sneak peek

This is what are Mites are up against this weekend. Ethan is so small compared to the kids he is facing, but you would never know it the way he skates around them. He's not the least bit intimidated. This isn't the best picture, but you get the idea. One of the kids, Ethan didn't even come up to his shoulder.

More to come, just had to share this really quick.

kids vs parents

Tonight was the last practice of the season, and it was time for the parents to take on the kids. This is always such a fun night for everyone. Ethan spent the afternoon giving his Dad a little "smack-talk". It's funny to see how confident he is about his skating over Jason's.

Then it was GAME TIME!

(Ethan would have been in this picture if he wasn't too cool to be around us and already over on the bench with his friends)

Within seconds of being on the ice, Jason was surrounded by kids zipping around him. It really is a challenge to not run or trip over them. It seems like they are everywhere. 

Aren't they cute? 

Who would have ever thought that Jason and Ethan would be sharing a bench? Certainly not Jason. He even said tonight "I wish I would have played hockey when I was younger." It's growing on him. 

Ethan seriously thinks he is SO AWESOME (it could be because will tell him he is everyday). He comes out stretching before his shift. It makes me laugh. 

Then there was the inevitable fall. My stomach jumped into my throat, and my heart stopped, for a lot of reasons. 1) I really didn't want to spend my night at the Emergency Room 2) Jason is supposed to leave tomorrow for training 3) Jason is supposed to deploy in a few months 4) Mostly, I just didn't want to spend my night at the Emergency Room (I'm selfish like that).  

It was a BIG fall. He cracked the back of his head right on the ice, I heard it hit. But only seconds later I saw this. That HUGE smile. He was fine, and having a blast. Notice Ethan came to check on his Dad.  

The game was great, and then everyone was on the ice, and it was on. Ethan went directly for his Dad. I'm so glad they got to skate together. They both really enjoyed it. 

Jason leaves in the morning, and the boys and I are heading to Butte for the Squirt B tournament. Ethan has 2 games tomorrow. I can't wait to see if our team can hold their own. If nothing else, the hotel has a pool and a hot tub.   :)

Have a great weekend.

stuff from this week

Some pics of things from this week and some exciting news. 

Elliott is so funny lately. I love his personality (most of the time).

On Wednesday, Elliott and I ventured out while the weather was nice. I needed to go to the bead store, but (like everything in this town) it doesn't open until 10:30. While we walked around, we found the Dip-N-Dots ice cream shop. They also serve coffee, so they were open. Nothing says Mother of the Year like ice cream at 10am. :) 

This is my first attempt at a brimmed beanie for Elliott. It's made from a t-shirt, and i drew the dinosaur on it with fabric marker. It's not too bad. 

And more crafting this week, another dress for Kyah. This one is strips of t-shirts all put together.  

And a necklace I made. Love the colors. I'm so ready for spring. 

The next two necklaces were custom orders. It's nice to be back into my beads.  

Jason got home today from California. Unfortunately, we only get one week with him before he leaves for 2 more weeks of training.

I am excited for the weekend coming up. Ethan was asked to play on our Mite A team in a Squirt B tournament in Butte. For those who don't know, a Mite is a 7/8 yr old, and a Squirt is a 9/10 yr old. There is a huge difference in ability between the two age groups, but we are taking our best (A team). I'm hoping it's at least competitive even if they don't win a single game. Ethan was chosen by the coaches as a great skater, and they believe in his ability to compete at this tournament. He is only a first year Mite (even though this is his fourth season of playing), his teammates are 2nd year Mites and will be Squirts next season. I am so proud of him and how hard he works. All of this, and he brings home awesome grades too. Let's hope he never loses these traits.

Well, I'm off to spend some time with my family. Have a great weeekend.

can't wait

Last month, I got the new header picture ready in advance and waited until February to put it up and change the background. Well 14 days wasn't long enough, but I can't stand when things are outdated, so here is our St Patrick's Day header and new background. I impress myself. :)

I also (finally) got around to making and adding the slide show from 2010. It was so much fun going back through the year. Both kids have changed and grown up so much.

Last year at this time we had this..........look at those cheeks.

And this........just starting to lose his teeth and look goofy. 

Now we have a big first grader who is learning to type (the geek in me was so proud to see him put his fingers on the home row). 

And a 2 year old who tests my patients and makes me smile.  

