Sean's Spring Soccer!

Here goes another season with the Red Ninjas!!

Sean missed the first soccer game last weekend when he was sick with a fever, so this was his official start to the season.  It was awesome!  The weather was great - 58 and sunny, Nana, Pops, and Mindy came to watch too, and he wowed us all from kick-off until the end of the game!

We sort of labeled Sean as our "non-athlete" over the past two years because he never really showed an interest in any sport nor did he seem very coordinated, but I feel guilty for thinking that about him.  Maybe he just needs time to develop his skills or find something he enjoys.

We didn't practice at all during the winter.  When soccer ended last Halloween, we put his cleats and ball away for the rest of the winter.  When he went to his first practice two weeks ago, Scott and I looked at each other with raised eyebrows.  Wow, is this really Sean?  He was going after the ball, kicking it harder, and with more control.  Fast forward to Saturday's game and he dominated!

The picture above shows his first goal in the first half.  And his reaction to scoring a goal....

Proud mommy moment.  Not necessarily because he scored, but because look how happy he looks playing!

And then there was Evan...not so pleased that he couldn't play on the field too.  In 6 months, that'll be you, buddy!

Goal numero dos!!!

Love the determination on his face and the tongue sticking out!

It was a beautiful afternoon and one that left us feeling proud, excited, and anxious to see what the rest of the season brings us!  I hope this motivation and positivity continues.

Go Sean!

A prelude to summer...

For the past few days I think we bypassed spring and went right to summer.

The only problem?  It's only April and we still have 2 more months of work.

And what are the odds that the boys stay relatively healthy all winter long and decide to get sick when the weather gets nice?  Our odds must be pretty high.

Sean stayed home sick from school Friday complaining that his stomach hurt.  Fearing a stomach bug, I was relieved that his symptoms remained to only include a fever, no appetite and no energy.  At least we were vomit-free.

Saturday and Sunday were pretty much the same thing for him.  He missed his first soccer game on Saturday, but at least he was able and willing to lay outside for a bit to enjoy the warm weather and the sun shining.  The rest of the time he stayed on the couch with the exception of building his rental Legos when they arrived in the mail Saturday (look at those rosy cheeks...fevers make me sad).  Poor guy...

I'm happy to report he's on the mend and should be back at school tomorrow.  That was quite the virus for the past five days!

The only positive thing that came out of Sean being sick and on the couch was extra time and attention for Evan, who's not used to getting that much one-on-one time.

I think he definitely enjoyed it!

I knew I needed to get Evan out of the house on Sunday with Sean still sick.  Evan has his 3rd go at ear tubes this Friday so we are making every effort to keep him healthy for the procedure.  We haven't always had the best experience with getting the tubes put in, so I am on edge.

We decided to check out Greenfield Village on it's opening weekend before they do Thomas for the next month.  It was gorgeous!  We rode the train, rode the carousel, played on the playground, and explored!  I even ran into a co-worker and chatted with her for a few minutes while Evan watched the ducks and turtles at the pond by the "spooky bridge".

Let me tell you.  One child is a piece of cake.  He didn't complain once.  We got frozen custard as a peace offering to Evan for behaving and making our adventure out a huge success!  We both got a little too much sun, but man...that burn feels so much better than wearing hats and gloves out in the snow.  :)

As the weekend came to a close, I was shocked at how much fun we had over the weekend, even with Sean being sick.  That's the power of beautiful weather!  Watching the neighborhood come alive again with people playing outside, going for walks and bike rides, and smelling the smells of bonfires and grilling.  I know Bailey is certainly enjoying all the new commotion outside!

Back to 60 degree weather for a while, but I can't complain about that.   Spring has sprung!  Fourth card marking has started at school!  We're coming down the home stretch...

Opening Day!

Opening Day for the Tigers in Detroit is pretty much a holiday in our house!  Before kids we were season ticket holders and always went to opening day.  Tailgating with all our friends long before the game started, getting more and more elaborate with the set-up each year created some really fun memories for us.  Obviously, once we had Sean, we dropped our season tickets and got more realistic with how often we could go downtown.  That also made our chances of getting opening day tickets pretty slim.

For the first time in a few years, we got opening day tickets when they went on sale.  I wasn't too thrilled about standing room only tickets, but this is Scott's "Disney World".  So, I took one for team Ferstle and agreed to go.

