Wreck it Turkey

Good evening everyone. Busy and enjoyable little break for Mia and the family (with the exception of myself working). Early in the week, I finally found a snowboard for Mia. On a whim, I decided to drive to the Play it Again Sports in Greenfield and luckily discovered a board perfect for Mia. I picked up a pair of matching boots too, so I imagine both were sold together. Cost a little more than I wanted to spend on it, but I wasn't going to keep looking. The guy behind the counter said kid sized boards don't last long at their store. They're just such a hot item for Christmas so I think Mia's going to sincerely love her present. Thursday morning I had a group art lesson. Added two new students to my group so we worked on drawing feathers. My other older student Micah worked on a pencil sketch of Lord Voldermort. She really nailed her sketch so I was totally proud of her. My other kids weren't totally stoked on their feathers but it was a good thing to start out with.  Thanksgiving morning was fantastic. We got to see Ralph Breaks the Internet which was pretty amazing. We had tickets to a 10:15am show so we picked up some breakfast food at KT and made our way to the Ridge. The movie was just such an amazing sequel that has me wondering if it's better than the original. That's not always the easiest to say but all three of us really liked it.

Later after the movie, we went home and Jill made her infamous mashed potatoes before we drove to my parent's house for Thanksgiving dinner. We had a great time and everything was tasty. Friday, we did some painting on the cabinets before I went to work.

Saturday, I watched a very frustrating Chelsea vs Spurs match. They struggled everywhere and unfortunately ended their unbeaten streak. They have a Europa match this week so hopefully they can pull off a win. Later, we took my parents out for their birthdays to Big Tuna. Had the best sushi. They always are good so it was a nice dinner.

Today, we set up the Christmas tree. Mia enjoyed going through all the different ornaments and when I got home, I noticed she set up her Christmas village. Always cute. Over the weekend, she had to complete a science project over the weekend, and hers consisted of chemical reactions when you mix liquids together. Hopefully she wrote her report correctly. This week, super stoked for Conan O'Brien on Friday. I've been looking forward to this for quite a while.  I think we're grabbing a bite to each before and Mia's having a sleepover. I'll work on her book throughout the week as well and hopefully can find myself a board at some point. That's all for now, thanks for reading!

Space Oddity

Good evening everyone. I'll get through this quickly so I can crash for the night. So most of the week, I've been thoroughly scouring the webs and store websites looking for a nice snowboard for Mia for Christmas. She's been really really wanting one so I've spent a great deal of time trying to get the most bang for my buck. I'd prefer we find a board her size, but have looked at some a bit bigger. Wednesday I was off so after school, Mia and I hit up a Play it Again Sports in Tosa. The store was much older and smaller than the one I've been to in Greenfield, but we checked to see if we could get her boot size figured out. Turns out I was right and she is a size 2. The guy helped us figure out how to tighten them on these apparently better boots. She liked them, so when I eventually get her board, I'll pick up some boots too. Boots are a heck of a lot easier to get than the perfect board. The hunt continues...

I had debated about getting one for myself for cheap as well so we could learn together. We'll see how this goes. I know the sport is tricky and difficult but I don't want Mia to get discouraged so if we both fall and laugh about it, it'll make the the all-important process of learning all the more enjoyable. Saturday, Mia made a birthday card for her friend Charlie while Jill and I did some painting in the kitchen. We tried a couple of new paint colors for the wall. Not sold on either so we'll try again. Mia mentioned how much she misses soccer and wished we still played matches on Saturday. I miss coaching it too kiddo. The fact that she ended this season on the high note of scoring her first goal was amazing and she's setting her goal for the 2019 season of a hat trick, is feasible. I like her determination so I think it's very possible.

Sunday, Mia went off to her friend's birthday party. Always cute how they greet her "MIA'S HERE!!!!!" We cleaned out Jill's car and picked up Mia an hour or so later. She had a blast making slime and chilling with her friends. We started to think what to do with Mia's birthday next year, so we'll see what happens. Mia wants it "Red Panda" themed. Not sure what that means for her, but we'll figure it out. Plenty of time, although the month of March will be hectic because we'll be hosting the school-wide art gallery show. So much going on, so little time.

