COVID-19 Week #2

Goody package delivered to our door from good friends

The current state of the hockey rink. The ground is finally thawing enough so we can almost get the stakes out of the ground to break down the boards.

A nice hike on a gorgeous day.

Luke's latest desert...graham cracker, marshmallow, chocolate chip cookie bar

Sleepover with all the boys and stuffed animals

Bike ride on a chilly but sunny day

Luke found the glasses on our hike

We just completed week #2 of quarantine here.  On Friday, the Governor of MN announced that we will be practicing a shelter in place so we won't be leaving the house except for groceries or other important errands.

We have had some ups and downs being at home all day everyday, but thankfully we are all healthy and happy (most of the time).  We have done many hikes, walks, and runs to burn energy.  We purchased a new bike so we could all ride together, a larger pair of rollerblades so Luke can get his skating in, new shoes for Aiden, and a bigger bike (from Aiden when he got Liam's bike and Liam received a new bike).  We are making the most of outdoor activities near our house.

On Monday, things will change a bit for us as we will begin the distance learning.  We have been doing things for the last two weeks that were primarily organized by me with the help of a few ideas from the teachers.  From here on out, we have lesson plans!  Very thankful for a plan!!  Luke and Liam will be using their chrome books to access plans on a daily basis while Aiden will use his iPad and Google meetings with his teachers.  Finn will mostly rely on me, but we have lots of worksheets, things to read, and a meetings with his teacher on a daily basis.  It will be a busy month!

We hope each of you is staying healthy as well!  

COVID-19

Finn's hockey jamboree was cancelled so we had a knee hockey jamboree in the basement

Finn's team won and he scored a hat trick and won MVP

Celebrating with a trophy!!

Social Distancing....the day before the governor announced schools were closing immediately .  This was our final bang before we said goodbye to friends for awhile.

Luke and Liam on one of our hikes

Finn and his poster for the Jamboree.  He was Finn the "Finnisher"

Finn on another one of our hikes

Aiden and Finn 

I read a quote on social media that said..."What a year this week has been."  That pretty much summarizes how I feel.  Just like the rest of the world, We went from having a full calendar of spring sports, a recorder and band concerts, birthday parties, end of season hockey parties, work, school, playdates with friends, church, etc...to nothing at all.  No time schedule, no practices, no school.  It all seems a bit like a dream.  Some aspects of the mandatory down time have been nice.  We have had a chance to play games, go on hikes, runs, bike rides, and long dinners at home with everyone present.  It has been nice to have time on our hands and not be rushed to the next activity.

School and work closed on Monday and we are on Day 5 of being quarantined at the house.  We have not been playing with friends or going places other than parks for hiking or the grocery store.  We have had some rough spots when the boys have begged to have someone over to play.  We have connected to friends and family via faceTime.  We have called grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, teachers, etc.  It hasn't been an easy week, but I think we are all adjusting to a new normal.  We hope you are staying healthy and making the most of this time as well.   

More End of Season highlights

John took the boys to the State hockey tournament to see Maple Grove High school play.  There were 19,000 people in attendance!!!

Aiden and his buddy, Mark at the State Tournament

Liam's PeeWee team was awarded bowties for the most ties in the State!

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Very intense Luke

Luke

Stopping a puck

A hug from a teammate

Focused!

Last weekend, we finished Luke's hockey season in a scenario that was hard to comprehend for all of us.  Luke's PWAA season ended in an overtime loss and they narrowly missed making a run at the State Title for the PWAA level.  It was an amazing and successful season overall where they were highly competitive and spent the season ranked among the top 5 teams in the state.  After we advanced to regions, we hoped to get a spot in the state tournament but we missed our opportunity after both a triple and single overtime loss in regions.  It was a great season for Luke where he grew leaps and bounds.  The speed of the game slowed down for him by the end of the season and he was comfortable in the net during the high pressure games.   The rest of us met some amazing families and had fun season getting to know everyone.  I am pretty sure Aiden and Finn were as sad to see the season end as Luke was with all of the fun younger siblings they met.  We are already excited about the prospects for next season!

Aiden's season ended this weekend with a loss in the district tournament.  He also had a great season.  He was given the award of the "Humble Bee" at his banquet.  He was described as the player who always gets his job done and is humble about scoring and making plays.  He brings an energy to the team when he celebrates each of his teammates goals as if they were his own.  He is a team player who works hard each and every shift making plays that will benefit the team as whole.  Aiden was also the only player on his team to receive both the Hat Trick patch and the Playmaker patch.  The hat trick patch is for scoring three goals in a single game and the Playmaker patch is for three or more assists in a single game.  Aiden got both this season which is remarkable.

The Season ends for Liam, Regions for Luke, and Fargo for Aiden

Liam and his good buddy on his team this season, Luke

Liam on the ice

Liam and several buddies from his team

Finn dressed up as Pete the Cat for Book Character Day at school this week.  

Aiden has his first ever travel tournament in Fargo over the weekend.  John took him up and I stayed back with everyone else.  He received a new knee hockey stick as a gift.

