Keep Your Eye on the Ball

Monday night was the night that D and I have been waiting for his entire life. Opening night of his very first baseball season!! He played t-ball two years ago and then was unable to do baseball last year because of both covid and the fact that Spring Soccer started way later and became Summer Soccer. He was more than happy to trade in his soccer cleats for baseball cleats this year!

Mike took Dec to his first practice and said that there are three boys on the team who also played hockey with D (including Dec's buddy A). Apparently, the four of them were a tight little group and had the best time. D was all smiles when he got home and was so happy that he knew people on his team. 

Quinn begged to go with to practice - and my operating theory is that this is similar to when she tagged along to all D's rookie mite hockey practices and finally decided to play hockey at the end of the season. She's been debating softball as a summer sport and I suspect she's checking out the situation. Well, that, and Q just simply loves to watch sports practices.

All five of us went last night. The girls had a friend going because her little brother had practice at the same time, and they all wanted to play together. After several days of warm to hot weather, none of us were prepared for it being downright chilly last night. The kids who were running around seemed fine. But sheesh, the line of parents watching practice were feeling rather frozen.

Practice started off with a little drama as Dec took a baseball to the eye/cheek during warm ups. He's got a pretty good shiner with a goose egg - that simply refuses to show up in a photo. When he came off the field in tears, you could see the lines of the laces on his cheek. But we were really proud of him. He got a drink of water, a short snuggle from me, and then put on his glove and jogged back to the field. I also proved that I'm good at my job, because I convinced him it was pretty cool that he's the first one on his team to get a black eye from the ball. I even heard him brag to his teammates. Marketing at its finest!

Because he was very brave (and I was feeling generous), we took our frozen selves through the McDonald's drive thru for ice cream cones after practice. They weren't as satisfying as they would have been when the temps were 20 degrees warmer - but no one seemed to complain. Other than Mike, who ate his too fast and ended up with brain freeze. 

The Sports

Saturday night, I was home with the kids while Mike was at his own hockey game. Dec asked if he could put on his hockey gear and play goalie in the basement. I said "sure." Then Quinn got wind of this and decided to put her gear on as well. Soon enough, a knee hockey game broke out in my basement.

They very sweetly invited Fiona to participate. She was the "cheerer" and the announcer - and apparently the ref and timekeeper. At one point, she announced that it was "halftime." I promptly informed her that there is, in fact, no halftime in hockey. She ignored me. Then after halftime, she dropped the puck by saying "hut hut hike." I suspect [hope] that was just to sass me.

*****************************************************

I do blame the halftime comment on the fact that we actually made the Super Bowl an event at our house this year. Turns out, certain five-year-old boys in the public school system had very strong opinions about the game and which team should win. I was told I was cheering for the Chiefs. I may have had to ask said opinionated 5-year-old who was playing. When I learned that the Chiefs QB was the son of a former Twins pitcher, I was good with my assigned team.

We ate dinner downstairs at the bar and piled on to the big sectional to watch the game. There were chips and top the tator (so a real party) as well as all the fruit Declan could eat. At some point during the first half, each of our kids separately asked what a quarterback was. Quinn is clearly a hockey player and was quite annoyed when it took sweet forever to all the players to line up, only for no forward progress to be made. Several times, she said "that was it?" So while our football knowledge was lacking, we all agree that it was a really fun event to mark together.

We let them stay up through the halftime show so they could be culturally relevant at school the next day. Except for the fact that they had no idea who Shakira or J. Lo were. Nonetheless, they enjoyed it. And Dec was thrilled the next morning when he wandered into my room and I told him the Chiefs won. He was slightly less annoyed that it was Monday.

*****************************************************

This weekend was "south metro exchange weekend" for Mite hockey. Dec played in Prior Lake on Saturday and volunteered to play goalie for the first game. Mike volunteered to be bench coach, which D loved as well. Dec was proud of how he played in goal and enjoyed being out of goal for game 2. They even did a shoot out at the end of the game - and he scored!!

