Happy Turkey Day!

I love Thanksgiving. It is truly my favorite holiday. The one reason why I love it is so you can be thankful for everything you have. The second is that there is no mad rushes for out of control gifts. With that said, I had an awesome Turkey Day! I got up, worked out, straightened up my house for bit and was at my mom's by 11. I started right away. My mom and I worked in the kitchen straight through 2:30. The reason we ate at that time was because we were lucky enough that Ryan was able to come home from 1-3:15 to enjoy some time with us! We made it in time.

Dinner was delicious (as always) and just so filling. I don't remember eating so much. After we cleaned up and I said goodbye to Ryan, we had dessert. I made cheesecake the night before and my Aunt Gail brought a chocolate cake. Both (yes, I had both) were soooo good! We were so lucky to have so much food and our bellies were full. I felt so thankful to have my family and just be able to spend time with them.

We left my mom's and got home about 7:30. I cleaned up a bit and crashed right to bed. We had a very long and busy day Friday (Black Friday).

Every year on Black Friday, my mom, Dan and I go downtown. My mom and I have been going since I was young - 5 maybe - so about 25 years. We see the light show, santa, A Christmas Carol (Dickens) see the big tree they put up in City Hall, and eat lunch. Over the years, things changed. Way back when, the store started out as Wannamakers. They had lego land and a huge train that travelled around the store - so cool! After Wannamakers, I think it changed to Lord and Taylor's and I think another store until it is now Macy's today. Our sightseeing priorities have also changed. Well, because this year we were going to see Temple play at 1, we had to start really early and skip a few things in order to get to the game on time.

Friday morning comes and I'm up at 5 and everyone else is up by 5:30. Nonna comes at 6 and we're all running out the door to catch the 6:22 train. I don't ever remember going down in the dark. Usually we leave about 7:30ish. We get downtown about 7:30 and we walk right through City Hall. Perfect...first stop...pictures at the Christmas tree. Ryan was still with us so I was able to get a few shots with him. He went his separate way and Nonna, Dan and I went towards Macy's. We got the times for the lightshow and Dickens to start which wasn't for another 2 hours so we decided to head down Market Street to Kmart and do some shopping. No luck there. We head back to Macy's within an hour and the light show started (an hour earlier than the lady told us) - what luck! It is now 9 and Dickens starts at 10 so this is just perfect.

The lightshow was great this year. They changed all their bulbs to LED lights so it was brighter and they added back the huge Christmas Tree. I have pictures and I'll post them later. After the light show, we walk around a bit before we go stand in line for the start of Dickens. We had lots of time to kill. Dan was starting to get really antsy but did fairly well. We get through Dickens and head to eat lunch. We skipped out on seeing Sanata this year as we can go to the mall near us if we wanted. We go to the Reading Terminal and I get a hoagie. OH MY GOD!! It was incredible. I was stuffed again. I seriously have to workout to get all this food off! So, we finish our lunches and head to the EL. We take the EL and then hop on the subway to get off of Pattison. Pretty neat to be on three different types of transportation in one day.

We get to the Linc about 12:15 so we have 45 minutes to rest. I get a beer, sit on the couch and just relax. The game was about to start so we decided to go out. Ummm...it was freezing! It was supposed to be 53 degrees and it felt like 30! One thing I must say about this day is that it is the hardest day to dress. Your outside and in all day so your hot and cold. The game didn't help because we didn't have many layers. oh well.

And Temple won their last game of the year!!! It was incredible and it is no 8 at night and I am exhausted!

Neat & Organized

I used to be really neat and organized. I am the type of person that likes everything in its place and things to be in order. I'm also one of those people that knows you can't tell the future but some type of plan would be good for me to know. I wish I could just have no plans. I worry too much :)

Anyway, I can get carried away with clutter just a bit. I did some major cleaning recently. We just had stuff everywhere and it's so easy to just throw things around and everything gets cluttery. So, I threw stuff out, put things away so everything had a place, etc. I just needed our house to look more organized and clean-cut. I am finding my roots again. The house looks great and I've managed to keep it pretty clean so far. I even put all our CD's in a CD book and threw out all the cases to make more room on our shelves. We had a ton of CD's. I have a few more things to do and then I think I'll be happy. I actually had a list at the beginning of football season to keep me busy. Turns out, I didn't have time for the list!

The Tournament Weekend

Well, we had a long busy sports weekend planned. Started out Friday night with a hockey game. Dan got two goals - woohoo! My friend surprised me by coming to the game that night too. It was great to hang out with her and her husband after the game.

On Saturday, we had to get up early to start the soccer weekend. He had a game in Philly at 9 and from there we had a tournament with one of his other soccer teams. Unfortunately, Dan was not feeling well at all. He played the first game, we drove to the tournament fields and another team forfeited our first game. So, we all went to a joint to rest and get some food before our second game. At that point, Dan decided he need to go home and rest. So, we went home and watched Star Wars the rest of the time. He fell asleep at some point to get some rest. I did hear from another mom and the team did well their last two games and won; so, we move on to Sunday with two games left. Ryan and I ordered Chinese for dinner - love it! and then I headed off for some Christmas shopping. I got a few good gifts. I got home about 10 and we all went to bed.