This week, we've obviously got Thanksgiving, so that'll be fun. Mia's got Pajama Day on Tuesday along with a big writing day. Not sure what they have the kids doing but it's supposed to be a ton of fun. Wednesday I have a pair of art lessons so this week leading up to it, I'll have to come up with a good lesson plan. I've been sorta casually looking at jobs here and there. Something to get me out of the current FT place. Nothing serious as of now. Chelsea are back in action on Saturday after a 2 week international break so it'll be good to catch them again.

That's all for now, thanks for reading!

Quality Creative Time

Good evening everyone. Hope you all enjoyed the week including a little snow tease. Mia enjoyed her first week in full bright purple hair. She got plenty of compliments which is always nice. I watched the Bate vs Chelsea match Thursday. The good guys got the win thankfully so we'll be moving on in the Europa. Later after school, Mia and I met up with Jill and attended her conference with her teacher. It was the very first time we've gone to a conference together since Mia's been in school. Her teacher had only the best things to tell us so that was nice to hear.  Mia sat and drew while her teacher told us she's doing amazing with reading and comprehension. Later, we went to Stonefire Pizza for dinner and games. Mia earned over 3,000 points over a few visits there so she picked out a big surfing penguin. Awesome!

Friday, Jill chaperoned Mia's class to the Betty Brinn Children's Museum. Originally, Mia had wrote in that I was going to do it, but I have to watch how many days I take off, so I had to cross that off but apparently Mia put Jill on the list. Jill got a group of 6 kids and they all had a blast. Saturday we had a low-key kind of a day. We weren't able to do any yard work due to the new bit of snow that came. Jill went to acupuncture while I watched Mia play in the snow. Later, we grabbed lunch at a new exciting place called FreshFin Poke. Super tasty. I had a coconut shrimp curry and Jill had spicy tuna. Mia had a little cup of fish eggs as well. In Hawaii, Jill fell in love with their poke so we were very curious on this new place. It turns out, it was better than what Jill had and of course Mia enjoyed her fav little fishy eggs.

Later, we spent some quality time together making art. Mia and Jill creating some ceramic masterpieces while I just doodled. Doesn't seem like much, but when you rarely get to spend time with your family, it's truly special. Most likely, the highlight of our weekend. We put on Zootopia later and had some pasta for dinner before crashing for the evening. Today, I woke up and watched Chelsea struggle to beat Everton. The match ended 0-0. Bugger. Plenty of chances but Everton was outplaying us. Lots of yellow cards and some dirty garbage the refs were missing on the Toffees. Still unbeaten, so there's that. I was hoping City would lose today, but they stomped on Man U. Damn. Need to step it up and grab some much needed wins. This week, maybe some art lessons, Mia's got a birthday party coming up and I've got to continue working on the Christmas book. Hard to believe Thanksgiving is already next week. That's all for now, thanks for reading!!

Comeback Kid

Good evening everyone! Busy week with some much-needed and deserved time off. Wednesday, we took Mia out trick or treating one last time for the year in Waukesha where my parents live. Not the warmest weather but Mia braved a cute little outfit without sleeves. She's either acclimated to the cold temps, or just doesn't care when it comes to candy hunting. She had a great time going house to house and it was an overall fun night out. Thursday was my usual time off so I started to work on some of our book for Mia's Christmas book. Later I had some art lessons. Micah and Gigi. Gigi went first and we worked on a baby Moana sketch. She did awesome. Micah had some struggling moments with her Dobbie sketch but she'll get it worked out. I met 3 new students that are eager to start new art lessons. It's going to be a lot of fun working with more kids that are passionate about art.

This week, my father in law burned us a copy on both the computer and a physical disc of the last match, so we have a permanent copy of Mia's goal. Because it had went to fast on that day, I didn't quite catch how she got the ball and got it in so it was fun to see the how Ainslee cleared the ball out, Sophie snagged it from the opponent, passed it directly to Mia and she outran one of their players to blast it on the left side of the net. She did a slight jump and was ready to restart and try to get another goal. I've literally watched the video clip 30 times. Every time, better than the last.  So incredibly proud of her. She was so timid last season and this year finished strong with pure confidence. What a comeback for her. She's looking forward to next season alongside her BFF. It'll be a new challenge that both of us as well as my loyal assistant Coach Kevin. 