Sunday found Mike and Quinn driving to New Prague, very early in the morning, in near whiteout conditions. Mike texted me when they got there that he had seen one plow - in the ditch. It was an adventure, but well worth the crappy roads. Quinn had the best time and played really well. Apparently she did skate into the net at one point - so they tell me.

*****************************************************

The best thing about super early morning hockey for everyone on Sunday is that we were done with hockey by 10:30am. Which meant we had the rest of the day to play in the fresh snow (more on that later). At one point, as Q walked up the hill with her snowboard over her shoulders, her hat pulled down over her eyes, and completely covered in snow, our neighbor Mike said "everything about Quinn screams X Games." And our brains exploded a little bit.

In not our brightest parenting move, we showed the kids a few videos of Shaun White snowboarding. Later, Dec told me that he was going to be just like Shaun White. Only not. Because his tricks were going to be different and better and harder. He also asked to take both skateboard and snowboard lessons. And said that instead of asking Santa for yogurt next Christmas, he's going to ask for goalie pads. It may be going awry here!

Sunday at the Rink

To get out of the house (and not at all to wear people out so that they would think going to bed at 7:30 when it really felt like 6:30 was a good idea), we hit up open skate on Sunday afternoon. The girls are both completely proficient on skates – and also apparently know everyone. So they stepped out on the rink, found friends, and we saw them infrequently at best for the next hour.

Dec started skating with me, lasted about 10 minutes, and decided he wanted to be done. I told him he could be, but he had to skate around the rink once first. Somewhere in that circle, we ditched the skating “walker” and all the practice up to this point finally clicked. Suddenly, the boy was skating. And then falling. And then getting up when he fell. Come to find out, open skate is so much more fun when you can actually skate! So he partnered up with his dad and they goofed around for the rest of the time.

While having three official skaters was exciting, we were not done at the rink for the day. We left one and drove across the cities to another to watch Mike’s hockey game. We got there a little early and saw the end of the high school girls’ hockey practice. It was pretty powerful for all three of them to see up close how talented these girls were. Lots of respect for girls’ hockey in our house (and hopefully motivating to Quinn to consider it).

Mike’s game wasn’t terribly exciting. They won soundly, but that’s not terribly hard to do when the other team only has six players and no goalie. Mike said it wasn’t terribly fun to play either, because you hold back a lot to not be jerks. That said, we always like watching Mike play and it was a fun way to wrap up our weekend.

We enjoyed a picnic dinner in the stands, watched a Zamboni, flirted with the ref (Quinn), and watched 17 or so goals be scored. All in all, I think we spent about 4 hours at the rink for the day. Not a single person complained – about the time at the rink OR bedtime.

Mike's Donkey Race Adventure

About three weeks ago, I was on a conference call when I got an email from Mike ... asking me if it was okay for him to be in a donkey race at the county fair. Quite honestly, I don't know how you tell someone they can't be in a donkey race (but you do laugh about it with your coworkers) so I agreed. He was concerned because I was heading out of town the next day for work - but I assured him the kids and I would be just fine. Plus the kids got the biggest kick out of the thought of Daddy riding a donkey.

Mike's work (Anchor Bank) actually sponsored the races, so his boss was excited to pull a team together. And you know Mike, he's game for anything! [Team Name: Anchor's Assets] While we were disappointed that we didn't get to go watch him, it was probably for the best. He ended up being there almost all night - as he placed 2nd in his heat and made it to the championship race.

According to Mike, it's not easy to ride a donkey. They aren't big fans and spend much of the time trying (succeeding) to buck you off. Donkeys "buck" by lowering their head and evicting you off their front. You had to be on the donkey when you crossed the finish line, but Mike said he spend a fair amount of time during the race trying to pull his stubborn donkey around the track.

He was rather sore from the whole experience and suspects he may have had a bit of whiplash from one of his tumbles off the donkey. But he also had a good time. And the kids and I laughed and laughed when we saw the pictures.