Sunday morning came and Dan comes running into my room at 7 letting me know he's all better and he can play! I said "great...now go downstairs and watch tv till I wake up in another hour". :)

An hour goes by and we started our day. We went to 9:00 mass, ran to food shopping, I quickly worked out and we were out the door for the last two games. The team played great and they won the tournament - they were so excited!

I also experimented with the black and white option on my camera so here are a few pictures:

After the tournament we went to my mom's for a dinner she made for my aunt's b'day. It was delish! Then we went home to sadly watch the Eagles - they lost. :(

Now about Ryan

I mainly write a lot about Dan and I (and the dog) so now I'll tell you a little bit about Ryan. We met in Aug. 2002. At that time he was a Physical Education teacher at an elementary school is Philadelphia. Dan was 3 at the time. They clicked and got along great! Ryan was (and is) terrific with Dan.

After that school year of 2002, Ryan decided to get back into coaching football - this is his passion and dream. He will always love coaching and he just loves this job. He warned me of many, many, MANY things that come along with him coaching. I heard what he said and we jumped right in. He got a job at Gettysburg and we did the long distance relationship. I'm not fond of it but we got through it. He was there a year and then moved onto Villanova for a few years and is now at Temple. After we got married in July of 2007, he adopted Dan in November of 2007. Truly a joyous day for all of us.

Just for only being in the coaching job for about 8 years, we've gone through a lot and have learned a lot. Ryan is and will always be my rock. Even though he cannot always be there for everything, he is always thinking about us. He does what he can whenever he can. He is a hard worker and is always pushed to his limits. My favorite thing about him is that he never complains and helps me when he can.

Ryan is an amazing husband and phenomenal father.

Realization

I've come to realize that not only do you have to be dedicated for football but all your family and friends are too (in a good way of course). I can't even count how many times my family and friends have been there for me (us) if I was getting pulled in another direction or needed something. Especially my parents who have been a huge help to me and is always there at the drop of a hat. I've ben really lucky that way!

Seriously though, it is really hard to understand that you cannot always count on your husband (or wife). Granted, this year has been better than before where we see Ryan a little more at night than we ever have (which is fantastic!) but he still misses taking Dan to practices and watching his games. We have been eating dinner together more often though.

If I can't make it to something, I always rely on my parents. There are also sports parents who are always willing to help as well. So, the dedication for me, married to a football coach goes beyond just us - it really involves a lot of family and friends :)

I'm sure this is the same for people with multiple kids, or people married to doctors or military families, etc. I'd like to think most of us are in the same boat sometimes and we all are so very understanding.

Election Day

Well, the day has arrived. I've been waiting for this for awhile. This is the most historical day in election history. And Obama won! I just hope he can get this country moving again like he says he can.

Well, Tuesday was my day to take the kids. I had four kids all day and they were great. I took them to vote with me earlier in the day and then they played for awhile, I fed them lunch and we went to do some errands. I had to take Mya to the vet as she has an ear infection. I also had a chip put in her. I was excited about that. Oh, I also held a newborn baby today. I did get major baby fever for the first time. So, all in all, it was a great day!

Wednesday was back to work. It was a regular day - nothing major happened. We came home and I took Dan to Prep. I was able to workout again tonight though. My goal is to lose 20 pounds - we'll see if I stick to it this time. I think I really need to get my eating habits down really.

I still love Tuesdays

As posted, it snowed. I loved the fact that we had nowhere to go. I got my sweats on and we took our time. Of course, Dan still went out and played in the rain for a bit.

We had a little trouble with homework. I am completely perplexed at some of the homework that is given out. I was stumped on a math paper Dan had to do. He did forget his math textbook which didn't help matters. I even called my mom and she was stumped. I miss the way things were taught when we were young.

For dinner, I was very laid back. I made Dan grill cheese and I was going to make tacos but Ryan came strolling in at 11 so I decided to have wine and chips. I don't know if Ryan ate. I was able to catch up on Samantha Who and House. Great episodes!!

Now, the Phillies continue game 5 tonight. I'm so excited and hope they win!

Very odd weather day

Today, a day in October, it snowed. I'm sure it has before but I don't remember any times it has snowed in October. It felt weird. Like a January day or something. Well, schools didn't freak out and close or anything so that is good. The Phillies had to suspend their game last night due to rain and was scheduled for tonight but that now has been pushed back. Another day of waiting for a championship.

Dan had soccer last night so I decided to use the crockpot. I made a very good meal: chicken breasts, taco seasoning, cream of mushroom and salsa. I thought it would have a bit of kick to it, but it really didn't. It was still good though. I guess the cream of mushroom took it away.

Catching up

The idea of this was to write everyday. I thought I could do it...I was wrong. So now I must catch up.

I mentioned last week Dan has three half days - thank goodness they are over. However, I loved being at home the second half of the day. Maybe in another lifetime that will happen where I can work part-time.

Dan's sports have been going well. They won hockey and two soccer games over the weekend. He had another sax lesson Friday and learned a note. He's actually pretty good and has been keeping up with it.

The Phillies are just ONE game away from winning the World Series...it's been forever!!