Little did we know it would be a high of 40 and a chance of....snow.

So, we bundled up in our winter Detroit sports gear.  Gave me a good opportunity to wear my cute Tigers winter hat!  And an opportunity to pose with Frosty at the game.

We started our morning at home with the boys.  My mom came to watch Evan, as usual for a Friday, and drove Sean to school.  Scott and I took off after that in the hopes of getting there early enough for a parking spot at Greektown Casino.  $50 for a parking spot in the garage, but the promise to get reimbursed for getting a players card and we were relieved to be parked and on our way to win some money (I mean spend some money).

Free t-shirts, free Budweiser beads, playing slot machines, and cracking open our first beer at 11am and we were having a blast!  Scott even chose to play at a Disney themed slot machine...Alice and Wonderland.

After getting our parking money back at the cashier's counter of the casino, we decided to walk through some of the tailgating parties on our way to the park.  Man, the best spots were by the Detroiter bar!  People playing music on the flatbed of their truck, bean bag toss, hillbilly horseshoes, grilling food, etc.  It was fun to just walk around and see everything going on.

And then, a miracle happened.  We walked in to the game, stood near the Tiger's Den with our standing room only tickets, grabbed a sausage and beer, and an usher came and told us we could sit in the Tiger's Den.  No joke!  Some of our favorite seats in the entire ballpark and we got to sit there with standing room only tickets.  Thank you!

Even better than that?  Per tradition, as Miguel Cabrera came up to bat at one point during the game, I bet my usual bet with Scott.  I always bet a vacation.  And Miguel has never lost one for me yet.  It's simple.  If Miguel hits a home run, we go on vacation somewhere this summer.  If not, then we don't go.  What does he do?  Hits a home run.  Jackpot!  He's won me a trip to the Dominican Republic and Portland so far.  This summer I picked something a little more in our budget...a trip to Lake Michigan.

And we're booked.  Kalamazoo, Saugatuck, Holland, and Muskegon for four days, three nights right when school lets out in June.  We'll see the Air Zoo, go on a sand dune ride, go see the windmill, and hit up Michigan's Adventure.  Now just hoping the weather is warm and sunny for some lazy days at the beaches!  Thanks, Miggy!!

After the game, we went back to Greektown for dinner with some friends.  We ate at Santorini on the corner and enjoyed both the food and the DJ/entertainment they had for the day.  By eating dinner downtown, we avoided rush hour getting out of there and made it back to go to the video store and pick up a movie for our evening in without kids.  It was a great game and a great day out!  A much needed day to focus on each other.  :)

Spring Break 2016 Phone Dump

Just as usual spring break came and went.  It's now Sunday night and I'm back to the routine of packing lunches, getting backpacks ready, clothes laid out and my mind in the right place.  What better way to get mentally prepared for back to work than to look back at all the fun things we did over break?

We started our break and hit the ground running.  Reorganizing the playroom and toys in the basement was a huge thing to check off my list.  It always feels so refreshing to purge!  And reorganizing the playroom meant we found old costumes to dress up in!

Easter festivities took up the next few days.  Lots of fun activities with family!

And then Monday began our week home going to the library, open swim, Home Depot for their kid's workshop, Costco, Target, the park, the Zoo, Legoland Discovery Center, Pizza Hut for Sean's free pizza with Book It, to get ice cream for the first time this season, and probably other places that aren't coming to mind.  We watched movies at home, stayed in our jammies all day certain days, played with every toy we own in the house, and even did a little baking.  In no particular order...here's our past week in photos:

I even snuck away one evening to create a wood pallet sign with two co-workers of mine.  It was so much work...but so much fun!  And I love the finished product!  Now to find a space for it in my house somewhere...

I'm certainly going to miss the lazy mornings at home as a family, but every spring break gives me a sneak peek into what our summer vacation will be like.  Every year it's always different and it just keeps getting better.  Now that the boys don't nap, it makes for some long days.  But, we'll figure out a good schedule/routine.  Time to scour Pinterest for some quiet time activities.  Maybe those rubbermaid bins for each day of the week with specific things for them to do so it's different each day.

Let the countdown to summer vacation begin!  Booking our little family getaway for late June as tradition tonight! 2.5 months to go...