Holy Name Learn to Skate

Done. Finished. Over. After countless Sunday's in the rink, Tyler had his awards ceremony this morning for Holy Name Learn to Skate. I can not believe that my four year old hung in there for over six months of hour long practices. He is amazing.

When we started in September, Tyler was using a walker to get around on the ice. After a few weeks, he found his legs and some confidence, and lost the walker. I can only hope that his confidence continues to flourish as easily as it did during this experience!

Frank joined Tyler on the ice for their last practice together. I am sure there will be many more to come! The director introduced each group and had them demonstrate some of the skills they had been working on for the past few months. He also reminded the parents that it takes dedication to come week after week for six months. Until he said that, I did not realize we had been coming for many, many months!

A shot of Tyler completing his favorite drill-- skating with a tennis ball! I would have to think that is something I am not coordinated enough to do!

Lining up for one last race...

After practice, we all met in a warmer room at the rink. Each child (near 75) was called up by name and given a medal, a certificate, and a hockey patch. Tyler heard his name and stepped right up to collect his things. It's times like these that I realize he is not such a young guy any more!

I couldn't resist the chance to take a shot of him with his awards. We are both so proud of him and are looking forward to many more accomplishments!

Hangin' in the Alley!

For the first time in a long time, we had a free day on the weekend with nothing planned. For about 5 minutes I had the luxury of pondering what we could get done around the house, how it would feel to relax, etc, when Tyler asked "Can we go bowling?" How do I say no his cute face? I don't! We headed out Saturday afternoon to the local bowling alley where we were treated to lunar bowling in the middle of the day!
Tyler did great! So excited to get up there are roll that ball down. He hung right in the game with both Frank and I.

Waiting oh so patiently for the ball to come back so he can take another turn!

Finally the ball arrives!

Finding the right holes....

Watching and waiting for the pin count!

A photo of the overall champ! I guess all that Wii practice really does pay off!

Frank, all smiles, relaxed, despite not spending a Saturday in a rink! Welcome back, daddy!

Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!

On my way home tonight the "boys" requested pizza. Frank called it in and I picked it up. As I walked in the house I found my two favorite couch potatoes sitting together on the couch watching.... hockey! (BIG surprise!) Frank decided that it was a special night and they could take their food to the couch and watch the action....

Like father, like son!

Such a ham!

Heartbreak

Fermi played in the Connecticut Division I Ice Hockey Final Four last night against number 1 ranked Hamden High School. After a long and hard fought game, Hamden proved victorious, 4-2, over the Falcons.

The past few weeks have brought a lot of excitement and anxiety to our house. Fermi ended their regular season with a tie and a loss and got the 2 seed in their conference tournament. The boys bounced back, played hard, and won two straight games to be crowned the CCC Champs for the '08-'09 year. After that, it was on to the state tournament. As the fifth seed in the tournament they were lucky to have a familiar first round opponent, but the second round proved to be more difficult. The team handled them well, and a Final Four trip was earned.

As 24 hours have passed since the heartbreaking loss, we have been able to reminisce about the season. At the game last night, parents were asking how Frank was doing. I really couldn't answer them. Frank and I have been unable to speak over the last week or so, we are too excited and in awe of this huge opportunity. We had been looking at each other and grinning! Hard work, long hours, persistence, and great teamwork payed off for a bunch of extremely talented kids from a Northern Connecticut public school.

I can say that I do not believe there is another coach who works as hard and cares as much as Frank does. Some may say that he is a high school hockey coach, it's a part-time job, doesn't pay all the bills, blah, blah, blah. But when you have a job you love and a team you are part of, it makes it that much easier to show up every day and put your all in it. Which is why getting this close to a state championship and not making it all the way there stinks even more.

While I would like to say it is so much easier to live without all the anxiety, excitement, and superstition, it would be a lie. All of us here would welcome a few more days of that feeling. All I can say to Frank is be proud of what you have done, there are no regrets, nothing to be ashamed of, and Ty and I are both so proud of you. We had a great time watching a wonderful team this year and look forward to many more seasons. We will see you again at the "Whale's Tail"!