Ryan had a bit of a slow weekend due to a game being last Tuesday night and the next one isn't until this Sat. at Navy. I'm being recruited to go. Who knows. Last Tuesday, Temple won their third game of the season. Due to stats, they are actually in 2nd for their division - pretty incredible. It was also the night of the Komen game. I was decked out in pink. I had nothing pink on Dan though. It was a fun night but we had to leave at the start of the 3rd quarter.

Since Ryan had sort of a down weekend and the Flyers, Eagles and Phillies were playing this weekend, I decided to bake his cheesecake for his b'day. This was the first one attempted and I have to say...it was good! I hope to make more.

I met with a friend last Wednesday night and it was so incredibly great to catch up with her - it's been awhile. My other friend who was in Germany for military has now officially moved back home. I am so happy she's here and only about 5 minutes from my house. I went over there on Sunday to see the new rugs and paint and my son walks around back and was so elated that 1. she has a hot tub and 2. can see and walk to a mall that is practically in her back yard. That'll be great on black friday!!

Speaking of Black Friday - have you started shopping? It seriously just occurred to me how close Christmas is. Maybe I'm wrapped up more in Temple this year or what. Luckily, I got a lot done so far but it's like 2 months away! I'm an early bird so I like things done.

3 days!!!

Dan's school has the brilliant idea to have three half days for conferences. Not just half days but they get out at 11:20. So, to find arrangments and to leave work is just a nightmare. If they maybe had 1 day off, that is doable but why 3?? Don't most parents work anyway and can only meet in the morning or late afternoon? Very frustrating.

Day 1, left work to pick up Dan and brought him into work till about 3. I guess it's easier that he's older becuase I just put him on a computer and he played for a few hours. We left work and went home and I was able to switch his winter clothes. He had practice that night so I dropped him off and I went to my mom's to exercise Mya. I also did my exercises. I am in the process of trying to lose weight. I'd like to do this and still eat what I want. My diet isn't the best but I do eat a salad every day - that's good enough.

So, I bought this 30 Day Shred video. It has three levels (I guess you do each level for 10 days each). I did level 1 for 8 days. It was a great workout. I just switched to level 2 - OMG!!! The exercises touched on muscles I didn't know existed. It was a great workout though and I'm excited to keep it up. I am happy to say that I've lost about 6 pounds since June and i hope to lose 15 more.

Something did happen to me yesterday though....I LOST my calendar. This is the bible to me. I keep everything in there. I am so lost without it! I remember having it Sat. but after that, it's all a blur. I guess I have to go out and get another one. I am so sad by this. :(

The first cold weekend

If you know me, I HATE the cold. I hate being cold, I hate being out in the cold. I am the type of person that can never get warm. 60 is too cold for me. I think I'm destined to live in FL in my latter years of life - who knows! This was the first weekend I had to bundle up for Dan's soccer games. He had three of them. One was Sat. morning at 9. Not enough time to warm up. Next one was at 11, not too bad but if the wind wasn't there, it would've been better. The game on Sat. wasn't too awful but still cold. Mya came with us for the game on Sunday. It definitely tired her out. On that note, I ended up breaking down and I put the heat on Sunday night. It helped get the chill out of the air.

Sunday was Ryan's 31st birthday. Holy Cow! Just getting older. Well, he's older than me so it's good. He had to work this weekend - surprise - but he was able to come home at 9 on Sat. so we can go out to eat. I do not want to write this restaurant's name because we love going there but it was awful - service and food. I called the next day to let them know and they were thankful that I said something and is sending a gift card! Good because I really love going there and would hate to not go on one bad experience. Sunday night, I was able to make Ryan a cake and we sang happy birthday :) Next weekend, I'll attempt to make a strawberry cheesecake. It's his bye week next week and I hope he'll be around a little more so we can do something.

Another fantastic thing that happened this weekend is the fact that the Komen 3-day walk was this weekend. Ryan and temple football players were there on Sat. and Sun. helping out with whatever needed to be done. Such a rewarding experience. I wish I was there with him. (I also did think of the brave soles out in the cold sleeping at night - God Bless Em!).

It is now Monday and I just realized I lost my bible - my calendar. I write everything in there and I'm having trouble breathing a bit and am seriously unfocused. I must find it. I know I had it Friday but Sat. and Sun. are questionable. I think I'll cry if I don't find it. So pray.

2008 Election

I'm not sure if I just haven't been paying this much attention to prior year's elections or if this is the most hyped one. I'll go with the latter, however, it has caught my attention more. Probably because we had Hillary Clinton running in the primaries; Obama won and is running for president and Sara Palin running as VP. Yes, this one will go down in history for sure.

So, who are you voting for? Why are you voting for this person? All I want to say is make sure you go to factcheck.org. There, you can research any questions you have about either party. All this hatred and thinking Obama is associated with terrorists is scaring me and making me realize that people don't check their facts. Yes, I am an Obama supporter but I will not push for that. Just GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT to make your decision. Don't listen to what others say, do your research. All the emails that fly around...they are easy to decode...go to snopes.com.

This is why I am not voting for McCain:

1. His tactics are very similar to Bush's and I do not like how Bush has run this country in the past 8 years.

2. McCain has a very short-temper and I saw that come out during Debate #3...big no-no for me. How can you not control your temper? And you want to run a country and talk to other leaders of this world. Um...no thanks.

