The Arena

Aerial view (from the cheap seats)

The rink is complete!  I made a family commitment to build a rink in the backyard, and with some help from a seasoned rink builder (from work) was able to open it up for business.  The guy that helped me has been doing this for 10 years, he provided me with a Home Depot Bill of Material (down to the part number) as well as instructions for assembly and maintenance -- I call him my "Rink Mentor".  The rink has been functional since last Tuesday and we've been on it everyday since.

Dylan probably got an additional 5 hours of ice time this week, clearly made a difference during his organized practice/scrimmage.  His team won 5-0, Dylan had all five goals -- and stopped a kid from scoring on his team's net by diving stick-first and stopping a breakaway.  I was slightly embarrassed, the game was 5 on 5 and he put on a Gretzky like clinic -- had the "pass" talk with him afterward, nonetheless, his skills have improved considerably.

Madison has been playing every night as well, much improved.  I noticed that she is much more comfortable on skates and is not as cautious as she had been in the past.  We've probably been outside more this winter than all of last year combined, looking forward to a new tradition.

Frankenmuth

Some pics over from Christmas break.  Took a trip up to Frankenmuth, site seeing, kids rolled pretzels and I enjoyed some local brews as well.  Never been up that way before, nice little town.

Breakfast with Santa

I think this is the 3rd year we've done breakfast with Santa at same restaurant.  We'll see if all gift requests are granted, the kids were pretty quiet for the most part -- they each made a couple of reasonable requests that may show up under the tree.

The boys

Dylan and Steele are a perfect match.  Both are non-stop, bumps/bruises and spend roughly 4 hours a day running around the house in boxer briefs.

The girls

Maddie and Sienna meshed well together, played the whole time -- only a little bit of mischief.  It was tough to separate these two, especially when we had to leave.

Trip to Phoenix

All of the cousins got together for Thanksgiving in Phoenix.  These were taken on the last day, the kids had a great time with each other!

Self Defense

Madison's girl scout troop went to self-defense class last weekend.  During class the instructor taught the kids some key maneuvers (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu style) in the event of stranger danger.  I was impressed with the class, kids had a good time too, I really enjoyed the fact that he didn't water it down -- taught the kids well.

Red Wings Superfan

I think this guy may be the most dedicated Red Wings fan out there (for his age group at least)!

We watch every game together -- usually catch entire 1st period and half of the 2nd before he has to go to bed -- then he checks highlights in the morning once he gets up.

Dylan checks NHL.com almost every morning as well (I give him 10 mins of viewing time each day) -- you can tell when he mentions that the Red Wings are in 8th place.  First thing he does before watching highlights is check where the Red Wings rank overall in the league.

Here he is listing off the entire roster in random order.

Halloween'14

Weather wasn't the best, but that didn't stop the festivities -- kids made a killing at night, two full bags of candy.  From there we went over to Madison and Dylan's friends house for a small gathering -- for the kids and parents.

Fall'14 Season - Dylan

Dylan wrapped up his season as well.  Maddie likes to play defense, Dylan - offense.  Smallest kid out there, 2-3 goals per game (best on his team).  The only "red shirting" going on for this kid is his jersey.

Fall'14 Season - Madison

Another season complete, Madison improved quite a bit from the prior year.  I can tell the teams are starting to get more competitive now, along with some over-the-top parents (already).  Maddie's team is still together playing indoors now, keeping fresh for spring season.

Quick change

As weather always does in the Northeast, we quickly shifted from Summer to Fall... and the leaves started to come down.  For the kids, it's 30 minutes of fun -- for the parents, it's 8 hours of raking exercise.