Hockey is life. Because how do you have time for anything else?

Consider this your advance warning. Blog posts the next few days will likely focus primarily (if not entirely) on hockey. Why? Because Saturday marked the first of six straight days of games and practices for AJ. Plus, Sydney's Learn to Skate program begins tomorrow. Throw in a concession stand shift for me, a flood night for Jeff and a game for Jeff, and I'm thinking I want a t-shirt that says "Hockey is life. Because how do you have time for anything else?"

AJ is certainly happy to demonstrate that level of commitment. Saturday morning, I woke him up by asking, "Is there a hockey player in the house?"

He instantly sat up alert, "I know! I'm so excited!"

And that's why we do it.

This weekend's games have been in Duluth Heights. As warm as it's been, I wondered if they'd have enough ice for the tournament. Turns out, the ice was fine. It was small nets that they didn't have enough of. The solution? Tip over some regular nets and tell the kids any puck that hits metal counts as a goal. (They found more nets by mid-game.)

By the way, for anyone who's used to looking for #4, AJ got a new, bigger uniform last week. He's now #12.

I lost count of how many goals/assists AJ scored. I was more impressed with the amount of passing going on between he and his teammates, not to mention his ever increasing speed and willingness to chase the puck.

Oh yeah! There's some celebration!

Maybe it's because this is taking place during a week that marks several key anniversaries in my life. (18 years since I moved to Duluth, nine years since I started my current job.) Or maybe it's because I spent four long hours "working" in the snack shack, on a day when every hockey player in town was playing elsewhere, which gave me too much time to think... but I can't help but find a deeper... something... I can't think of the right word... in these Mite 1 tournaments.

During yesterday's games, I ran into so many people I've known from previous parts of my life (i.e. before kids.) And here we all were together again, shivering around the boards, cheering for our children. There was Mike, a former WDIO photographer who I'm pretty sure shot election night live shots for me from the very same community center that was now doubling as a warming house. I also saw Jessica, a former competitor from another TV station and volleyball teammate (who's now married to one of Jeff's colleagues.) And Tony, who interned at the police department when I covered the crime beat. Ken, a current co-worker of Jeff's. Natasha, who works for one of my clients. And Jon and Jamie Jaski, who are part of our "bonus" family. Jeff's and my third date was to Jon's high school graduation party. Fast-forward almost 15 years and our oldest kids are playing hockey against each other while our second born children are teaming up to pelt Jeff with snowballs/ice chunks.

Whatever that "something" is, that's the other reason I like hockey. There's a sense of community among all those chilly, exhausted parents. I hope it doesn't disappear as our kids get older and the games get more competitive. But for now, all I have to say is, "I've got to take off, it's my turn in concessions," and I get lots of sympathetic nods. Or talk about juggling schedules to get all the kids to all the places they need to be - and get "been there, done that" knowing looks.

On a side note, when we got home from AJ's second game, the first thing he asked Jeff was, "Want to go downstairs and play hockey?" Later, they watched hockey on TV: first the Bulldogs and then the Wild.

For two more months, our lives will revolve around hockey. And as long as everyone's having healthy fun, it's all okay with me.

An offer too good to miss

In keeping with my New Year's resolution of counting my blessings and focusing on the positive, let me just say how happy I am, as an ad agency copywriter, that I don't have to write fluff/crap like this direct mail piece that came to us yesterday courtesy of the Danbury Mint. Okay, technically it was addressed to Jeff, but he was working and how could I not open an envelope marked "Attention Golden Retriever Lover"?

And boy am I glad I did. For, you see, we (Jeff) are among a limited group of customers in our area who have been selected to receive a FREE Golden Retriever Snow Globe Ornament, and it's so valuable, that it's offered for just a limited time.

Just look at that sweet puppy in the ornament. I bet he would never pull over his Christmas tree. He's too busy leaving pawprints on our hearts.

And then I looked over at our sweet puppy. He was alternating between humping a couch cushion and chewing on a handmade pillow my mom no doubt worked on for hours. 

Oh, but wait, I'm apparently looking at this all wrong. Gus isn't a monstrous brat with a chewing/attitude problem. No. He's simply a "spirited Golden Retriever."

What's more, it turns out, "Golden Retrievers are people too!"

How did I not realize that all these years? I'll be sure to apologize to Gus for misunderstanding him. Right after I smack him for amputating the legs and one arm of Sydney's new Barbie/Chelsea flower girl doll she got for Christmas. 

Wait! There's still more to tell you about these valuable keepsake ornaments. Each one "comes with a luxurious golden hanging cord for an eye-catching presentation on your tree." And... we'll also get a free box to put them in. But not just any box, an "elegant custom-made Keepsake Box". (Does capitalizing Keepsake Box make it sound more important? I guess their copywriter thinks so.)