3. Palin - all I can say is that if McCain is president...I will pray every single day for your health so Palin will never take over. I believe she has no concept of the important issues and is not qualified to run this country as a VP or P.

4. I believe McCain's tax plans help the rich more than the middle class and poor.

5. What really put me over the edge was recently, at rally's, McCain and Palin have allowed people to shout "terrorist", "off with his head", "let's kill him" about Obama and they did nothing! I am apalled that they do not have the human compassion to stop their rally and correct that person. I do not want our country to be turned into that.

Why I am voting for Obama:

1. I believe he conducted himself well through this campaign (I think he is doing much better now than he did during the Primaries - who I then voted for Hillary).

2. I agree with more of his tactics in cleaning up this country.

3. I like Biden and I think he has a good head about things.

4. I do not believe Obama is associated with terrorists.

"Ouch"

Monday, October 13th
I was excited to remember that soccer practice was cancelled for tonight so all we had to do was go to Mya's last class - she graduates. She did really well and I think we'll sign her up for another class in January. So, it was a good non-rushed night.

FANTASTIC WIN FOR THE PHILLS!!!! One more game away!!

Tuesday, October 14th
This is where the Ouch comes into play. I had a doc's appointment for my in-grown toe nail. Yeah, gross. I never had one before so I had no clue what it was and it led me to the doc's office instead of me being able to get it out myself. It hurt a lot.

I arrive at the office wondering how they are going to do this (and trying to piece together what others have been telling me on how they remove it). I was a tad nervous. I am not one for pain and have a very low low tolerance. How I got a kid out of me...I don't know. So, I get called back into the office and she explains the very minor procedure. Which to me, is still frightening. I tell her I have low tolerance, I apologized and that I wasn't a very good patient. She laughed. lol. Well, she stuck a needle in my toe in three different spots to numb it. The medicine she injected burned and it felt like the needle was wrapping around my toe! It hurt. Ok, needle is done with - thankfully! Toe is all numb and she does her thing and we're all better. I think the best part out of this is that I can still wear flip-flops for the next few days (even during work) and its still warm outside. Let's hope I don't get another one of these again.

Sports Weekend

So, not only did Dan have a hockey game and four soccer games....Temple football, Flyers, Eagles and Phillies played this weekend. Oh my - sweet heaven for sports fans!

Unfortunately, Temple, the Phillies (game 3) and the Flyers loss. I blame the Flyers losing with Pallin being there to drop the home opener puck. And for the record, I completely disagree with mixing politics and sports. Sports is just one thing that bans a town/city together and no need to add something there to divide that up! As for Temple (24-14 loss), well, it was a non-conference game - thank goodness but they must win all of their conference games (5 left). The Phillies on game 3 - what the heck happened??? I hope they get their act together for today's game!

The Eagles finally pulled through in the second half - it was rocky at first. Basically, only Philly win this weekend - go (finally) Eagles!

Dan had a phenomenal weekend! He was awesome in hockey and awesome in net for all his games. Some pics:

It was a very long weekend and here I am, Monday, at work, wondering where the weekend went. I did unfortunately miss a friend's b'day dinner and I wish I was there! Happy Birthday!!

A day off

After the fiasco with Mya chewing another library book of Dan's (partly Dan's fault and partly the dog's fault), I went online and bought the book. I am too embarrassed to give money again for another chewed book. Thank goodness it wasn't too expensive. Pocket change adds up! I hope it'll be here before next Wednesday.

Dan was off from school today for Yom Kippur. Cool. I am currently switching days with two other moms for when the kids have days off. This works out perfectly. I don't have to take so many vacation days for all the times Dan is off. So, one of the other moms had them yesterday and I take off election day. I thought about that for a second. I'll have four kids going with me to the polls. Three are in 4th and one is in 7th. This is pretty cool and to show these kids how important it is to vote - especially this election! Just pray for a nice, beautiful day so I can kick them all outside to play :)

They had fun though. They went to the park, ran the trail and played in the water. It was gorgeous out too! Later that night, I took Dan to soccer and I went to my mom's house to "exhaust Mya". Still wondering if that is possible. Anyway, my mom and I worked out to a new video I got - 30 Day Shred. I like this a lot. I still love my Tae Bo and Turbo Jam but this was short and I was sweating - good workout. Today, my legs are hurting so it must be a good thing.

At night, we put the Phils on and they win Game 1 of the Playoffs - SWEET!! Then we all crash into bed - even Mya who will be in lock-down in our room at night from now on. :)

"Mya!!!!"

"Mya" is a word that can be heard loudly throughout the house all night. She was doing so good with not chewing but my goodness - completely 180!!! She ate two library books, a remote control and an electrical chord - what the heck! All of this and I was just starting to really like her. lol.

In other news, Dan decided to open up to me last night. Found out he has a girlfriend - one he rarely sees or talks to. I was happy he informed me of this but really? age 9. So, my dilemma is that I have a talk with him about having a girlfriend at this age is not good and possibly scare him from talking to me again or do I go along with it and just remember its completely innocent? He's getting older every day!

Nothing Much

Day went as usual for a Tuesday. We had a night off so we were able to relax a bit and not rush to get everything done. I had time to walk the dog to my friend's house who has a black lab as well, Chelsea, and they played. I actually cleaned both bathroom too - sweet!! Now, for the rest of the house...maybe I'll do a little each night, who knows.