Friday, I helped out with her Fall party. I ran a little candy corn race in the hallway. The kids were crazy but a lot of fun. Later after the park, Mia and I walked home and she packed up her bag for a sleepover with Cecilia. They had pizza and pasta from Mama Mia's (yum!) and we hung out and chatted with her parents till later in the evening. Mia and Cecilia watched The Emoji Movie and passed out and fell asleep in the living room. We ran some errands in the morning including dropping off the soccer gear before picking up the diva. She had a blast playing with Cecilia in the morning after chocolate chip pancakes. The kids hugged goodbye and we were off on our way. We did some yard work later after Mia and Jill went to an arts and crafts fair. 

 Earlier in the week, we made an attempt to dye her hair with some stuff from Target. It didn't work at all and the purple was pretty light so later Saturday, we found some Manic Panic vegan purple hair dye. Manic Panic was standard in punk rock hair dye, and pretty much every punk rock fan or musician that dyed their hair used it. It's apparently actually good for hair. Neat. Anyways, after she washed it last night, we let it dry overnight and Jill dyed it this morning. Turned out super bright and vibrant. She LOVES it. I watched the Chelsea vs Palace match. 3-1 win to the good guys. Morata has been on fire lately and I hope he can continue his strong form. In between halves, I helped Jill start our big project of painting our cabinets and trim. It's going to look so nice when it's all done.

This week, I've gotta vote, I've got plenty of art to accomplish and we have Mia's conference. We're stoked that both Jill and I can go for the first time ever. She's got a super sweet 2nd grade teacher so it'll be nice that we both get to go and hear how awesome our kid is :P Friday, she has a field trip to the Betty Brinn and she's pretty excited for that one too. That's all for now, thanks for reading! 

Hard Work Pays Off

Good morning everyone. What a busy week and exciting week it was. Almost could say a bit of sadness but we'll get back to that.
Throughout the week (art-wise) I did some spooky Halloween-inspired drawings for Mia. Some were okay, others "meh". I got my car back finally after almost a month of repairs and painting.  I'm going to totally miss the 2018  Rogue, but it was good to have my ride back. They did a fantastic job on it and now I'm just waiting for my insurance specialist to get the deductible back from the truck company. That part of this whole thing has been pretty frustrating so hopefully they'll get it.

Thursday I watched the Chelsea vs BATE match. Great win as always. Mia was stoked to see my car with Remi in the front seat (with his signature sunglasses of course) because she doesn't have to really look for my car, she just hears the chorus of kids screaming "OOOOOHHH LOOK AT THAT DOG!!!" and she knows "yeah my Dad's here". We got a snack post-school and Mia immediately got ready for practice. She wanted to get to the field as soon as possible to prepare herself for a possible 2nd chance at a PK since she missed last week. Okay fine. She didn't really work on the PK's when we arrived and more so worked on dribbling around me to shoot from every angle. Also equally important. We had a few girls missing but ran the practice as usual. Did a bit of a relay working on ball control and speed. A lot of the girls are very quick so it was well worth it. Did a few pass and shoot drills and did something we haven't done in a long time: A scrimmage. They really liked revisiting this familiar part of our practices and played well into the darkness. We called practice a little before 6:30 before visibility was practically gone. Overall, solid practice and they all felt confident going into Saturday's match.

Saturday came. Our final game of the season.  Mia was pretty bummed thinking about it as she got ready after breakfast. We got to the fields, I got the medals as Mia said a quick "hi" to her preschool BFF Olivia and new friend Tenley that played earlier and she joined her team warming up. The kids did their usual 1v1 against a defender and keeper. A few other quick drills and it was time to play. Olivia took the captain role for the last match. The Leprechauns looked almost like mainly 2nd graders. Or, they've got some seriously tall 1st graders on team. Most likely, the 1st one with the way they were shooting. Tons of power but somehow our girls weren't letting them through. In fact, some of these girls played their best game all season. One notable one was Charley. She had the most amazing 1st half ever. Every time the ball came near her, she booted the ball far and high out of our side of the field. Adalyn picked up our first goal of the match dribbling around a few of their players and finally finding the net getting her 9th goal of the season. The big shocker was still to come though.