A year goes by SO fast.

Anyway, enjoy the new look! I can't stop looking at it myself.

valentine's day

Tomorrow is Valentine's, but I'm pretty sure it will be just another day around here. Sunday's are "Special Breakfast" days at our house, so Valentine's was the theme. I am a HUGE blogosphere fan. I can find fun ways to do just about anything, and when I saw this recipe for Red Velvet
Pancakes, I knew that today would be the perfect day for them.

Here it is. Yummmm. While it doesn't exactly fit in with the "eat healthier" thing I'm going for, it's not totally off. I am supposed to eat breakfast.  :)  The kids LOVED it, and the pancakes are actually really good. 

And while we are on the topic of Valentine's, here are the cards I mailed out. Again, I get so many ideas from reading other people's blogs. If you haven't received yours yet, surprise, this is what is coming. You can find the idea for the cards here.  

So much better than character cards that come in the packages.  

And before Jason left he and the boys gave me my Valentine's Day card.  

Yes, they think they are funny.  :) 

Hope you all have a fabulous Valentine's Day!

build a book

Most of our days are pretty much the same. Get up, take Ethan to school, come home, nap time, pick Ethan up, homework, dinner, bed. That's why there isn't much to blog about. Sorry. Even this is short and sweet.

Today, Ethan's school, invited families to come in and build a book with their kid. Elliott was so excited when I told him we were going to the school, I had to hear about it the whole time we were running errands. "Book, mom, book." And when we parked at the school, "Out mom, book." Good thing I have him around so I know what I'm supposed to be doing. :)

Of course I forgot the camera, so these are crappy cell phone pictures, but at least I have pictures.

All the students got a blank book. They had to make their own story with a beginning, middle and end, complete with illustrations. Ethan's book is titled The Sports Day. Elliott didn't get a book, but Ethan's teacher brought him some paper to draw on.

His favorite part was, by far, the thousands of stickers to look at and choose from. He would get a couple, take them back to his seat, put them on the paper, and head back for more.  

Ethan is such a great big brother. He took time away from his own project to help Elliott with his stickers.  

Ethan's book turned out great, and we got some new "Elliott Art" for our refrigerator. It made for a very fun morning.

helena tournament

I forgot the camera on Friday night, oooops.

Ethan and I were at the rink at 6:20am, Saturday. Eeeeek. He told me on the way there. "It's gunna be a really dark day. Huh mom?" Silly kid.

Ready to ROCK!  

His first game was vs the Billings Jr Bulls Teal team. Yep, he had to play against his alma mater. He didn't hold back though. (Note: in all these pictures he is white jersey #18, green socks, yellow laces, white face mask) 

This is one of my favorite pictures from this weekend. Ethan is the one on he left, and his friend, Tyler, on his new team is sitting. It made me laugh. 

Lined up against his good friend, Tyler, from Billings.  

He gave Paulie (white helmet), from Billings, a run for his money. They were after each other the whole game. 

Ethan vs Paulie again. 

All in fun. Ethan and Tyler, from Billings. Good game.

Jason didn't have to leave until 9am on Saturday so he got to watch the game vs Billings. Then we had some hot chocolate, and said good-bye. He is gone for 2 weeks. Ethan loves when his Daddy watches him play. 

We spent all morning at the rink, waiting for Ethan's second game. This is also one of my favorites from the weekend. Mr. Smartypants decided he would make the call. "NO GOAL!"  Pretty much the only picture worth sharing from that game. After nap time, the kids and I went to pizza with the Billings families, and Ethan went to their hotel and swam for a couple hours. They will always be our hockey family.

I forgot the camera again this morning, so after the first game I ran home and got it. Ethan stayed to hang out with his friends, and when I came back I found this. A game of floor hockey going on in the corner. Even after 4 games in 2 days, they can't get enough. It was fun to see Ethan hanging out with kids from both his new team and the Billings team.  

Man I love my boys!  

Elliott loved wearing his big brother's hockey hat all day today. All things considered, he was so good for me all weekend. 

Here are a couple action shots from this morning.  

I absolutely love watching Ethan skate. His agility, speed and puck handling is incredible.  

Elliott was cracking me up. He wanted me to take his picture in my sunglasses. This was my favorite.  

More awesome skating by Ethan. 

And done. Great job this weekend Helena Bighorns!