And because Mike is game for anything, when I asked him just now if he would do it again, he, of course, said yes. Technically he said "probably," but in Mike speak, that's always a "yes."

Fight, Fight, Rapids, Fight!

We are very sleep-deprived here. It was one of our favorite weekends of the year - boys high school hockey tournament! We always watch, but it was extra sweet this year because my hometown team made the tourney. Thursday night, Mike, Em, and I settled in with the late game match up of Grand Rapids and Maple Grove. I had snagged Mike's Thunderhawks sweatshirt in preparation. Two Maple Grove goals very (very) early in the game and I switched sweatshirts to my 90s throwback version (throwback as in I wore it in high school!). After that, the game significantly turned in our favor. [It's not superstitious if it makes a difference. Really ...]

Friday night was a nail-biter, as we played top-seeded Eden Prairie. It was a really close game, but Rapids pulled out a win - making the finals an all North match-up! We caught the end of the single A finals (as in we watched the double overtime) during the day and sent up good thoughts that the AA game wouldn't go to double (or single) overtime! The kids were really excited and even put on my sweatshirts for a photo-op. Mike's sweatshirt was suspended for the weekend due to its unluckiness!

When the game started, Dec was mesmerized. He stared in awe as they introduced the teams and watched the whole first period with great interest. Quinn loved that both teams had orange on their jerseys - and that Rapids had more orange on theirs! I was so nervous the whole game, but Rapids pulled out the win. It was so exciting and the kids were beyond thrilled when we told them this morning. Lots of hometown pride and deep love of Northern hockey. 

But man, those late games - combined with daylight savings time - will get you! 

Superhero Dash

Best cheering section!

About a month ago, I got really exciting news that my nephew Ben was going to come down this weekend and do the Superhero Dash mud run in S-town with me. Ben and I have been wanting to do a mud run together for over a year (I mean, really - running AND mud!), so we were thrilled. Even more fun, my brother-in-law Kyle was also going to join us.

Then life happened. Or really, the start of school happened. And a wicked cold is going through the Bartholomew house. They waited as long as they could, but made the smart call and did not make the almost 4 hour drive, while feeling completely miserable, for a 3k race. I was really bummed, but also totally understood. And let's be honest, it sounded like a horrible cold ... and we really don't want it!

Fiona, Dec, and me in the big puddle

Even though he hates running, Mike was sweet enough to do the race with me so I didn't have to do it on my own. My sister was coming down anyway today to help celebrate Bugs' birthday, so she bravely watched the trio - during what should have been naptime - while we ran. "Kyle" (Mike) and I finished in just over 18 minutes. It was a pretty low key race. The obstacles were fun, but not very hard, and there was not a huge crowd of people. There was free face painting and balloon animals, which kept the kids entertained for Auntie.

Before our race, Dec was ticked off that he was not part of the mud run. So he jumped at the opportunity to be in the kids race once the bigger mud run finished. He would have run into the giant mud puddle before the kids race started if Mike hadn't stopped him! I was a bit surprised, but the girls decided to do the kids race too. Unfortunately Quinn and Mike had a bit of a slippery mishap in the giant puddle that left her covered in mud with a huge scrape on her face. She recovered enough to try the puddle with me, but soaked and covered in mud pretty much ended her day at the races.

Mike realized during the race that he has cracked the door of doing races with me - and that this would probably not be the last time I "tricked" him into running. He even said something tonight about "when we do it next year ..."! Now - we just need healthy relatives and the five pairs of shoes on the deck to dry.

Rainbow face paint

Hearts. And serious side eye

Monster face!

Little Slugger

Declan has suddenly fallen in love with the t-ball set. He has incredible focus - especially for his age - when he plays with it. He can set the tee up by himself and put a ball on it. But he has even more fun if one of us is the continuous ball feeder. The slugger is a bit wild with the bat, so I was feeling the need for safety gear.

It's fun to see how much he enjoys playing. And how his skills are already improving.

