hockey tournament

We spent the weekend in Thief River Falls. The boys lost their first game big time. The second game was a loss in overtime. I can't convey enough to you what a heartbreaker it is to watch these little kids skate their hearts out and lose. Then again, I felt just as bad as the losing team today...more on that later.
So the boys drown their sorrows by cramming into a small hot tub, playing floor hockey, swimming, and eating.

Olivia hung out with many adults. She is very easy to please, but this weekend she made a special friend: Vicky!

Brady was a different story. He slept only one hour all day. I had my work cut out for me. He had NO interest in napping in the pack-n-play at the hotel room yesterday. Surprisingly he was in good spirits during the day. At hockey games, however, Brady is a different story. He is clingy, whiny, and unwilling to let anyone else hold him. EVER.
This was Brady last night at about 8pm. Thank goodness he slept like this all night. If you happen to see the red mark on his head, he wiped out on the wet floor near the pool. Now it's a little shiner.
The parents and kids on Ryan's team are great. There are no cliques, wild people, and there is no drama. I have heard (what I consider) horror stories about other groups, and let me tell you, these people are great. It was such a treat to get to hang out with other grown ups who shared one common interest: their kids.

Unfortunately the boys played this morning at 8am. That meant getting up just after 6am...which wasn't a problem since I wasn't sleeping real soundly anyway. Brady and Olivia weren't quite so thrilled. To her credit, Olivia was a total darling all weekend. A few times she said she was bored, but who doesn't get bored when they have no clue what's going on?
Brady was a pill today. See below.


In between tears and loads of snot, I did get to see a great game. The boys won 9 (or 10)-3. They were so pumped. I felt bad for the other team who lost three straight games. No one wants to travel all weekend to lose.
Ryan is the one with the tucked in shirt. He always does that. The nice thing is that I can usually figure out who he is quickly. Jo always says that she can spot Ryan, because he skates just like Thad did. She says it's almost eerie.

Today the boys got to play at the "Little Ralph." It is a beautiful facility.

Olivia took a picture of Brady and me. Notice he isn't smiling, but at least he isn't flipping out. And, no, I didn't bother to shower this morning.


The second the game ended, I scooped up the two kids, went through a McDonalds drive through for some uber-healthy food, and off we went. Thad called when I was about 10 miles out and said they were going to swim a bit more. As long as I didn't have to hear more crying and carry around a thrashing 26lb. boy, I could have cared less.
This is what happened the minute Olivia finished her food:

Brady didn't even make it out of town before crashing.

We are home and especially looking forward to having a day off tomorrow. I get to work out, get a cut/color, get my braces adjusted, and get caught up on laundry..
In all honesty I didn't miss Maggie one bit. I tried to convince Thad's friend to keep her. For now he can't, but his dog must have worn her out, because she has been perfect since her return.