Mia got the ball and outran one of their much bigger players and left footed it from outside the box right in the left side of the net.  UNBELIEVABLE. She was very reserve in her celebration. Originally she said she'd pick up her BFF when she'd score but she wasn't in at the moment. Her and fellow winger Sophie just looked at each other with big smiles and Mia ran back to the line ready to have another go at a goal. Her bench went crazy because I promised I'd do the "floss" dance if she scored...and well she finally scored. All the hard work paid off and she did so well in our last match. She made two goals this year. Learn to skateboard and score a goal. She accomplished the 2nd one very well. Adalyn got one more goal totaling 10 for the season. Great goal before the end of the half. The girls were feeling great going into the next half. Ainslee was solid in the back getting a great clean sheet. Sofia's turn. The Leprechauns put on the pressure but we did our best to keep them from scoring. A few scary moments of our defense clearing the ball to them gave me small heart attacks. Thanks Jana :P They got a handball against Ainslee and blasted a free kick that sneaked from under Sofia's legs and she scrambled to grab it and it leaked in. Damn. Game ended 3-1 and the girls went insane. Their traditional "Cheetah pile" before saying "good game" to the other team...then they piled up again. As promised as parents circled around the team for the medal ceremony, I floss-danced with the kids. They loved it and we had a good time. In sports, you have to keep it fun and this team was a complete blast. We gave each one of them their medals as we revealed their stats for the season and highlights. I hope they all enjoyed their time this season as much as I did. They bonded so well and were a blast to coach. The frustrating moments always subsided when I'd see the fun and smiles they had. We had just a great group of girls and both Coach Kevin and I are so proud of them. He was a great help this season and I couldn't do it without him.

Next season, 4 of them will be moving up to the 3rd/4th grader's Juniors division. If the sign up is low, they may add 5th graders like they did this season. I hope it doesn't come to that but we'll prepare for it. Mia and Cecilia will (and anyone else who wants to join us) will train over the Summer  for this new challenge. If the younger kids want to play casually with us as well, I fully welcome it. Love the kids so it'll be fun. Later after the game, We went to business trick or treating in downtown Waukesha. Mia kept her soccer uniform on with new medal so she went as a "champion soccer player". The weather was pretty great and she got plenty of good candy. Later, my parents met us up at MOD for pizza and we carved pumpkins. Jill made a gorgeous sugar skull, Mia did a red panda and I did Oogey Boogey. Sunday I had to work an early shift. Later we went trick or treating with Mia's cousins. Not the best weather but they had a total blast. I was Snape, Jill was McGonagall, and Mia was Hermione. This week, a return to art lessons, a Fall party at her school and I have to turn in the equipment back to the NBAA. That's all for now, thanks for reading!!

Spooky Times & Soccer in Sleet

Good evening everyone! Hope you all enjoyed the weekend. Been some weird weather but so what else is new. I took on a challenge to create some realistic food sketches that for the most part, worked out. The last day of the drawings, I literally threw away 4 sketches that didn't work. Frustrated, but I somehow finished it and was glad it was over. Working with toned paper and trying to nail realistic food drawings can be tricky. Toned paper isn't forgiving. You make too many erase marks, and it starts to wear out. Thursday, Mia requested I join her for lunch. REALLY? Alright. So I met up with her and her crazy friends. They all wanted to sit next to Mia. Not sure if that had anything to do with me being there, but it was a good time.

We went out for recess and all of them wanted to know what we were doing. Mia spent a lot of time trying to find BFF Cecilia. Eventually, I spotted her playing soccer with a bunch of kids. Mia joined in and I helped. It was pure chaos. The boys were insane. They'd run the ball in hands, put it down in front of a line of unfortunate kids at the net and blast it. The ball wasn't like a regular soccer ball. It was very light so when you kick it, it's going to travel very quickly. One of her friends Hayden got blasted in the stomach. A few tears and she was okay. Someone else took one as well. I told Mia today that come Monday, her and Cecilia should just grab a ball and go practice by themselves for their last game. Later, we had a soccer practice and actually had a complete team. The girls weren't listening at times, but other they were fine. They were all feeling good going into our next match.

Friday was the annual Star Trek to pickle pond. I volunteered to help. Not the best day for the trek, but the kids had fun. They did an obstacle course and played on the playground while it rained. Yuck. They didn't seem to mind and had an awesome time. Saturday morning was the return of Soccer Saturday.  I got up nice and early to watch Chelsea take on Man U. An early lead, and they were looking great. Man U's Pogba was awful the first half and after our goal, I thought we had them. 2nd half, they tied us and got another goal to pull ahead. Luckily, Barkley got the equalizer and we picked up a point. Frustrating but entertaining match.