We had gotten some sad news. My husband had two dogs growing up - Cokie and Pepsi. Cutest things ever! Probably about 12 years old now and living with his parents. They may have to put one of them down soon as Cokie is just bleeding behind her eye and it's not good. Pepsi isn't doing well either. So sad. :(

At night, I was able to watch Debate #2 between Obama and McCain. I already know who I'm voting for but it just amazes me how much they stretch things and lie. I know, it's what they do and all but for once, can someone just please give the facts! I fell asleep towards the end. lol.

Aren't Mondays the best?

Yeah right. I am starting to get anxiety as the day goes on. Work is busy trying to catch up from my day off on Friday. I finally get through my work day and my home life then begins. It's like a rat race at times. I pick up Dan, get home, Dan starts homework and I make a great dinner.....grilled cheese. I'd rather spend the time with the homework than cooking a more "homey" meal. Besides, grill cheese isn't that bad for you...is it? I made myself a pizza wrap anyway; its more healthy for me.
So, we finish homework and we're out the door by 5:45 for soccer practice. Mya is in tow with us. I drop Dan off and go to my parents so Mya can have some exercise. I actually take her for a walk and have a catch. I also jogged a little as my knees are feeling better. I get back to my parents and my mom and I decide to do a little bit of an exercise video. It's the 30 Day Shred. Not bad but I didn't do most exercises as I want to ease back into it with my knee. My mom was hysterical though!
At 7:15, Mya and I are out the door again to pick up Dan; we then go to Mya's dog class and she was a bit more hyper tonight for some reason. We made it through though - she did good. Ryan met up with us half way through class. I actually like going to class because I can pick up random pet stuff I need that I can't get normaly. We do have one more class left. I didn't sign her up for the intermediate one yet though. I figured I'd work with her more for now and we'll do that in the spring or something - we'll see.
We all head home for a relaxing evening - sort of. It's about 9:20ish; Dan still has to finish homework, eat a snack, take a shower and head to bed. Ryan eats dinner and we make lunches for the next day. So, I sit down to watch some tv with some wine at around 10:30. I unfortunately am not that tired and I don't fall asleep till 11:30. Ugh...dragging tomorrow!
Fortuantely for me, no practice next Monday so no running around anymore (for now) like I normally do.

My excursion

Thursday 10/2:

I was leaving work early today to finish packing and cleaning what I could around the house I guess. I love this perk of our job - we get to leave at 2:30 one day every other week. So nice!

So I leave work, run to walmart to pick up a few things and go home. I really didn't get too much done before it was time to pick up Dan and get ready for soccer practice that night. It is just cold at night now. I hate the cold - I can never get warm. It was a normal runaround night and I finished my packing - yeay!

Friday 10/3:

I was so excited! Today I leave for the football game in Ohio. This was the wives trip. I saw Danny off to school and I relaxed for about an hour and I was on the road to the airport. This time, we fly Atlantic Aviation - charter flight - sweet!! Finally found the lot. I was a bit nervous driving but it was super easy to get off the exit and all (I needed an easy drive this time). I parked my car and waited for others to show. The team arrives and we start loading the plan. We were offered lunch before we got on and man, can these players eat! I was thrilled to find out that we were able to sit next to our husbands this time around. Last year, we were on busses and we weren't all on the same bus. So, I was wedged between two coaches. I didn't mind as I like the other coach - not sure how he felt though. :)

The flight was a bit rocky as it was really windy that day but we made it safe and sound. We load onto busses and leave for the hotel. It was a bit of a ride but got there safely. We all go to our rooms to relax and whatever before the girls meet up for dinner. Some of us met in the hotel bar to have a drink beforehand and then we all walked across the street to this really nice swanky place. The food was amazing! I had shrimp, scallops and lobster in one dish - soooo good! The girls were great - we had great conversations, lots of laughs and we all clicked.

Towards the end, some coaches and hubbies came over to hang out at the bar with us. We had a great time. We all drank, danced, laughed! Just a fabulous time! Here is Ryan and I that night....little drunk? lol.

Saturday 10/4:

Woke up with a bit of a headache but thank goodness I took my advil the night before. I got up, took a shower, and met some other ladies for some breakfast/brunch. Learned a few got up and worked out - God bless them!

We got our things together and got on the bus to the game - 45 minutes. I was feeling a bit queasy during the ride so made a mental note to try and get ginger ale or coke for the way back to the airport - hour and half ride. We got to the game and walked around for a bit and met Miami's coaches wives. They were really sweet and guided us to Tailgate Town. So adorable! We got our food, found a spot on the lawn and chilled for a few hours. A few of us were just missing beer. :)

We find our seats and settle in. It is very interesting to experience different stadiums and different people. The fans at this stadium were probably the worse I've experienced this year so far. There were probably about a dozen of us fans just cheering our hearts out for these players and we were told we had no class. That didn't go over well with a parent. We made it through the game whooping their butts! We need more wins. However, this also meant another significant thing - us ladies were allowed to talk on the way back home on the bus and plane. So very exciting!

