swung by Pixies on our way out of the garbage town that is Mount Pleasant so that Kris could pee (she'd been holding it for 'hours,' allegedly) and to get Abby some dinner and a milkshake.

Alayna sometimes likes to take the dogs for a 'drive' around town, just to get them out of the house. She's convinced they like this more than walks.

Samson might.

When she got back to the house, she decided it'd be a good idea to let Samson take a giant shit right on our front lawn. Without a leash. Right by the street. Kids are awesome.

That same day, Kris and I ran around town, running a bunch of the usual weekend errands. While we were out and about, we started picking up additional Halloween decor (from Marshall's, Target, etc.), but really lucked out when we ducked into Michael's on a whim.

Definitely gonna have to remember this place next year when we stock up on additional decor for the ol' homestead. They had a ton of great stuff, and it was all half-off (and that was before I got to apply my teacher discount, which knocked it down an additional 15% off.) Practically stole from that place.

Alayna and her friend, Sara, taking a break at work (I'm sure they didn't punch out for this, why would you. . .)

The Cannonball and some more bathroom selfies. . . you can never have enough bathroom selfies.

Since her boyfriend graduated from high school already, Alayna decided she'd have to be the one to ask him to Homecoming this year. Which, seeing how it's 2025 and all, entails coming up with a big-ass sign and going through the whole 'proposal' nonsense. . .

Abby and Ella take some selfies in the backseat of Alayna's car one morning on the way to school. . .

Later that day at school, Abby partnered up with the Larson's oldest, Jackson, for an experiment in Chemistry.

Abby doesn't look impressed.

GO, SCIENCE

Abby and Brooklyn practice a segment of one of their team routines during a varsity pom practice after school (in the cafeteria, which is where they practice, I guess - I figured it'd be in one of the school gyms.)

Erik sometimes asks if I want rocks from his work, and I almost always take him up on it. He works for a company that does soil-sampling for construction projects throughout the city (like if Dow wants to build a plant expansion or a warehouse or something, they call Erik's company first to test the soil for water levels and contamination and all that crap.) This time when I got about fifteen 5-gallon buckets of large stones dropped off to the house, Kris called dibs on them. While I was away at the gym, she re-lined our front yard garden bed, replacing the older, stained flat pavers we had stacked around the edge. Looks way better, we just need about twelve more feet worth in order to seal the deal.

Sebastian said 'yes.' FYI.

Samson, watching TV in the living room with the rest of the fam one evening.

Alayna and Ella on the way to school more morning.

Alayna, her orchestra teacher Mrs. Mammassian, and some of her fellow classmates get a group pic during MHS Blitz Night (when they splinter off into groups and canvas the entire city, selling coupon cards as a fundraiser for MHS' music program.

No idea.

Abby was recruited by the school's Journalism teacher to join his Advanced class this year, skipping the first level class altogether, so that she could help publish the school's monthly newspaper, The Focus. She hit the ground running, doing interviews, conducting research, and working alongside upperclassmen and holding her own. On the day they released their first edition, the staff took a bunch of pictures of themselves all dressed up for the big occasion.

Lexi and Abby collaborated on one of the articles in this month's edition.

(I don't know who any of these other kids are, sorry.)

That's the teacher. Kris and I would end up meeting with him at Parent/Teacher Conferences later the next week. Dude couldn't make eye contact to save his life.

While I was at work that Friday, Kris hired an arborist to come to our house with his crew and trim/revitalize this damaged tree from that horrific ice storm we had a year or two ago. I don't wanna tell you what we had to pay for that, but at least it looks kinda normal now.

My buddy Collier is a wedding photographer on the side, but has done two or three senior picture sessions before, so Kris and I asked if he'd consider doing Alayna's. He agreed, and we attempted a couple times to get together during a weeknight to do some shots in Bay City (their older downtown area has some cool backdrops), but the weather never panned out. Fast forward to the last Friday of the month, we were finally able to make it work. Some passing sprinkles worried us for the first half an hour or so, but it passed quickly.

He was paying his oldest kid, Elise, to be his light monkey during the shoot, holding up a flash and umbrella thingy off to the side of her dad's shots.

We did a few wardrobe and location changes downtown, then ultimately had Alayna don a dress and head out to that state park outside of town on the beach for some sunset pics. 

Alayna requested we bring along Watson so she could get a couple with him, but he's a grumpy old man who doesn't pose well with pictures, so him and I stood off to the side and watched the sessions most of the time.

Dogs were allowed out on the beach (which makes sense), so when they went out to the water for some sunset pics, I hung back on the wooden walkway with Watson and waited for them to wrap up.

Heading back to Midland after the session wrapped up. We'll hopefully be able to use Collier again in a couple year's once it's Abby's turn, he did an amazing job with the whole shebang.

While we were away in Bay City, Abby hung out over at Kingston's house with him and his fam, and at one point Kingston's little brother tried stumping Abby with some elementary school-aged math problems.

(Abby was a good sport and played along like it was hard. She hasn't scored below an 'A' in math since she was in elementary school.)

Sebastian and Cannonball selfie.

Saturday morning, Abby raked up all the leaves in the front yard. . . without anyone asking her to. I think she feels some guilt over how much f***ing money we've spent on her these last two months, between MHS Varsity Pom, All-Star Pom, and now Homecoming. I'm gonna have to start hookin' one of these days.

The Old Man loves his pets.

Saturday night, Abby asked if we could have a bonfire in the backyard and she could invite Kingston over. We relented and burned up the remainder of our firewood over the course of a few hours.

The Cannonball and Samson.

So there you go, gang - that was this year's September installment. Things are gonna pick up next month for sure, what with Homecoming, and our multiple Halloween engagements (along with a few other surprises we have up our sleeves, you'll hear about soon.) Stay tuned for next month's chapter. . .

- Brian