The Reflection

Evening everyone. Plenty to write about from this weird week, so let's get right to it. The week started a bit strange after I applied for a job. I got an immediate response looking for a Hangouts chat interview. Okay. First time for that but that sounded positive. The next day was the interview for this company called O&J productions. I started getting suspicious when I couldn't find any website or anything. Still, I went through with the interview. The person interviewing me asked some pretty generic questions, mentioned it would be a 20-40 hour a week $30.00 an hour freelance position. Okay then. Then it got super suspicious. They wanted me to purchase an entire "mini-office" list of supplies to set up at home which included a MacBook Pro, printers and a whole lot of expensive supplies. They said they would send a check for everything and I'd get immediately trained after signing a contract. Hell, no. Everything that I was suspicious about was confirmed. This "company" didn't really feel like a company and I wanted nothing to do with it. Luckily, I have people in my network that called BS when I explained everything. The next day, I e-mailed that I would terminate the contract and wanted nothing to do with the production company. I'm just glad I've got people in my life looking out for me.

Thursday we had our last soccer practice. Sadly, the conditions weren't the best and the field was a disaster. We couldn't really use the net for any shooting or goalie drills for Elia but the kids definitely had fun. Last match of the season was Friday. Going into it, I had a plan to release Olivia in the 2nd half and stick Elia in goal with a strong defense to keep her safe since she has never played goalie. 1st half, the Lazer Hornets (yes that's how they spelled it) got one up on us in the middle of the 1st half. Ryan picked up an equalizer before the end of the 2nd half. The girls were looking good and things were looking up. Remember, a draw would have secured us 1st place so all we had to do was keep it up. 2nd half, we started dominating the Hornets and Alice picked up a beautiful goal. 2-1. They got back into this and it was 2-2. 30 seconds left, Ryan took an injury to the face or hand and we subbed her out quick. Next thing we know, they got ONE more goal on Elia in the final seconds finishing the dramatic finale 2-3. Such a heartbreaker. These girls worked so hard all season and all of them thought we could pull this one off. It was such a major bummer. Both of us tied but they got 1st place only on GD. Ughh...

The good news was that they earned themselves 2nd place trophies. I couldn't have been more proud of these talented girls and I hope each and every one of them continue with soccer wherever they play next. Alice finished off the season with 14 goals, Ryan had 5. Linnea had 5.Alice was such a good team player and excelled every match. Ally wins my vote for Most Improved Player with all the skills and heart she played with every single game and practice. Olivia was a coach's dream as far as goalies are considered. Earlier in the season, she had a great kick save and in the tournament, she had a beautiful save that was heading over her head. She struggled in the 2nd half of our final match on the field when I pulled her out of goal per her request but couldn't stick to ONE position when I gave it to her, but what can ya do...She had an AWESOME PK save that had all of us holding our breath in the final match. The whole crowd went crazy when she saved it. Linnea was a warrior all season. She could attack and dribble with the best of them and I sincerely appreciated having this girl on my team. I fully believe if Ava didn't end her season 5 weeks ago with an injury, these kids wouldn't have been in this high-stress match but it happens. Elia was fantastic and always played with heart. Ryan was super competitive which didn't surprise me and probably always will be. Mia and Cecilia both made improvements and I hope wherever they play next season, they can work on their attack and drive. Playing with and against 4th graders certainly wasn't easy for both of these two but I think with a lot of off-season work, they can make major improvements. Lastly, it was awesome having Coach Kevin and Coach Jim this season helping out with the girls. Both had a great time and I'm thankful they joined me this season. I didn't get to watch the Chelsea vs Burnley match but saw highlights of them winning 4-2. Pulisic got a beautiful hat trick and will be one to watch this season now that he's getting into the starting XL.

Later, Mia went tick or treating in the downtown Waukesha businesses picking up some candy while dressed in her soccer attire, complete with her new trophy. Most of the day, she never let it go. We attempted to do some Spiderman/Spider Gwen pictures at Jill's studio but Mia HATED the costume. We got a few before I send it back this week to Amazon.  My parents came over later to carve pumpkins with us before we called it a night.  Today, we started our day with a visit to the zoo. I had informed the diva that the weather was perfect for the red pandas to be out and about. What do you know, I was correct. Kiki, Dr. Anne and Dash were roaming around. Mia watched them for probably an hour. They were so cute playing, yawning and eating. When we got back, Mia dyed her hair and it looks pretty rad. After washing it out, we got ready for our family trick or treating. My sister handed out treats as my parents, brother, sister-in law and nephews plus Jill and Mia ventured out looking for fun and treats. The older these kids get, the longer they last trick or treating. On top of that, the weather was close to perfect for the end of October. When we got back, everyone split and we made spaghetti before Mia and Jill went off to sleep. This week, I'll try to get some good edits of the Spidey photos and Mia's trick or treating Thursday in Waukesha. Friday, Jill and I are helping out at Mia's Fall party. Should be a lot of fun. That's all for now, thanks for reading!