Lakers Win Over Broncos

To end another very busy weekend, we watched the Lakers beat the Western Michigan Broncos 3-2. Papa was up for the game and we had a great time together as usual. Trevor got a treat and was able to stay the night in the hotel with him. Brian wouldn't stay still long enough to get a picture with him and Papa, but we'll catch him off guard sooner or later. This was the final regular season home game for the Lakers. Not sure yet if they'll host a playoff game or not. I hope so, or this will be the last we'll see of them until next October!!!

Laker Softball Banquet

One of the traditions the Amigos and I have is the annual Take Me Out To The Ballgame banquet put on by the Lakers softball team. We were lucky that Papa was able to come with us this year. Another change, is that is was held in the Student Activity Center before the hockey game. Great idea that I think generated more fans to attend. Papa also spoiled Lily with a new hoodie, that she loves, and hasn't taken off since! She aslo got to put a pie in the face of her favorite Laker, which is something they started last year, and a lot of fun for the girls and Lily. Good spaghetti dinner, and a good way to kick off a night of hockey.

The Stanley Cup, and Red Wings Alumni

On Friday night, we headed down to St. Ignace for the Detroit Red Wings alumni game. To our surprise, they had the Stanley Cup on display, too, for us to gawk at. We went to see it in Canada a few years ago, and didn't get a chance to get close, so a bit of retribution for us. The Alumni game was pretty fun, and we saw some of the Wings who helped them win the Cup in the late 90's and '02 in Darren McCarty and Joey Kocur. Some older Wings like John Ogrodnick where there, too. We had a good time, but another long day for us.

More Ice Time

After spending the afternoon in the water, we thought we would spend some time on the frozen kind that evening. It didn't go quite as smoothly as last time, though, as Brian took a pretty nast spill and landed right on his face!!! He's pretty tough and was back on the ice in no time. Lily and Trevor are getting better at skating, too. We just need to get in as much ice time as we can!! Brian just sees the bigger kids flying around, and thinks he can keep up, so sometimes his gets ahead of himself and takes some lumps. It's all part of the process, though...

Pool Party

Last weekend we beat the winter weather by being cool in the pool at the kids' cousin Nicole's birthday party. It was good to get some swimming in, and the kids had a blast splashing around. We're pretty busy, but we'll try to get to a pool a few more times this winter. Lily really wants to learn to swim badly, but it's hard to teach her when I have to pay attention to Brian most of the time. He does pretty well, too, though, and knows not to venture far from the stairs.

Lily's New Ball

Well I finally broke down and got Lily her own bowling ball. Just in time, as this week is our last week, and we'll be enjoying some pizza, and I'll have a chance to bowl with her. She's had a fun time and wants to bowl again next year. Trevor thinks he wants to get into it, too.

Lily bowled pretty well with her new ball, averaging in the upper 60's for her three games. We'll keep practicing in the off season for sure!

Brian Embraces Destiny...

Brian got his first taste of ice skating last weekend, when I took the kids to the Pullar to try out their new skates. Brian did a great job, and no one could believe that this was his first time skating. Lily and Trevor had a great time, too, and are still learning, as we've only been skating a few times the last four years. We're going to be skating about every week if we can swing it, and get them ready for hockey someday!! The workers even let Brian sit on the Zamboni, which was a huge thrill for him!!!

USA, USA

More hockey for us Amigos, but only one more Laker game on our agenda unless they host a first or second round playoff game. This time LSSU beat the USA U18 team in an exhibition match. Not a big crowd, but we had a lot of fun. Lily and Trevor went off to sit with some friends, but Brian stayed with me the whole time! Good pic of him checking out the Zamboni, as this is his favorite part of the game, I think. Typical boy, he is. We're hoping to get him on skates this weekend, so that will be something worth getting pics of for sure!

Wrestling Tourney In Rudyard

Holy, I can't believe I forgot to post this before we headed downstate. Last weekend Trevor had his wrestling tournament down in Rudyard. He had a great time, and wrestled pretty well for a rookie. He was taking on some of the best kids in the state in his weight class, so it was rough going for him. He was able to take home a third place medal, though, so we was very happy with that. Brian had a good time cheering his brother on, too. Lily and her friend were also there to give moral support. Not sure if he's going to keep going with this, as he wants to concentrate on hockey, but it's been a good experience for him. I'd like to see him keep competing.

More Hockey To End The Month

After watching the Globetrotters play basketball, we decided to get back to hockey. Staying in Cadillac, we watched the Vikings fall to Traverse City West in high school action. It's hard to watch these games for me, knowing that I never had the opportunity that these players did. When we played, we didn't earn a varsity letter, and were only able to play a few games in an indoor arena. It seems like everything we did to pave the way for a varsity program has been forgotten.....

Saturday we made it back to the Sault to watch the Lakers take on Ohio State, who was the number one team in the CCHA. The Lakers beat them 1-0 on Friday, and Saturdays game was even more exciting. The game went into overtime tied 4-4, and LSSU won the shoot-out. It was one of the best games we've seen in a long time. The kids were pretty tired from the trip. but they're troopers and we had a great time. Hard to believe only a few games left in the season...

Sweet Georgia Brown

Last Thursday we travelled down to Cadillac to watch the Harlem Globetrotters for the first time since 2009. This was probably the first time I've been in my old high school in close to fifteen years, if not longer. We had a great time as usual, and this would be Brian's first time seeing them. He's been watching the Globetrotters meet Scooby-Doo movies, gearing up for this event. They put on a great show as usual, and we weren't left disappointed. Trevor was picked to do a dance-off with Globie, but they scrapped it because they were running late. It seemed that they didn't do as much with kids on the court that they did when we saw them in Canada. Papa and cousin Shelby joined us this time, too, to make the event extra special. If they come our way on next year's tour, we'll definitely see them again. The Globetrotters pulled out a 105-101 victory, too, to win the World Championship!!!!!!!!!!