We get back on the bus (I had soda this time) and we head to the airport. There really isn't too much to see in Ohio but it was a nice cute town. We get to the airport and our plane is really late. We ended up leaving about an hour past our scheduled time and Ryan and I stumbled home about 1:30 a.m. Long trip, great memories, awesome time!

Sunday 10/5:

Waking up a tad later than usual to catch up with things, I finally get out of bed and straighten up my room and unpack for a bit. Got a surprise call from my friend in Germany. Can't wait till she moves back here. I finished straightening up and headed out the door to foodshop and get Dan at a friends. We get to my mom's house after that to leave for his soccer game. Before we left, he wanted to show me his "skills" on the sax. So cute and here is a picture of him playing:

We left for the game and had a good time there. We then vegged out a bit at Nonna and Poppy's house and went home to gather ourselves together for Monday.

The weekend flew by!

We are very loud at our house

During the day, I made plans for a friend to stop by and borrow a piece of clothing (who would’ve thought I’d have something for someone else! – trying to stay on top of the fashion as much as possible). Anyway, after I picked up Dan from PREP, we went home and my friend came over. We were talking and all of a sudden, my dog starts barking (still a major issue) and my son has the brilliant idea to turn the tv up really loud over us talking and the dog barking. Yeah, you could probably hear us a mile down the road!! I realized that it's usually like this and this is the first time I actually thought about it for some strange reason. I told Dan to turn it down; apologized to my friend who understood completely and we continued our conversation. It was great to catch up with her as I don’t do that very often. I hope we can keep it up as sometimes life tracks us in different directions.

So much for getting work done

I go to pick up Dan after work. He is at a friend’s house because they had off. I end up staying there talking to the moms for like an hour and a half. Then Dan goes over the other friend’s house. I run home to take Mya out, stick a load of laundry in and leave (I hate leaving the washer and dryer go when I’m out but I really needed it done). I go to my mom’s; have a catch with Mya to tire her out and head up to get Dan. I’m there chit-chatting again. I leave and drop off Dan’s friend and get home by 8:30. Ryan is home – thank goodness because I needed to: finish laundry, eat, do lunches, clean a room, and finish with Dan and his homework and pack. Needless to say, I got homework done and some laundry and Ryan did make us dinner - tacos (they were yummy!). I don’t know why I get my hopes up of getting stuff done. I just would love to scratch things off my list! I guess tonight is another night.

It started already (blaming the dog).....

My son’s first blame on the dog came last night. We get home from school and work and Dan starts on his homework and I head upstairs to get changed and whatnot. I go downstairs to start dinner and Dan heads upstairs to use the bathroom. He yells downstairs that Mya knocked the roll of toilet paper in the toilet. We leave the TP a little higher up next to the toilet so Mya doesn’t get it and chew it up. Anyway, I start laughing and asked Dan how it happened. He tells me she sort of jumped up and the TP tumbled in (oh and Mya has been with me the whole time). Now, if I haven’t just use the bathroom right before, I could’ve fell for the story but I asked him if plans on blaming things on Mya from now on and that I know she didn’t do it. He finally confessed but I had to give him an “A” for creativity. He was warned to not it again too. That was funny.

Ahhh....Sunday

I get myself up a little earlier (again; I can’t wait to sleep in a little again someday) to take the dog out, get myself together so I can get three boys up, fed and ready for 9 o’clock mass. I was up for the challenge. Everything went well; boys were good to go. As they ate, I laid down the rules: “If anyone talks, moves, whispers, etc. during church, I will take you guys home”. They seemed to understand. In church, they did really really well. I was happy that they behaved liked they should. After church in the car, I told them they did fabulous and I had one more trip and that was food shopping. If they behaved, I’d get them gum or tic tacs afterwards and I’m a very fast shopper so it won’t be long. Again, they did fabulous and we were in and out. So, threaten for church and bribe for food shopping – not bad! They even unloaded the packages for me.

They continued playing until lunch and one kid went home and I fed the last two and then he went home. Dan’s soccer game was cancelled due to rain which was fine but we had already gotten to the field – bummer. So, we go home and I make dinner for the week and lunches for the next day. I’m getting ready for the Eagles!!!

Eagles lose! Don’t know why I just posted that but what a big disappointment. Oh, I guess I should add that Temple didn’t have a great game either; they lost 7-3. I hope they win a few more games. They need to.

My Saturday Mishap...

My goal of Saturday was to get the winter clothes down from the attic. Dan and Ryan both had games and by the time the morning rolled around, I was just tired. Dan’s soccer game was great. Again, Dan played so incredible in goal. He stopped a lot of shots and they won 5 (or 4)-0. As we were leaving that game, I just had no desire to go to the Linc and watch Temple. I knew I should’ve but I was just tired of running. I think I travelled to more day and overnight trips since summer than I ever have before. I know during the week, I HAVE to travel to pick up Dan and get him places but I didn’t have to go to the Linc so I made the decision to stay home and get my winter clothes out. Of course, half way through the day, I wish I had gone. Oh well, the wives trip is next weekend – again another overnighter – so I’ll see the next game. I’ve also been more friendly with another wife recently and that’s a good thing. So, that was my upset for the day. On the bright side, I got my winter clothes out so I’m ready for Dan’s nightly practices.