State Playoffs, Round Two!

The Fermi Falcon's had their second round state play-off game today..... And are off to Yale for the Final Four in Division 1 hockey Wednesday! They took on Notre Dame West Haven for the right to go play at the Yale "Whale" rink-- a.k.a. Ingalls Arena and played them extremely well, scoring 6 goals against an excellent team and holding them to 4! For a team that has worked as hard as they have, this is a tremendous payback to all the player, parents, fans, and lest we not forget, the coaches! Way to go guys!

As the coaches wife, I know what I am feeling inside during the days before the game, the ride to the game, and throughout the game. I have no idea what the parents in the stands are feeling, but it must be very similar. I am an excited mess and will leave it at that for now!

The Fermi bench, watching the game with much anticipation....

Celebrating after a fantastic goal, cementing their lead....

The Three Troublemakers watching the game from Tyler's usual post, at the railing, down in front.... (Thanks to Papa, Aunt Laurette, and Tyler's favorite cousins for coming to the game!)

FINALLY, game OVER, final score, 6 - 4!

Pandemonioum in the student section-- celebrating with their classmates still on the ice....

Skylar and Papa watching the Zamboni and waiting for our favorite head coach to leave the locker room....

Tyler and his buddy, Chris, waiting for their favorite dads in the locker room (Chris is the assisstant coach, Steve's, son and one of Tyler's favorite people!).

Happy Birthday, Grammy!

Happy birthday, Grandma! Have a wonderful day, you deserve it! We love you!

We are the Champions!

Tonight Frank's team, the Fermi Falcons, played in their conference championship game. I don't know who was more nervous, Frank or myself! The team worked hard all year to get to this point and all their hard work showed on the ice! The team they played, Glastonbury, they had played two other times this season. The first game they lost and last weekend, they played them to a 3-3 OT tie! Tyler and I traveled into Hartford to watch the game a meet Papa and Aunt Laurette who drove up from New York to take in the game and we all had a wonderful time!

Tyler anxiously awaiting the start of the game and making sure the guys were warming up and getting into game mode... He found his spot-- against the rail in the first row-- and stayed there for the whole game!

The FINAL score! It was a well played game and Fermi played their hearts out!

Starting the celebration....

The on ice aftermath-- gloves, helmets, and sticks everywhere! Tyler said "they made a big mess!"

Accepting their plaque.

Holding it up high!

The celebration picture! It was wonderful to see everyone so happy and to be there to experience it! Now it's off to the state playoffs Wednesday!

Even the news was there. Everyone wanted a piece of the coach after the game. We waited for Frank and his team to come out and as Tyler commented after it was all over, "Daddy is really happy tonight"!

Congratulations, Frank and the Fermi Falcons!

And if you didn't get enough, click here for the exclusive interview!

ROARRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

March is described as the month that comes in like a lion and out like a lamb and that it did! We awoke this morning to 12 more inches of snow and a winter wonderland! The good news is that this snow fell on grass and not on top of other snow! That's right, for 24 hours we saw the lawn! Tyler and Frank had a great day playing in the yard and spending time together in the warm house. I made it to work on time thanks to a 2-hour delay and home in record time due to no traffic! Spring is around the corner, right?

An afternoon with the Falcons!

We spent the afternoon at the Springfield Falcon's game today. The parents of one of Tyler's friend's from school were very generous and provided us with tickets to a few games this season and this was the last set we were able to all use together. We had a great time (as usual). Tyler loves attending the games, but we spend the entire ride assuring him that Screech, the Falcon's mascot, knows not to come and bother him!
Taking in warm-ups, nose against the glass. Tyler watches every move, every stretch, and every drill the teams do!

Before the game we walked around the arena. Due to the really yucky weather outside, there were not many people there. We came upon a children's area that was set up with coloring pictures (Tyler chose a goalie), nets, and other equipment. Tyler took the time and modeled hiss best goalie stance.

