Lucas's team tied 2-2 today, which is enough to put them through to the semifinals, which should happen on Wednesday of this week. The whole team played well, and they almost won, giving up the tying goal with less than a minute left, after the other team pulled their goalie. Lucas had what I would say is one of his best performances on defense since he started playing. I can't think of a single negative, and I even had one of the other fathers come up to me and ask me to tell Lucas that he was very impressed with his play. Woohoo!
They have one more game in the round robin tomorrow, but due to that team having lost 3 times already, the game is meaningless, other than more ice time before the semifinal game. I'll keep you updated!
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Wednesday, March 27, 2019
March Break in Houston, Part 2
Quick hockey news before I get to the pictures: Lucas's team won their playoff game on Saturday so they are now 1-1 in the round robin with 2 more games this weekend. There are 7 teams in House B so they split the teams into two divisions, one with 4 teams and one with 3. The top 2 from each division after the round robin move on to the semifinals. The Skulltroopers lucked out and got in the 3 team division so if they get one more win, they are definitely moving on. Even a tie will probably be enough. Actually, the team they beat also lost twice to the other team so even if the Skulltroopers lose both games, they could feasibly move on, based on goal differential. Whatever the case, I will let you know what happens this weekend. (Incidentally, the head coach quit the team last week based on the feedback he received from the coaches survey. What a guy.)
Back to Houston!
The next day (Tuesday, I believe), the three of us went to the Houston Zoo. It started out as a bit of a headache since the parking lot was full, but they had overflow parking and shuttles that were surprisingly efficient. We picked a perfect day for the zoo, at least from an animal perspective. It was a bit overcast and although it was warm, it wasn't hot. As a result, just about all the animals were out and active. I don't know how many times I've gone to a zoo and looked at barren cages so this was a nice change of pace. Although there were a lot of people there, the zoo is spread out so crowding wasn't much of an issue.
Below, Marilu poses in front of one of the ape enclosures.
I know you've been waiting to see the world's largest rodent (the capybara) so consider your waiting over. I liked how close we could get to the big guy.
Insert your own "horny" joke here.
What visit to an attraction is complete without posing in wacky settings?
The elephant exhibit was amazing at the Houston Zoo. They had two full enclosure, one for the males and one for the females. I want to say they have about 10 elephants there (maybe more) and most of them were out walking around. I know this was definitely Marilu's highlight.
Don't remember what this is. I just thought it was amusing.
I may be 48, but this name still makes me laugh.
Probably the closest I'll ever get to a bald eagle.
That night we went to a pub/restaurant near the house where we were staying. Just look at the number of beers on tap as well as the amazing number of taps along the bottom of this picture.
The waiter was kind enough to preserve the festivities for us.
In part 3, the Museum of Natural History (and lots of dinosaurs). See you next time!
Back to Houston!
The next day (Tuesday, I believe), the three of us went to the Houston Zoo. It started out as a bit of a headache since the parking lot was full, but they had overflow parking and shuttles that were surprisingly efficient. We picked a perfect day for the zoo, at least from an animal perspective. It was a bit overcast and although it was warm, it wasn't hot. As a result, just about all the animals were out and active. I don't know how many times I've gone to a zoo and looked at barren cages so this was a nice change of pace. Although there were a lot of people there, the zoo is spread out so crowding wasn't much of an issue.
Below, Marilu poses in front of one of the ape enclosures.
I know you've been waiting to see the world's largest rodent (the capybara) so consider your waiting over. I liked how close we could get to the big guy.
Insert your own "horny" joke here.
What visit to an attraction is complete without posing in wacky settings?
The elephant exhibit was amazing at the Houston Zoo. They had two full enclosure, one for the males and one for the females. I want to say they have about 10 elephants there (maybe more) and most of them were out walking around. I know this was definitely Marilu's highlight.
Don't remember what this is. I just thought it was amusing.
I may be 48, but this name still makes me laugh.
Probably the closest I'll ever get to a bald eagle.
That night we went to a pub/restaurant near the house where we were staying. Just look at the number of beers on tap as well as the amazing number of taps along the bottom of this picture.
The waiter was kind enough to preserve the festivities for us.
In part 3, the Museum of Natural History (and lots of dinosaurs). See you next time!