So, Dan decides to invite a friend over which is fine; another friend calls asks if Dan can come over and sleep over; well, this kid ends up coming over as well. So now there are three boys in the house and they play and they end up sleeping over. It actually wasn’t that bad and they all behaved.

Good Day Friday!

I go to pick up Dan and I see the case – this is so exciting! He is just bubbling with excitement to tell me about the sax lessons. He tells me the rules. Lol. Then as we get to Nonna’s, he opens up the case and shows us all the saxophone parts and I ask him what he needs to practice first. He needs to put the reed together first with the top of the instrument and then blow to make this ahem..sound. To give you an idea of the kind of sound that comes out of this….Mya goes CRAZY when she hears it.

Another aspect of why I love Friday nights hockey!! He had his first hockey game. He volunteered for goalie and he was incredible. The game ended 5-4 so it was a fun exciting game!!!

Today is The Day!

Dan is so unbelievably excited for his first saxophone lesson today! I love that he’s expanding his horizons. I thought for sure he’d pick the flute or something. I am excited to hear all about it!! Not sure if my ears are ready yet or not.

The rain didn’t come fast enough last night..we ended up still having soccer practice. When I picked up Dan, we got home, he started dinner and I got his dinner ready. I looked at his homework, he ate, I cleaned up and we were all out the door. I dropped Dan off and went to my mom’s with the dog to give her some running time. For a lab, she doesn’t really like to play fetch too much. She loses interest after a bit and she does get tired quickly. I guess I have a more low-key dog (could of fooled us!). After playing catch, I left her at my mom’s and went to Dan’s practice for a bit. Man, it is getting cold. I really need to bring out my winter clothes. I keep trying to every night but it just hasn’t happened yet. So, I chit chat with the other dads (of course all the moms were smart and stayed inside). I ended up getting sucked into volunteering as being on a board representing the soccer team for a November tournament. Why do I always do that! There are two other parents in on this too so that’s good. I hope I’m exempt from doing the snack stand anyway. I’ll stand outside in the cold to watch my son play sports but not to work the snack stand…brrr!

So, practice ends, we go pick up Mya and head for home. Not bad, on the road home by 8. Dan gets his shower, puts his stuff away and reads his required reading. I really need to keep asking him his spelling words and keep on the multiplication. Oh, in the car today, we listen to a multiplication rap tape. Dan doesn’t hate it – thank goodness and we all rap along. This definitely helps him pick it up quicker!

Ryan makes it home, gosh, around 8:30. I feel like I lose track of time as the night goes on. He helps me with Dan and I get lunches done and dinner for Ryan and I in the nick of time for Grey!!! Great episode. I finally head to bed at 11. Not bad of a night’s sleep. Mya barked once during the night this time but I love the fact that Ryan gets up with her. That helps me a ton!

Just a thought on the economy: It is extremely scary right now!

The Start of PREP

Well, another year and the start of 4th grade religion education classes. My son was thrilled. Lol.

His teacher seemed very nice and I’m just happy this year that we don’t have to deal with any sacraments. I love them and all but just a lot of work. Dan did tell me though he might want to join the children’s choir. That’s cool.

Dan is just still so excited about his saxophone lessons. He still talks about it. Well, the day arrives tomorrow so I’ll let you know how the weekend practice goes. Hopefully he only learns 1-3 notes. Or maybe just putting the instrument together. Who knows!

Our Night Off

Dan and I look forward to these nights because they are rare and we love to not have to run anywhere. It didn’t start out too good at first though when Dan missed the bus for the second time this year. He truly is my procrastinator. As I taking him to school to drop him off, he loves telling me how it wasn’t his fault. Nothing is ever his fault too.

I pick him up after school – he says school was good and is still excited for sax lessons on Friday. I was pretty impressed of how excited he still is and I hope it sticks. He does homework, I cook dinner, we eat, I clean-up and check his homework. We then venture outside (beautiful night) to go for a walk and head over to a neighbor’s house. My neighbor lives in the next development behind us and she’s also got a black lab, Chelsea. I love going over there to let the dogs play and get energy out. Mya can be overpowering sometimes though. Chelsea just loves to lick you to death and Mya gets too hardcore bite playing. I think that scares Chelsea.

So, Dan gets on his bike, picks up some friends and we head over. I meet another one of her neighbors who is super sweet as well. I was informed that her ex was coming over to hang out with the kids. Ok, sounds good. Dan plays for awhile, I chit-chat and before we know it, it’s 7:30 and dark now. We are also going to try and plan a girls night out for dinner and drinks soon. Urgh, how I hate winter and it seems to be approaching fast. I have to get my winter clothes out soon.

Dan, Mya and I get home safe and sound. Dan reads for 15 minutes as I make lunches. Ryan ventures home around 9:30ish and we watch some TV and we go to bed. Oh and House was brand new last night. I used to love House but I wasn’t too into it last night.

I’ve also been fixated to Ebay. I’ve won quite a few things for Christmas already so I’m very excited about that. I also have been eyeing something that I so very much want but I can't get yet. Hopefully in a few months!

Pretty exciting night, huh? I love these nights though. I always have much to do but at least I can be a little more relaxed getting things done instead of rushing around.

