Miscellany Monday

1. I'm experiencing a bit of Mommy guilt today.  Things have been crazy here the last couple of weeks with our anniversary trip and the World Series.  The month has gotten away from us and we never went to the Pumpkin Patch. 

2. I am really annoyed with coffee mugs.  I cannot find a good coffee mug that doesn't leak all over me.  I love my Disney World mugs but I have used them so many times that one of the lids split in two and there is hardly any design on the side anymore.  Any good coffee mug suggestions?

3. I cannot believe the St. Louis Rams beat the New Orleans Saints yesterday. 

4. I did not put any Halloween decorations out this year.  See #1.  More Mommy guilt.

5. I am not ready for Christmas.  I am not ready for Thanksgiving.  I am really kind of in a blah mood right now.  I think it is post vacation blues.

6. I've been thinking about watermarking all of my pics that I post on here but it seems like such a pain.  Anyone know a quick and easy way to do this?

And, just because every post deserves a picture, I'm still on a proverbial high from Friday night. 

Hockey Season Has Begun

Kanin had his very first hockey tournament this morning.  Up until now, his games have always been inter-squad so it was definitely different to get up at 6:00 in the morning to travel an hour away with 3 kids still in their pajamas.

Here he is getting ready to head out on the ice.


This tournament was called a Jamboree and consisted of four 25 minute games.  The entire Jamboree had 80 teams and 500 players. 

Kanin loves to play defense.  At this stage, they are just starting to move in to specific roles so I'm not sure if he will turn into a permanent defenseman or if the coach will still switch it up.

Kanin's team celebrating their victory.

This tournament was certainly eye-opening for us.  It was awesome to see Kanin perform and compete and he said that he had a great time.

The one thing that stood out for me, though, is how some of the parents acted.  One team, in particular, really showed themselves.  Remember, this is 8 year old ADM (formerly Mites) so they are all still learning to play there aren't even penalties called during their games.  These parents yelled and screamed at their kids the entire game.  If our team scored, they actually got upset. 

Are you kidding me?!

I was so annoyed at a lot of these people.  One woman walked in all decked out with a screen-printed t-shirt of her son in his full hockey gear with the name of their team in big, huge letters. 

Hello, lady!  These are 8 year olds learning to play.  Not professional try-outs.  Give me a break. 

Besides some of that obnoxiousness (in which I actually had to move seats because I couldn't take it anymore), the Jamboree was great and we are so proud of Kanin!

The St. Louis Cardinals are the 2011 World Series Champions!

I can't believe it!  Stories like this deserve to be made into a movie.  To come back against all odds, including being down to their very last strike two separate times, and to come back and win the whole thing.  Only one word can describe it. . . UNBELIEVABLE!

Friday started off pretty rough for us topping it off with the fact that I got a call from Kanin's school telling me that he had gotten sick and that I needed to come pick him up.  I brought him home and, sure enough, he went straight to bed and slept for about 3 hours (totally not like him).

As Scott and I started to get ready to go to the game, we asked him over and over if he felt like he could make it and, of course, he said, "Yes."  I was really unsure, though, and even took grocery bags with me in case he got sick. 

I know.  I know.  Mother of the Year, right?  But, how could I tell him that he could not go to Game 7 of the World Series.  Bottom line, I couldn't.

When we got to the game, Kanin was not doing very well.  I told him that I was just going to call my mom (Mama) to come pick him up and he begged and pleaded for me not to do it because he really wanted to go to the game.

The poor baby looked like this all night. 

As we sat there all bundled up, Game 7 began.

First pitch of Game 7 by Ace Chris Carpenter.  Carpenter pitched on 3 days rest and went for 6 full innings. 

While I got to Mommy Kanin during the game, Scott got to hang out with his childhood friend, Chad.

Finally, we got to the top of the 9th with the Cardinals winning and our closer, Jason Motte, came out of the bullpen.  After laying on me the entire game, I told Kanin,

"You gotta stand up.  This IS IT.  We are getting ready to be the World Series Champions."

Here is Motte coming out of the bullpen.

When that final out was made, the stadium erupted.

I can tell you that my tears were flowing.  Not only because my team had just won the World Series but because I got to share that with my husband and son.  I am so grateful and thankful that Kanin went to the game and that for the rest of his life he will remember that he was there the night the Cardinals won the World Series in Game 7.

I wouldn't trade this night for anything in the world. 

I love making memories with my family.

Are You Superstitious?