A Goal Achieved

We "forgot" our costumes

When I was pregnant with Declan, I decided that I want to run a 5k after we had him. Before the snow flew. Because we had three kids and I wanted to do something for me.

I was going to run one in August with my sister, but it was a pretty big one, cost a lot of money, and needed "spectator passes" for Mike and the kids. The sheer logistics gave me hives. So that didn't feel like a good fit. My friend Beth has been running too. So we decided to do a 5k together and found a nice little race in S-town at the community center. Cheap, easy, the hubbies could bring the kids. Much better fit.

It was all coming up roses until Declan was still not sleeping through the night in September so my getting up early to run before work was suffering [non-existent]. Then I got my rear in gear and started using my lunch break at work to hit the treadmill. But I would only go a mile or so because I didn't want to have to take a shower ... or smell. And then a respiratory plague hit my house. So sleeping went out the window as four of the five Vs coughed all night long. And then Beth hurt her foot.

We debated bailing on the race and both decided we would be more disappointed to give up than to go slowly. Saturday morning found us jogging/power walking a lovely route around town. Spoiler alert: I was the one Vanneste not coughing all night. But as I was jogging, I discovered that my lungs were a little compromised by the bug as well. I walked more than I wanted to, but jogged more than I walked. And finished at just over 38 minutes. So slow. But finished. And finishing was the goal.

Beth and I had a good time and are looking forward to doing more of these together. And the bar is pretty low to achieve improvement on my time by spring.

However, I'm still really proud that I did it at four months postpartum. And my girls were running races all weekend. Because they are proud of me and want to be like me. Two successes with one three mile event!

All Star Reflections

I'm a nerd and I look forward to All-Star week every year. This year was especially exciting because it was here in Minnesota. I told Mike that I debated all weekend whether or not to take Bugs to Fan Fest. He pointed out that the 100,000 people and me and a 3 year old were maybe not the best odds. He also wisely deduced that maybe it was just Mom who really wanted to go to Fan Fest. Well played, Michael. Well played.

Last night, we let the girls stay up a little later than normal so that they could watch the start of the game. Here are some of the thoughts they had about it.

M: Those are the thunderbirds, girls. They flew out of Duluth.
F: Dad, they aren't birds. They're planes

M: Bugs, that's King Felix. He's the best pitcher in baseball right now.
F: A king!?!?!
S: Bugs, when you start to date, no one with a soul patch. Okay?
F: I'm going to date Quinny.
M: I don't think it works that way.
F: But she's my best friend.

F: Is that a GIRL!?!?! (in response to seeing one of the players with very long, dredlocked hair)

The fans

Future All-Star?

Swimming Star

Bugs has finished her next set of swim lessons. After a slight delay because they didn't have the report cards at the final lesson, we found out she passed to the next level! She's now a Frog. And she's already asking for summer lessons! She just loves the water! It may be rubbing off. Q has asked for summer lessons too. We'll see if she really means it ... or if it just sounded good when it was Buggy's idea ;-)

Here are a few pictures that Mike took during one of her lessons:

Making a muscle
(subtitled: they didn't have a life jacket small enough for her)

Floating

The walk to the diving board

Diving Board: Take 2

I swear they only do the diving board when Mike takes her. Here is Take 2 of Fiona vs the Diving Board. She still really digs it, but was more cautious walking this time because she remembered that it wiggled. But she did go off the board with her arms outstretched this time and caught herself on the red floater. That is big progress.

Fearless Fish

The winter swimming lessons session has begun. We decided to give Q a swimming lessons break (although we plan some trips to open swim with her), but wanted to keep Fiona rolling. We saw huge progress in her confidence as she did her first solo class last fall and didn't want to backpedal.

Never fear, based on tonight's experience, no backpedal in sight. We arrived 10 minutes early tonight (for the first time ever in swimming lessons history!) and I thought I may have to leash her to me to keep her from jumping in the pool before it was her class' turn. She is again the shortest (by at least 6 inches) and, from the looks of it, the youngest in the class.