Aiden and his buddies 

Finn and I went on a field trip with his class to the children's theater for a play

Aiden and his team buddies trading pins

Luke and his team won their district and they are advancing to the regional tournament

District 3 Tournament and regular season champs!

Liam's first year as a PeeWee ended rather abruptly when we lost in our district tournament.  I think our team knew it was possible that his team would not advance to the Regional tournament, but we all hoped they would pull off some type of a miracle.  Sadly, we lost and said goodbye to so many families we have grown to love this season.  It was bittersweet, but we are thankful for an awesome season where Liam really grew and has gotten a lot better over the season.

Aiden and John spent their weekend having fun in Fargo for Aiden's first ever travel hockey tournament.  Aiden had a blast and loved every minute of pin trading, knee hockey, and playing in hockey games with his team.  He had a great time and was exhausted when he got home Sunday afternoon.  His team did relatively well and finished 2-3.  They played against teams from all over and found the competition to be pretty tough.

Luke's team won their district tournament over the weekend finishing first in both league play and in the district tournament play.  They received the #1 seed and advance to Regions this weekend.  They have the opportunity to advance to the State tournament depending on how they do in Regions.  It has been a great season for Luke as well and a challenging one as he has played with many kids that are two years older than he is.  While he has more than held his own, he has worked hard to get up to speed with the fast pace of the game, the harder and more skilled shots, and the physical environment that is more typical of PeeWee hockey than Squirt hockey.

Finn continues with his hockey season and keeps up with every goal he scores each weekend.  He is loving it and always wants to make sure we are all present for his games.  He dressed up as Pete the Cat for Book Character Day at school.  This was a last minute effort on my part when he suddenly decided he was going to dress up (previously he said he wasn't interested).  We were fortunate to find some handmade Pete the Cat items that Aunt Sarah gave us a few years ago so we incorporated those and it turned out decent.  

Finishing up the Season

Finn wanted a picture in this crazy contraption at the movie theater.  We went to see a movie today on President's Day because the boys were out of school.

Finn in the drivers seat

Funny picture I forgot to post a few weeks ago.  This is Aiden's team playing in a tournament and Aiden just scored.  Check out Finn's face along the glass in the background with Luke standing next to him.  

We are in the final days and weeks of the regular hockey season for everyone.  Luke and Liam are both in their district tournaments right now and have made it past the first round.  Based on how they do in their district tournament will determine if they move on to regionals and then possibly to State.  Aiden has his final regular season game tomorrow evening and his travel tournament to Fargo this weekend.  He is really excited about his tournament.  This is ironically the same tournament that Liam was in last season and it consists of some 81 Squirt B level teams.  Aiden will have a district tournament after Fargo and then his season will be over.  Finn has a few weeks left and will finish with a jamboree which is pretty fun to watch.  All of the older boys did the same thing and they announce the teams and have lights and smoke for them to skate through.

As much as the hockey season is a lot of driving to practices and games, I know we will all miss it when it's over. We have so many close friends that we really enjoy spending time with.  We are thankful for a close knit group of families and kids that we can enjoy being around each season.  

Parent's Weekend

Drinking some hot chocolate at the hotel

St. Cloud Rink after Luke's game with Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers, Grandpa Morse, and Ms Jane

Osseo Rink with Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers after Aiden's game

Liam is #15

Finn preparing for his game

Liam had a goal during this game!

The boys with Grandpa Morse

The whole gang after a day full of hockey games

Liam and Grandpa Carrithers

Luke

Finn is preparing for his game

We had a big Parent's Weekend with John's mom and dad as well as my dad and Ms Jane.  They all came up to visit on the final hockey weekend of the regular season for Luke and Liam.  While the boys are both preparing for the district tournament and then possibly regionals and state, they have finished their regular season district games.  It is a rare weekend when we can actually make it to six hockey games at five different rinks and none of them overlap.  They were able to see each of the boys play at least one game and for Luke and Liam, they actually got to see a bit more.  We typically have to divide and conquer and send game updates to each other via text.  We had a lot of fun with all the visitors and the boys loved having some people to cheer them on from the stands.  The bonus is that we actually won all six games!  Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers, Grandpa Morse and Jane!

Friday Night Skating

We had a free Friday night last week and the boys had a great time skating with their neighbor friends.

We roasted s'mores

Aiden's team in throwback jerseys.  Aiden scored a HAT TRICK in this game!  

Finn got a gift card from his Aunt Jennifer and was so excited to buy a pop socket for his phone he uses at home and a new super soft pillow.

Finn's godparents, Kevin and Melissa, came to watch his game on Sunday and he was so excited.

Fun night of skating with some neighbors

We enjoyed a break from the tournaments this weekend.  What do the boys want to do when we have a "free" night of no practices or games and we are not in a hockey tournament?  Skate on the backyard rink, of course!  They had some neighbors over and skated from 4:00 pm until 9:00 pm with only a short break for dinner.  They slept well that night for sure.

Aiden was really excited to get a hat trick at his game on Saturday!  He scored three goals which means he will receive a hat trick patch at the end of the season.  He already has a playmaker patch for his assists so he's very excited to have both.