However, I told him that playing goal was going to be very expensive, so he better practice his shot. The older kids who were playing a game gave him a stick, fed him the puck, and Tyler found heaven! I wanted to warn the boy standing in goal, but he was a quick learner after Ty's first shot!

My favorite hockey boys!

My baby (no matter how big!).

He's Crafty!

After all the fun I had making our Christmas cards this year, I figured that I could come up with a way for Tyler to make his Valentine's for school this year. After all, it won't be much longer until he wants the store bought ones! So after scouting out the craft stores last weekend, I ended up with two things: paint and card stock. After that, I had to figure out what we were going to decorate them. That was when I remembered potato stamping, something I used to do all the time when I worked with the kids in college. After I ran the idea by Tyler, we went to town!
I cut the potatoes into heart stamps,

and let Ty go to town!

He really did an awesome job!

And like always, did it with a smile!

After he finished with enough for school, I told him to "go ahead and get messy". My poor guy said to me "what if I get it on my clothes?"....

That was quickly forgotten when he dipped his fingers into the paint!

After they all dried, I cut them into heart shapes and had Tyler sign each one. He did an great job signing his name over and over again!

And thanks to my fellow blogger for introducing me to a new website, The Crafty Crow, I found a way to make them more festive!

The proud artist with a finished creation!

I Love Hockey!

Last summer, Grandma Genovese bought Tyler a “rod hockey” tabletop game. When it was brought home, Tyler went to town. Being a bit young, he did not quite understand that the player moved in coordination to the rod they were attached to. Well, after just a few hours of play time, all the players and both the nets were stripped from the game in order to satisfy Tyler’s urge to play “real” hockey with the game.

Fast forward a few months to the fall. Frank brought home his old dry erase board that he had been using during the games. Instead of letting it go to waste, he gave it to Tyler. After all, it has all the essential markings for playing a pretend real hockey game—the red and blue lines, the face-off circles, and the crease! Now there was an even better excuse for those rod hockey players to be moved! Tyler quickly went to town and set up his own teams and reenacted some of the best games he has seen in his short 4 years.

Often times, he will play while we are relaxing at night. I have watched him set up all the players and at times I have asked him what they are doing. He always has these 12 men in various game mode—whether it be warming up before the game, listening to the National Anthem, or celebrating after a goal, they do it all! He also makes sure that his teams are aptly named—usually the “Fermi’s” are playing another team in their league. For those of you who need a refresher, Frank coaches the Fermi Falcons high school team.

I had to share these shots with you! I watched him for quite awhile and then when I went to upload the photos, I found a lot more shots I had taken of Tyler that I never posted of him setting up his guys in preparation for the “big game”!

The Zamboni cleaning the ice before the game. Tyler has a few little "Boni's" and is more than happy to explain to anyone how it cleans the ice!

Staging a fight-- an essential part of any great game!

Celebrating after a great goal (you can faintly see the black puck in the net)!

A closer shot of all the guys celebrating on the ice after their score!

And of course, shaking hands after the game! You can see that the goals have been moved from the crease and the 'Boni is getting ready to come on the ice and do a fresh sheet for next time!

As I was sitting there watching him put all this together, it is amazing how methodical he is-- he knows exactly what should happen when, who should be where, and he is very precise in it all! In the morning, he makes sure that all the guys are set up off the ice, standing, in perfect order. After all, you can't play a game with no one around to watch!

Pond Skating

Last week, Frank took Tyler to a local pond to see how he would do and if he would be able to skate. After two hours, Frank had his answer. Tyler loved it! I, of course, was disappointed that I missed the whole night and that the camera didn't have any batteries! But the weather was still very cold this week, and they decided to go again tonight! The pond they skate at is in East Longmeadow, and in the summertime, people go to the park to feed the ducks and swans. In the winter they do a great job of testing the ice our and cleaning the snow off the pond.
As soon as Tyler got on the ice, he took off! He simply loves to skate!

An essential part of a good skate is remembering the stick! Here's Tyler working on his face-off technique!

All smiles despite the cold!