Eat. Sleep. Breathe. Hockey.

I've seen those t-shirts that say "Hockey is Life. The rest is just details." Now I understand.

AJ is obsessed with hockey. On the days his various hockey shirts are in the laundry, it is the ultimate test of my spin doctor skills. That's a hockey shirt he's wearing in the photo, don't you know - it's for the Blues. And the zip-up sweatshirt that his grandparents brought him from Sweden - that's a "hockey warm-up jacket." A dad from daycare almost blew that one for me, but thankfully caught on when I corrected him through gritted teeth.

"You're right. That is a cool hockey warm-up jacket," he told AJ.

The daycare is either playing along or feeding into the obsession. I'm not sure which. AJ no longer goes to school or work. He goes to his hockey game. The teacher is his coach. And if the kids do something wrong, they get a penalty. Nice!

AJ's favorite conversation topic generally starts with "what's your favorite hockey team?" One recent evening when Jeff was working late, AJ wore me out with questions about Gophers and Bulldogs and Wild and North Stars.

I finally asked, "Can we please talk about anything other that hockey?"

In all seriousness, he insisted, "But I HAVE to talk about hockey."

Give me strength.