Another Monday

I am unsuccessful in getting up early to workout as I have a pounding headache and have to lay back down for 45 minutes. I started working out again and was doing great but then I think I ran too much becuase I have knee pain so I've stopped really - my plan is start with the yoga ball.

So, Dan is on his way to school and I'm on my way to work. After work and I pick up Dan from school, we go through homework. I get a call from Ryan letting me know he's out early - music to my ears! He comes home before we have to leave for practice and Ryan opted to stay home and exercise the dog so she's tired for class tonight. I head out the door to take Dan to soccer. I like going there - it's a good gab fest with some friends.

I have some conversations with a mom whose son goes to another school. She tells me what he is learning and I just can't understand why my son's school is so far behind in things! It's very frustrating.

Anyway, my son had fun and did great at practice. We run from there to pick up Ryan and Mya and head to dog school. There is another black lab that goes there - same age and all - and I like it when they play at the end of class. Last night's lesson was having your dog sit when you stopped walking. Mya did pretty well. We also practiced having our dogs sit when we call "come" and when they get to you, they are supposed to sit. Again, something I've been practicing with Mya so she did pretty good. I'm starting to like going to these classes though. They are informative. Nothing beats the Dog Whisperer though. :)

So, What is it Like?

I guess I should go into description of exactly what my life is like.

Being a (Sports) Mom:
It's thrilling! Our son, Danial is 9. He is involved in sports on so many levels. This includes: Soccer, roller hockey, soccer, baseball and soccer. Everything else is in between: bike riding, tennis, swimming, etc. He loves to play. He's good too. This can get hectic at times but it's well worth it. Plus, I only have one child now so it makes life a little easier. As of now, we have soccer practice on Mondays, then take Mya to class; home by 9:15. Tuesday nights are our off night! Wednesday night is PREP class, Thursday nights is soccer practice, Friday night is hockey and Sat. and Sun. are soccer games (CYO and League). We'll add basketball to the mix in a few months. My bump in the road right now is always figuring out times to exercise Mya. It's tough but we manage.

Dan also is great in school. He does get all his homework done before practices. He also just scored Advanced in math in the PSSA testing he took in 3rd grade. Nice!!

In between running Dan around, I manage most times to keep the house clean, pay the bills, run the errands, food shop and whatever else needs to get done. On most months, I am a one man team. (explained below). How ironic...there is no "I" in team. That saying is embedded in our family! I should say, I get help from Ryan when he can and I also get help from my parents. So, in a way, we're still a team but with the bumps of course - who doesn't have 'em?

Being a Football Coach's Wife:
This is truly hard to describe. When I met Ryan, he was an elementary gym teacher. After doing that for a year, he proceeds to tell me he wants to get back into coaching football. He just was happiest on the field. I just thought that was so exciting. He does, however, explain to me how rough it will be with him never around and I told him that I’m pretty strong and can handle it. Little did I know! :)

So, Ryan starts at Gettysburg for a year, goes to Villanova for two years and is now currently at Temple. It’s been incredibly rough adjusting to this life. Coaches cannot take off unless it’s really really important, don’t take sick days, don’t go to events (even weddings) during football season especially. Only sometimes during the year can they attend events if time allows (we still have recruiting, spring bowl and camps to get through). He (they) work non-stop. They will sleep overnight at the office, come home at 1, 2 or 3 am and just to be back at work at 6. I know, I feel bad that it’s hard but he really enjoys it – I guess you have to.

On the flip side, I am by myself most of the time. It took a LOOONG time to get to where I am now of accepting him not really being around. It has made me incredibly strong and independent. It can only get better. I am finally enjoying the “thrill” of games. Dan’s games this season are at 9 which makes it perfect for me to then go to the Linc and watch Temple! Very exciting.

Anyway, I’ve also noticed after getting through the first year of a new place, it gets easier. He is around more now (Monday nights he comes home early which is perfect for my crazy Mondays).

We get lots of perks as well. Dan and I have travelled to a few stadiums. We experienced Army and PSU (could reach out and touch Joe Pa!!!) this year – loved it!! I get to go to Miami, OH for the wives trip. We also get some gear associated with the school.

Ryan is around when he can be and is here for us. Dan is in heaven! He loves going to practices and talking to the players all the time. The players even ask how he is which is really neat.

Ryan and I got married July of 2007. We definitely had a rough first year. It has slowly gotten better and of course, a lot has to do with not seeing each other. Something we have to get used to.

Oh my perks is that Ryan is a very easy going guy and since he’s rarely home, I basically call the shots! I don’t really ask him things as to what he prefers or anything. I could probably pick our house out without his approval. He trusts me and he tells me as long as I’m happy. I ask him things sometimes but I like that perk as well. :)

In addition

In addition to our family, we have a black lab, Mya. We got her in February and she is already 9 months! They grow fast. However, I am excited for the day she calms down - they say 3? She's a good dog but she has her moments. We love her to death though! She is already an Eagles fan for sure.

Entering the blogging world...

Well, here it is. I've finally entered the blogging world. I used to consider myself on top of things in the technology world but find myself learning these things a step behind others nowadays. I guess I better start catching up a little quicker to stay ahead of my so fast ever growing 9 year old son!

Let's see...this is about my life as a mom with a son active in 5 sports and I am also a football coach's wife. It's a very interesting life......