And I love how the ornaments are shown hanging nicely in a row at the bottom of the tree. Clearly, the art director has never owned a golden retriever. Those amazingly detailed, finely crafted collector's items would be knocked down by the dog's tail in an instant!

But this is just such a great deal, I'm struggling to find the will-power to say no! Except... too bad we just took down the Christmas tree last week. This mailing was timed so well. 

Perhaps if they'd waited a couple (or 10) months... Maybe by then Gus will be "brimming with Golden Retriever charm". Maybe then I'd consider it.

But probably not. I try really hard to not reward bad marketing.

And now, I think I'll leave this lovely piece of literature on the coffee table. Let's see how long it survives before my spirited golden retriever grabs it and rips it to shreds.

Skating daredevil

Someday, my daughter will want to learn to drive. I should probably start stocking up on anti-anxiety medication right now. (For me, not her.) The thought of Sydney behind the wheel of a large vehicle that has an accelerator terrifies me. There's just something about her personality and her willingness to push herself and take risks.

I was reminded of this one recent evening when I took her skating. This was her fourth attempt on ice in the last week. The first two times were met with less than an enthusiastic response.  But then on the third visit, she discovered a piece of equipment that changed everything. Forget the boring, grey metal bar. She found a new support made of white PVC pipes. Let her push that around and suddenly she's an unstoppable force. Skating suddenly ceased to be about form, technique and grace. It's all about speed.

 

As if to re-emphasize her point, Sydney watched the video on my phone last night and proudly bragged, "I was going super fast!"

The official Learn to Skate classes start next week.  Part of me hopes the PVC bar disappears by then. If she gets to use it, I doubt she'll pay attention to the instructor. If some other child grabs it first, there will be attitude issues.

On a brighter note, it's given me an idea to perhaps dampen her enthusiasm to drive, which she could start learning to do in... gulp... eleven years. I'll just have to make sure her first car is made of boring, grey metal.

Winter doldrums

Vacation time is so much more fun than the reality of routine. I don't recall exactly at what young age I learned that cold, hard truth about life, but I doubt it was as early as age six. However, for my first grader, it's a lesson he definitely picked up over Christmas break.

After 11 days of sleeping in, playing hockey and enjoying new presents; Tuesday morning marked the return to way-too-early wake-up nudges and homework centered around those dreaded lists of spelling words.

Tuesday morning dawned all too soon for AJ*, especially considering he'd laid in bed until 10:30 the night before, unable to fall asleep. He'd called me in his room at one point, almost in tears, explaining that he was trying to sleep, but his mind kept thinking of things.

Recalling difficult nights of my own in junior and senior high, when I struggled to fall asleep due to irrational fears about impossibly hard homework assignments and tests, I sympathised with my son. I laid down next to him and asked him what kinds of things he was thinking about.

"Well," he began in a rather halting voice, "sometimes I think about colors."

Okay. Not the same kind of fears.

"And sometimes I think about that story we heard on the radio," he continued.

"What story?" I asked.

"That story. It was kind of scary."

"I don't know what story you're talking about," I said. "Tell me about it."

"Well," he began and then stopped. "I guess I don't really remember what it was about."

Definitely not the same kind of fears.

Surprisingly, both kids woke up with little effort and were in fairly good moods - Sydney in particular.  "I get to go to Miss Tina's class," she announced, over-enunciating each word. "And we get to do projects! But we don't get to take naps."

Hooray! School is still fun when you're four.

Alas, the early morning wake-up, combined with the lack of nap time, caught up with her early evening. She fell asleep in the car on the way to AJ's hockey practice, and - once inside the warming house - crawled up on the bench to rest while I helped AJ with this helmet and skates.

Bedtime arrived much earlier last night. Not that they climbed under the sheets any more willingly than on other nights, but they fell asleep much faster. And so it goes for another month and a half until their mid-winter break.

*Special note... AJ has reversed his earlier directive and now wants me to call him by his nickname. It's not a complete about-face. He still likes it when his friends call him Alex, he explained to me. So, for anyone reading this who doesn't fall into the category of being me or a friend, you'll have to ask him yourself what he wants you to call him.

Outdoor hockey

It's that time of year again. Even though this is turning out to be the winter that wasn't, it's still cold enough for water to freeze, which means hockey has moved outside. And I ask you, have you ever seen a cuter hockey player?

While Alex visited a friend one day last week, Sydney and I tested the ice at our local rink. We've got her signed up for the Learn to Skate program, so I figured it'd be good to get in a few practices ourselves ahead of time. Sydney was very excited to get to wear her brother's hand-me-down hockey gear. It took about 20 minutes to her dressed, and to lace up skates on her and me. At last we made it to the rink.

And in less than 10 minutes she was ready to come back inside.

Doesn't it figure?

Last Friday, we returned to the rink, and this time we brought the boys with us.