I am not ashamed to admit that I am superstitious.  I think this started back in high school when I was playing sports.  My superstitions have grown over the years as I've continued to be an avid sports fan and now also a gambler.  I have superstitions coming out the wazoo:  Things like wearing the same clothes to the next game after a big win, sitting in the same seat at the games, driving to the games the same route, not playing with certain dealers at the blackjack table, not looking at the cards when they are dealt on video poker, and doing a little dance after a come out 7 or 11/or a mark is hit in craps.  Seriously, I need help.

Last night was Game 6 of the World Series and I had a bad feeling all day long.  I just never could get that positive vibe going. 

We got to the game and I did kind of get wrapped up in the excitement of it being the World Series but it still just didn't seem right to me. 

If you watched the game through the 7th inning you know that it was a comedy of errors, literally errors.  Ridiculous stupid errors that would have put us ahead but instead cost us runs.

I had already told myself that if it started looking "bad" (the Cardinals were going to lose) that I was not going to sit around and watch a team celebrate on our home field.  I would go up to the back by the bathrooms and just wait for Scott to come back but there was no way that I could sit and watch us lose. 

Well, the top of the 8th inning came and it wasn't looking good so I headed up to the top.  Before I knew it, there was Scott saying he was ready to go.  I asked him if he was sure because I was willing to hang around but he said no because he had to go dj still and it was already 10:30pm.  So, we left.

Literally, 20 feet out of the stadium and Craig hits his solo homerun to make it 7-5. 

We go to my parents house to pick up the kids and it is the bottom of the 9th, we are losing, 2 outs.  I can't watch it so I hop in the car and head home and listen to it on the radio. 

The Cardinals tied it up!! 

"Are you freakin' kidding me!" was all I could yell over and over and over.

I get home and get the kids up to bed and then, once again, we are down to our last strike and we do it again.  I can't believe that I didn't wake the kids because I was jumping up and down and screaming like an idiot, my phone was ringing off the hook, and texts were coming in like crazy.

All of the sports people are saying that it will probably go down as the greatest game in World Series history if not in the history of baseball and I left it. 

Am I mad or upset or disappointed that I left?

ABSOLUTELY NOT!

I'm happy that I left.  I didn't have very good mojo and as soon as we left then our bats started coming back to life.  If I had to do it again then I would leave again.

In fact, if the game is "not looking good" tonight, I will probably leave again.  It worked once so it can work again.

Today, however, I have a good feeling.  A really good feeling.

BELIEVE

11 in 11

St. Louis Cardinals

By the way, I will be wearing the EXACT same clothes that I wore last night.

If you haven't seen the highlights from last night's game, you have to check it out HERE and HERE.

Nothing short of amazing.

Excellent Time

We had a fantastic time at the Excellence Riviera Cancun.  The ERC is an all-inclusive, adults-only resort located right in between Cancun and Puerto Morelos. 

We were welcomed with a cool towel and a glass of champagne, not a bad way to start off a vacation.

The entry into the resort.

As soon as I had that champagne in hand, I made a dash for the ocean.  I literally ran in to it in my dress and started dancing.  This sweet lady from England noticed us and came over to take our picture.

When we checked into our room, I was shocked at the size of it.  The Excellence goes out of their way to make you feel special when walking into your room.  We stayed in a Junior Suite Pool View (all of the rooms are Junior Suites)

I can't tell you how impressed we were with the level of service at this resort.  Literally, anything that we asked for they would go out of their way to make happen.  Since our first day was the first day of the World Series, we really wanted to watch the game but didn't want to be stuck in our rooms.  No problem, they just pulled a TV out into the open air theater.  It was amazing!  Watching the game with a mariachi band playing, looking at the ocean, and having a waiter bring us drinks is a memory that I will never forget.

Rally caps

We took one day and walked in to Puerto Morelos, about a 35 minute walk down the beach.  We did our souvenir shopping, ate some guacamole and pico de gallo at a really cute little taco shop, and played in a park.  It was nice to get away from the resort for a bit.

On the way back from Puerto Morelos, we saw this boat and I just fell in love with it.

Here are some other things we saw on our walk:

On our actual anniversary day Scott and I went to have our "romantic dinner" at the French restaurant on property, Chez Isabelle.

Scott and I had such a good time hanging out with Doug and Susie.  It was great to have another couple to hang out with. 

I had such a great time just being with Scott.  We were so relaxed and actually got over 8 hours of sleep every night (ha!).  I'll leave you with more pictures of the property and just random photos. 

If you'd like to read the review that I wrote on Trip Advisor, click HERE.  (there is a video link at the bottom of the review so you can see our room)