Later, Mia and the Cheetahs took on her good friends Charlie and Tenley at 12:30. We also found out her long time BFF from pre-school Olivia was on their team. Crazy. It was our first match in a few weeks (due to all the cancellations) so I didn't know how great we'd be. The weather was godawful. Heavy winds, sleat/snow and freezing temps were not playing in our favor. A lot of the kids were out of sorts playing in the cold temps. The Lady Badgers caught Ainslee out a few times and picked up 2 goals on us. Ugh. Our kids kept trampling over each other, and not getting ahead of their defense. 2nd half, they had a hands in the box so we were rewarded a PK. Mia made the attempt and shot it straight at her friend Charlie. Damn. If I would have got her to take a running start and shoot, she would have had a better chance of getting her first goal. Luckily, Ainslee picked up one for us and the crowd went crazy. I don't know why, but it always seems like we have a lot more supporters than the other team. A few more chances but we just couldn't equalize. They had a PK on our end and their biggest kid took a blast at our wall of a keeper Sofia and she stopped her with ease. The funny thing is, that she didn't even want to play goalie but said "okay, I'll do it" pretty easy and had a great cleat sheet the 2nd half. Not the result we wanted but the kids still had fun. ONE last game left. Can we pull off a win? I certainly hope so. It's been such a frustrating season. While some players are doing pretty well, others just lack the focus to A-pass the ball, B-not run into fellow teammates, and C-LISTEN! Mia's been the hardest on herself lately and I have to figure out how to get her to listen more. She played very well, but sometimes backs off too much on the ball.

Later, Jill and I went to our friends Kat and Gregg's annual Halloween party dressed as Snape and Trixxxy the witch (Jill's made up character) Plenty of drinks and fun with old friends and like always, met some pretty awesome new people. We picked up Mia and went home. We watched a weird movie on Netflix before heading off to bed. Today, I didn't get much accomplished before work, but when I got home, it appears they took off all the cabinet doors to start the new project.

This week, hopefully a practice, some drums (maybe) and our last game. Trick or treating is Sunday so I've got an early day. We'll have to find time to carve pumpkins as well. That's all for now, thanks for reading

No Mas Lluvia Por Favor

Good evening everyone. Another week in the books. A rather disappointing week unfortunately so this won't take long. We had yet another spell of crap weather unfortunately which cancelled our soccer practice. I felt bad because we probably should have had it, but I'm sure the parents didn't mind chilling inside a warm house. Mia ended up reuniting and playing with her friend Noelle after school for a few hours, which was nice. The two always can pick up where they left off and play after several weeks apart. 

Saturday, we were supposed to play, but Friday night, we got an email cancelling the match. 4 out of the 7 fields still had standing water. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Mia was super disappointed because her fav Milwaukee Torrent Women's Player Mariah Downs had planned to attend the game. Mia was going to play against her preschool BFF Olivia as well. Her BFF Cecilia misses playing as well. She was stoked because Adalyn's Mom was going to make hot chocolate for everyone too.  The only good thing about our game getting cancelled was that we were going to be short two players. Ainslee was out of town as well as Charley was ill and be out for the game, leaving us short on the bench. Mia still felt confident she'd score, but sadly we didn't get to play. The Cheetahs just can't catch a break this season. There's even a chance the game won't even get a make up because the season should be wrapping up at the end of October. So disappointing. We spent the Saturday running some errands, a little yard work, relaxing, and some Dominos/Sushi for dinner. We even watching the Brewers game. Mia for some reason, was booing them. Later, we went to my brother's beer league hockey game. They unfortunately lost, but Mia enjoyed watching her uncle. He even hooked her up with a game-used puck which she was pretty stoked about. 

Today, not much going on. Laundry then work. This week, hopefully we can practice and we have one make-up game as well. Mia takes on her friends Tenley and Charlie. We should have a full roster if my kids can stay healthy. My car should also be finished getting fixed. I definitely didn't mind driving in this SUV, but it'll be interesting to see my Corolla fixed. I'm honestly surprised they didn't total it, but it's still got plenty of life left in it. I'll miss push starting my car, and how incredibly smooth the Rogue drove. Chelsea is back in action this weekend as well, so hopefully they can pull off a win against Man U. That's all for now, thanks for reading!