It's just not even fair how much better of a skater Alex has become, compared to me. At least I didn't fall down. And the couple of times I knocked him down? Well, I'm sure he deserved it. And he was wearing pads, so it really didn't hurt him.

Sydney's interest in skating again lasted a remarkably short length of time. "I'm too cold... My legs hurt... My eyes are hot... (Huh?) My ears are cold..." She had a million reasons she needed to come inside and warm up next to the snack shack.

I let her sit in the warming house and play with my phone while Jeff, Alex and I, along with a friend of his who happened to be at the rink, all battled it out. Later, Jeff finally got Sydney to join us.

Note the activity in the background of the above photo. There were probably a dozen kids, ranging in age from six to 16 who all had meandered down to the rink at some point in the afternoon. I don't know if there were any actual teams or if anyone was really keeping score. Kids came and went, and the pick-up game continued. And so with Jeff and I focusing on helping Sydney skate, Alex happily skated off to play with the big kids.

How I love our community! Alex is the little guy wearing white, skating in the center of the photo:

When we at last announced it was time to go home, Alex didn't want to leave. (Big surprise!) He was having too much fun. He couldn't remember the names of the kids he'd played with, but was very excited that "some of the high schoolers and collegers" knew his name was AJ. (Yes, that's the term he used for the kids who must have been old enough to be in college.)

Part of me believes it's certainy possible that my son was memorable enough for them to learn his name. But then I noticed his helmet is still labeled "AJ" from hockey practice.

Still, it was a great time, and a great way to make the most of a winter afternoon.

Why do people talk about empty nest syndrome as if it's a bad thing?

I had almost two hours to myself this morning. Nearly 120 minutes of blissful calm and quiet, interrupted only occasionally by the dog running through the living room with a banned item (child's toy, dirty sock, etc.) in his mouth.

And I didn't have to wake up at an insanely early hour to get this alone time. I slept until almost 9 a.m.

Let me repeat that.

I slept. Until almost 9 a.m.

And when I woke up, everyone else (except the dog, of course) continued to sleep. For almost two hours. I LOVE Christmas vacation!

I used the time to de-ornament the Christmas tree, which has begun dropping needles at an alarmingly fast rate. I would have felt guilty not letting the kids see the tree in all its glory one last time, but I'd given Sydney the option to help the night before and her response was something like, "Um, I think you should ask Alex to do it."

Clearly, her interests are in decorating. Not undecorating.

I finished the tree, and still everyone slept. And that's when inspiration struck.

I changed into a swimsuit, grabbed a mug of coffee and headed for the hot tub.

Note to self: next time put the coffee in an insulated mug. Temperatures in the teens means coffee cools pretty quickly.

Gus hasn't quite figured out (or maybe just doesn't like) playing fetch from the hot tub the way Maggie used to do. And so for the most part, he left me alone to soak and relax.

Right about the time I started to try and remember the last time I had this much time to myself in my own house, AJ's face appeared at the sliding door. Still in his pajamas, he waved to me. I waved back. And then he disappeared.

And then I had company.

A short time later, another still-groggy child appeared at the door and waved. By then, I'd been soaking long enough and was ready to get out. Luckily, Jeff had awakened and was willing to join them.

Which meant I got to sneak back into the house for 15 minutes more of blissful quiet.

I'll no doubt pay for it tonight when it's time to get my two little night owls back on a normal bedtime schedule. Reality of work and school returns tomorrow. But for this one last day, I savored the time alone. And now that I'm feeling refreshed and recharged, I will savor the time with the rest of my family.

Ringing in 2012

Happy New Year! My favorite little party animals made it until midnight and happily joined us in toasting the arrival of 2012. (Though I think AJ is still a little confused why a toast involves sparkling cider and not a piece of toast.)

We spent a low-key, fun evening with several other families, all of whom we've met and become friends with because of our kids. It's interesting how our social circles have changed and evolved based on our kids and their friends. Or is it our kids have become closer friends with the children whose parents we've befriended?

Regardless, it was a fun night of talking, snacking, drinking, Nerf gun battles and hide-and-seek. Alas, the evening came to an end far too soon for someone's liking. 

In tears, Sydney insisted she wasn't tired and wasn't ready to go home. I should note: she slept until 10:30 this morning.

AJ, meanwhile, is already asking which holiday will give him the next chance to stay up until midnight. He thinks July 4th would be a good occasion.

As for New Year's resolutions, I've already blown my annual attempt at quitting my nail biting habit. Stopping pen chewing still has a chance, primarily because I've been home all day with no reason to touch a pen. But my biggest goal for 2012 is a change in attitude. I resolve to spend more time recognizing the many blessings in my life and less time complaining and worrying about what I don't have or what I might want. I have a wonderful family and we are together and in good health. Period. Everything else is secondary. And as long as I remember that, it will indeed be a happy New Year.