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
Houston Trip, Part 1
Hello again! We're back from Houston, and I have lots of pictures to share. Enough so that I figure I'll need 2-3 posts to show them all, hence the "Part 1."
This first picture was taken at the Toronto airport, our stopover between Houston and Ottawa. We were able to get on an earlier flight so we had plenty of time to kill in Toronto. As such, we spent it on a leisurely lunch at Wahlburgers, a hamburger placed owned by the Wahlberger brothers (of music and movie fame). It was super pricey since we were in an airport (and had a couple of beers), but the burgers were decent.
Because we got in really late on Saturday, we stayed at a hotel near the airport. We then drove to Jon and Lara's on Sunday morning. Here, Lucas and I pose in front of the Best Western complimentary breakfast buffet.
We decided to be completely lazy on Sunday, just hanging around their house. Well, other than lunch since we went to a tasty Mexican place. You can't be that near the Mexican border and not get Mexican food!
On Monday, we decided to visit the NASA Space Center. It was kind of amusing since Lara works at NASA but it was her day off so I teased her a bit about wasting a day off by going to work. This was the first time it registered that Houston school were also on Spring Break as the lines here (and everywhere else we went last week) were massive. I had to really work my patience muscles last week!
The next few pictures are of the very impressive Saturn V rocket. It was HUGE!
No, Lucas doesn't have huge hands below. That's Marilu messing with his face. One of my friends on Facebook said he looks like Ted Cruz, and I can't disagree.
Incidentally, you can see how frizzy his hair was. The warm weather really did a number on the longer hair.
Our first (and probably worst) experience with crowds was when we were in line for the tram tour. I think we ended up waiting over an hour. The kids were actually pretty good about it, which forced me not to head back to the car and go home. :) This is the whole group of us once we actually got on a tram.
Actually, now that I look at it, it's just Jon and I with the Chinese Beatles sitting next to us. Marilu and Lara can be seen over our shoulders. And that might be Doctor Who in the row behind them.
The tram tour we went on visited the facility where the astronauts train in mock-ups of actual vehicles and space modules. I know pictures can't really convey what the place was like, but just like the Saturn V, it was huge and impressive. Here are a few photos to give you an idea.
I tried to do a panorama shot, but the result was so-so.
This group shot was taken outside the Saturn V building as we waited to return to the main center. If you squint, you can see the shuttle and its jumbo jet carrier in the background.
Speaking of that shuttle, we got to go into it later. Ever want to see the cockpit of a space shuttle?
This is the inside of the jet.
On the way home, I had to take this picture for my mom. For obvious reasons.
I don't have any pictures from it, but the highlight of the day for me was a Q&A session with astronaut Jerry Ross, who is tied for the most spaceflights with a whopping 7 Space Shuttle flights! He was a very interesting guy, and I'm glad we got to see him.
So that was Monday. In the next post, we will move on to Tuesday at the zoo. See you then!
This first picture was taken at the Toronto airport, our stopover between Houston and Ottawa. We were able to get on an earlier flight so we had plenty of time to kill in Toronto. As such, we spent it on a leisurely lunch at Wahlburgers, a hamburger placed owned by the Wahlberger brothers (of music and movie fame). It was super pricey since we were in an airport (and had a couple of beers), but the burgers were decent.
Because we got in really late on Saturday, we stayed at a hotel near the airport. We then drove to Jon and Lara's on Sunday morning. Here, Lucas and I pose in front of the Best Western complimentary breakfast buffet.
We decided to be completely lazy on Sunday, just hanging around their house. Well, other than lunch since we went to a tasty Mexican place. You can't be that near the Mexican border and not get Mexican food!
On Monday, we decided to visit the NASA Space Center. It was kind of amusing since Lara works at NASA but it was her day off so I teased her a bit about wasting a day off by going to work. This was the first time it registered that Houston school were also on Spring Break as the lines here (and everywhere else we went last week) were massive. I had to really work my patience muscles last week!
The next few pictures are of the very impressive Saturn V rocket. It was HUGE!
No, Lucas doesn't have huge hands below. That's Marilu messing with his face. One of my friends on Facebook said he looks like Ted Cruz, and I can't disagree.
Incidentally, you can see how frizzy his hair was. The warm weather really did a number on the longer hair.