She is also the most fearless. Within the first five minutes of class, all the other parents knew the tiny blonde belonged to me and were commenting on her bravery. She is really excited to learn to swim and you can see her working very hard to listen to the teacher and master the skills. Such leaps and bounds even from the final class a couple of months ago. I was telling Mike how fun it was to watch her really get something out of class. (She also kept up a constant stream of chatter that we discussed after class. Perhaps the listening ears could do a little more work than the talking mouth ...)

She also asked her teacher no less than six times if she could jump off the diving board. We'll see if they let her next week. I'm not sure anyone else in her class will follow her lead. But based on her awe of the kids in the class before hers using it, I'm pretty sure she'll jump off that sucker with no reservation.

Kickin' It

I've played on a kickball team with some friends from college for ten a couple years! It's a kids game and our team is there [mostly] to have fun. Don't get me wrong - we're pretty good and have won our share of championships. But we know that it is kickball - not competitive fast pitch. Anyway ... I digress.

When Mike moved down here, he joined the team too. Since we had kids, we share a roster spot as it's a 20 minute drive from here to the game. And late games just do not work with the girls. Lucky us, this season, there are a lot of early games. Last week AND this week, we had 6:15 games. Those present their own set of problems as that is dinner time, rush hour, and squeezed right at the end of the work day.

We feel so lucky to play on a team with friends who not only are truly excited when the girls show up, but actually encourage both Mike and I to play in the field at the same time and willingly watch the girls. There is a reason why our roster hasn't changed much over the years!

Last week, Uncle Dan and Uncle Z sent Mike out to the field. I played catcher to keep an eye on the goings on in the dugout. Mike left Q and she did not appreciate the desertion. I had to laugh at the looks of sheer panic from the honorary dugout uncles. I directed them to our bag and told them to pull out a yogurt pouch for Q (I heard, "Yes - we can buy happiness!"). Uncle Z handed it to her gingerly (like one would with a rabid dog) and she bellowed back at him. I laughed and reminded him that he did need to open it! Once opened, they were bestest friends.

I did also have to remind Uncle Dan a few times (jokingly - he would never) that the gummy bears on the bench were not for the girls. You know, because they were soaked in vodka. I love our team! No shortage in creativity on how we can make kickball an "adult" game. For the record, I thought the gummies were delicious!

This week, the girls were more comfortable and therefore a bit more wild. They were still really good, but Q's goal in life was to get on the field of play. Buggy was running around, tripped (with a sandwich in each hand), and smacked her forehead on the concrete. We played out in the field less and tried to keep the fan base under control. They are still great fans and love to cheer on Mom and Dad - and the rest of the team!

Wordless Wednesday: Skol Vikings!

Q is wearing her football gear for Grandpa V!

She Still Believes

Fiona says "GO WILD" and hopes they can pull it together enough to make the playoffs!

**thank you Aaron for the great picture

First Twins Game

It was only fitting that Fiona attended her first Twins game with her Grandpa J. Grandpa took us, Auntie, and Grandma to the game the day after Fiona's birthday party. So we squeaked in our goal of catching her first game before her birthday with TWO days to spare ... whew!

Grandpa got us sweet seats in the Legends Club (the rest of the crew sat in the upper deck) so that the Little Bug was out of the sprinkles and could stay a bit warmer. She thought the game was so fun! And by the way, Mom, almost 1-year-olds do NOT nap during baseball games. How had I not known that rule?!!? She flirted with the surrounding fans, oohed, aahed, and clapped, and fell sound asleep before we got out of the parking garage when we left!

Great day! Thank you, Grandpa!

Legends Club

The bullpen is blowing the game, Mom

The awesome usher gave us a 1st Game Certificate for her

Newest Fan

It's Opening Day! A holiday for our family!! Fiona is sporting her gear to celebrate the day and to honor the legacy of her Grandpa J and Great Grandpa J - who passed the love of the Minnesota Twins through the family. She promises to cheer hard and make them proud.

Grandpa (and Great Grandpa's memory) - these are for you!