march-a-thon…

Millard West marching band march-a-thon. August, 2013…

I got a bunch of them together for a photo before the big day & everybody thought the sheriff photo bomb was amazing!! it was pretty funny…

and they are off for their 6.5 mile march…

and then I almost smacked into a tree…

photography can be a pretty dangerous sport!!!

they played the whole route but they would stop throughout the march to play 20 “concerts” at spots or houses where people bought songs. as a first year ‘band mom’ I was worried that it would be too much for them, but I forget how much energy they all have at this age. ha. their band director Mr. Keith is AMAZING!! the amount of energy this man has is enviable. he was running in & out of their lines, getting them all worked up when they seemed to be dragging a bit, he was fun to watch!!

off marching to the next concert…

I left them after the first few miles & the first few concerts. meme, papa, grammy mary, kera, alex, Anthony, Alyssa, nova, jalyn, lexi & I all met at Beadle middle school to be there for meme & papa’s concert. that was so very cool to have so many people there to support mikayla & give her that boost of energy I am sure she needed to finish off the march…

it was very cool to hear the band coming so loud into the neighborhood. the sheriff had to stop traffic on 180th. St. so that the band could cross & then we saw them coming. we ran over to the edge of the little hill & it was the perfect vantage point to see how large this band is & they of course were playing the whole time & I looked at my mom & she said she was going to cry. so was I…

at beadle we got our very own concert, the kids got a much needed water break & we got to talk to mikayla for a few minutes & see how she was doing. she was GREAT & ready to finish strong, go mik. I know that she was so happy that her family was there to cheer her on & Sophia was happy to give her a hug & a kiss & even happier that mikayla took her around introducing her to all of her friends…

and then we got a wave from mikayla & they were off to finish the day. they started at 8 & they were supposed to be done by 2 but I didn’t get the call to pick up mikayla until 3:30. these kids, all of them, did amazing!! the band is off to Chicago this weekend for their first competition & they have improved so much since this day, which is crazy because they sounded amazing then (August 12th).

we have many football games, competitions & band practices in our future & I am happy about that. sometimes I bitch a bit because of the hectic schedule of everything band related & how that affects my schedule well, I was thinking about that while going thru these pictures & it is more than worth it. that is what moms do, right. they put their kids dreams, talents & desires first & that is just the way it should be. mikayla’s highs school experience is going to be so much better so much more positive & so much more of a great experience because of her participation in her band.