Our first (and probably worst) experience with crowds was when we were in line for the tram tour. I think we ended up waiting over an hour. The kids were actually pretty good about it, which forced me not to head back to the car and go home. :) This is the whole group of us once we actually got on a tram.
Actually, now that I look at it, it's just Jon and I with the Chinese Beatles sitting next to us. Marilu and Lara can be seen over our shoulders. And that might be Doctor Who in the row behind them.
The tram tour we went on visited the facility where the astronauts train in mock-ups of actual vehicles and space modules. I know pictures can't really convey what the place was like, but just like the Saturn V, it was huge and impressive. Here are a few photos to give you an idea.
I tried to do a panorama shot, but the result was so-so.
This group shot was taken outside the Saturn V building as we waited to return to the main center. If you squint, you can see the shuttle and its jumbo jet carrier in the background.
Speaking of that shuttle, we got to go into it later. Ever want to see the cockpit of a space shuttle?
This is the inside of the jet.
On the way home, I had to take this picture for my mom. For obvious reasons.
I don't have any pictures from it, but the highlight of the day for me was a Q&A session with astronaut Jerry Ross, who is tied for the most spaceflights with a whopping 7 Space Shuttle flights! He was a very interesting guy, and I'm glad we got to see him.
So that was Monday. In the next post, we will move on to Tuesday at the zoo. See you then!
Saturday, March 9, 2019
Vacation!
It's March break, and we're heading down to Houston for the week! The bad news is that means no updates this week, but the good news is that we should finally have some new pictures since pictures and vacation go hand in hand.
We're leaving this afternoon, getting in to Houston late night and then we'll be headed back to Ottawa next Saturday. I should have a review of the trip up on Sunday.
In the meantime, here are some relatively recent photos. Lucas poses Beatrix with his computer gaming gear. I think it's safe to say there are other places she would rather be.
Speaking of Beatrix, one of her new things this winter was perching on the deck railing. I swear, that dog has some cat DNA baked in there.
I had to go back to January 6 to find the latest picture with all of us in it. Hopefully, this weekend will alleviate that drought.
After posting this I realized the last picture was in a blog entry from January. Oh well. Whatcha gonna do?
Monday, March 4, 2019
Skull Troopers Update and Practice
Sorry about the delayed update. Lucas had a late afternoon game on Saturday, and then we had plans immediately afterwards and didn't get home until quite late. Plus, I'd had a few beers so it wouldn't have been a very coherent post. Then, I decided to include video since I haven't had any hockey videos this season. That required videoing him at practice yesterday. So I've finally got my act together and here we are.
Unfortunately, the Skull Troopers lost their game on Saturday, but it was a close one, 3-2. It was against the second best team in his division, and to their credit, they played better in the 1st and 3rd periods. However, the other team has a kid who was on Lucas's team last year that should have been put in the next higher division so when he was on, there was always a chance they would score. And they did, as he scored 2 of the other team's goals. Lucas had a pretty good game, going +2 so he was on for both of our goals and off for all the goals that were scored against us.
Now they are off for the next 2 weekends due to March break. Yeah, the hockey organization doesn't really think things through very well each March.
So on to the videos! This first one is of a quick pass drill. Lucas (in the green jersey) was at the tail end of the line and got to shoot. He was doing pretty well so of course when I finally decide to record it, he whiffs on the one-timer. That was the last round of the drill too so I couldn't get a better version.
Toward the end of the practice, they had a mini scrimmage set up. You can tell they had been practicing for a while as their energy isn't off the charts. Keep watching until the end to see Lucas accidentally hit himself in the head with his stick.
We are off to Houston for a week on Saturday afternoon, but I should have time to get one or two more posts in before we leave. See ya then!
Unfortunately, the Skull Troopers lost their game on Saturday, but it was a close one, 3-2. It was against the second best team in his division, and to their credit, they played better in the 1st and 3rd periods. However, the other team has a kid who was on Lucas's team last year that should have been put in the next higher division so when he was on, there was always a chance they would score. And they did, as he scored 2 of the other team's goals. Lucas had a pretty good game, going +2 so he was on for both of our goals and off for all the goals that were scored against us.
Now they are off for the next 2 weekends due to March break. Yeah, the hockey organization doesn't really think things through very well each March.
