Football Season is finally here!!!! :)

For some, Labor Day weekend signals that it's time to stash those white clothes away until next year and reluctantly kiss summer goodbye with one last BBQ. Others of us have been impatiently counting down the days until we can get all decked out in our team colors, load up our vehicles with too much food, drive to the stadium, spend hours tailgating with friends, jump up and down and cheer at the top of our lungs as our favorite team takes the field, and intently watch the game with thousands of other cheering fans who have also been anticipating this moment since the last playoff game ended last season.

For our friends who are less enthusiastic about football, but still want to hang out with us during the Autumn months, they know that they must at least fake an interest in the sport for several hours and either accompany us to a Saturday college game or head to the local sports bar on a Sunday afternoon to watch an NFL game. Otherwise, they know that they can pretty much write us off of their weekend social calendar until December rolls around.

Last weekend, Mom, Jon, myself, and some friends kicked off college football season by heading down to Blacksburg for VT's home opener against App State. We had a wonderful time tailgating and watching the Hokies as they easily demolished the Mountaineers! While that game wasn't even half as exciting as witnessing my Dukes pull off last year's upset, it's still always nice to watch App State lose, ever since they knocked JMU out in the first round of the 2007 FCS playoffs with a heartbreaking final score of 28-27. Sure, we got our own revenge in 2008 when they came to Bridgeforth and we showed them that they weren't as "Hot Hot Hot" as they like to think they are, but nonetheless, I think it's safe to say that most Dukes and Hokies alike were pleased with the outcome of Saturday's game at Lane Stadium.

Hokie pillow pal joined our tailgate! I saw him in JCPenny's the night before the game and couldn't resist his adorableness :)  Now if only I could find a Duke Dog pillow pal...

Unfortunately, my Dukes suffered a depressing loss to UNC later that afternoon, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that JMU will hopefully come out looking much better against Central Connecticut in our home opener this Saturday. I can't wait to rock my purple & gold jersey (not to mention purple earrings, purple JMU Football hoodie, purple & gold necklace, JMU spirit button, and purple nail polish)! And of course, you can't truly experience James Madison football without throwing a legit tailgate...heck, that's half the fun! :)

Speaking of football, I just completed my first ever Fantasy Football draft! It was pretty intense, but lots of fun! A few of my friends have found it hard to believe that a big football fan like me had never played in a Fantasy league before, but to be honest, I used to despise the idea entirely. To me, being an NFL fan was all about supporting your team through thick and thin (and even thinner for those of us faithful Redskins fans who have stuck by them during every "rebuilding year" only to wonder when that rebuilding will ever come to fruition). So, the idea of supporting players on rival teams that you used to despise, just to boost your Fantasy points, rubbed me the wrong way. I mean, could you imagine any self-respecting Redskins fan hoping for Tony Romo to have a fantastic game simply because he was on their Fantasy team? Ridiculous, right?  My brother explained to me that this is precisely why true fans shouldn't pick players from big rival teams for their Fantasy roster. Heeding his advice, I knew there was no way on earth I would possibly pick any Cowboys or Steelers players in the draft tonight. So, this is a new experience for me and it will be interesting to see how it affects my allegiances this season. Obviously, I will continue to stick by my Redskins regardless, but I will likely find myself cheering for a few players in other match-ups that I never would have supported in the past. But it will hopefully add a new and exciting element to NFL games this season! :)

Football certainly isn't the only reason that Autumn is my favorite season though! Cooler weather is perfect for jeans, hoodies, and cute scarves, early evening walks (or runs...hopefully),  pumpkin spice lattes, homemade pumpkin bread, pumpkin ice cream (can you tell I like pumpkin?! Hehe :), beautiful leaves changing color....ah, I could go on and on. The only downside to the onset of Fall is that the "Summer Casual" dress policy at the office has come to an end, so alas, the sandals and summer dresses must go to the back of my closet as the pointed-toe stilettos (which I can actually walk in again! yay! :) and business suits come back out. Okay, so maybe jumping right back into those heels so soon was a bit ambitious, but my doc told me last Thursday that I can wear regular shoes now...and heels are my regular shoes, afterall! :) This afternoon, one of my coworkers pointed out the fact that I finally didn't have any sort of brace or wrap around my leg for the first time in a while, yet I had upgraded from wearing flats to heels, to which I replied "What can I say? I tend to be one to push the envelope..." to which he replied "You?! Really?! No way!" Haha. I guess I just have that reputation...

On that note, I should probably be heading off to bed...Hard to believe tomorrow's already Thursday! Gotta love 4 days work weeks! :)

Night y'all!