So on to the videos! This first one is of a quick pass drill. Lucas (in the green jersey) was at the tail end of the line and got to shoot. He was doing pretty well so of course when I finally decide to record it, he whiffs on the one-timer. That was the last round of the drill too so I couldn't get a better version.
Toward the end of the practice, they had a mini scrimmage set up. You can tell they had been practicing for a while as their energy isn't off the charts. Keep watching until the end to see Lucas accidentally hit himself in the head with his stick.
We are off to Houston for a week on Saturday afternoon, but I should have time to get one or two more posts in before we leave. See ya then!
Thursday, February 28, 2019
Lots of News
My new plan is to post twice a week: most likely Wednesday and Saturday. I know I'm off to a wonderful start, posting on a Thursday, but let's just pretend I'm really early for Saturday. I know I've slacked off, mostly due to a lack of photo-taking as Lucas has gotten older. As such, some of the posts may just be news. Like this one!
It seems like just yesterday that Lucas was a baby, but unbelievably, we were at a parent information session tonight for junior high next year. How the hell did that happen? He'll be at All Saints, the school M taught at for several years before moving to the school board this year. As such, he doesn't seem very nervous about the proposition, at least right now. We'll see on the first day in September.
Speaking of September, we could use some of that weather right now. Ottawa's winter has been pretty brutal, due in large part to huge temperature swings in the last month. As a result, it's been as icy as I've seen it since moving here in 2004. I couldn't even get the car up the driveway tonight, thanks to the ice rink sitting on top of it.
And I'll use that to segue into the last topic of the night: hockey! I haven't talked much about Lucas's hockey team this year since there hasn't been much to say. It was easily his worst year of hockey since starting 6 years ago, both from a performance and experience viewpoints.
His team isn't awful, but they certainly aren't good. They finished the season 5-7-7. Yes, 7 ties. I think that's more ties than he's had in his previous 5 years of hockey. More telling is that of the 5 wins, the last one came on January 5. As for the experience, I lay that completely on his coach. He was easily the worst coach we've had in any sport. Think about the bare minimum you have to do, and this guy did just that. I was under the impression hockey gets a lot of coaching applicants so it amazes me that this guy made the cut. I think we've already decided that we would quit the team before playing for him ever again.
The playoffs start this weekend and continue on after March break. I don't know that I've ever wanted a season to end, but I definitely do this year. Hell, if they get knocked out in the round robin, I'll be perfectly happy. Of course, with the way they have been playing, I would be surprised if they do win a game.
All that said, Lucas has had a pretty good season. He's had a couple of crappy games, but for the most part, he's been one of the few shining lights on the team. Playing in B after a year of playing a level higher in A really shows as he can hold his own against just about anyone, and he is only a first year Peewee. I'm interested to see how he does next year with some extra size.
So that's all the news for now. Check back this weekend--hopefully Saturday--for the results from game 1, which is scheduled for 4. See ya!
It seems like just yesterday that Lucas was a baby, but unbelievably, we were at a parent information session tonight for junior high next year. How the hell did that happen? He'll be at All Saints, the school M taught at for several years before moving to the school board this year. As such, he doesn't seem very nervous about the proposition, at least right now. We'll see on the first day in September.
Speaking of September, we could use some of that weather right now. Ottawa's winter has been pretty brutal, due in large part to huge temperature swings in the last month. As a result, it's been as icy as I've seen it since moving here in 2004. I couldn't even get the car up the driveway tonight, thanks to the ice rink sitting on top of it.
And I'll use that to segue into the last topic of the night: hockey! I haven't talked much about Lucas's hockey team this year since there hasn't been much to say. It was easily his worst year of hockey since starting 6 years ago, both from a performance and experience viewpoints.
His team isn't awful, but they certainly aren't good. They finished the season 5-7-7. Yes, 7 ties. I think that's more ties than he's had in his previous 5 years of hockey. More telling is that of the 5 wins, the last one came on January 5. As for the experience, I lay that completely on his coach. He was easily the worst coach we've had in any sport. Think about the bare minimum you have to do, and this guy did just that. I was under the impression hockey gets a lot of coaching applicants so it amazes me that this guy made the cut. I think we've already decided that we would quit the team before playing for him ever again.
The playoffs start this weekend and continue on after March break. I don't know that I've ever wanted a season to end, but I definitely do this year. Hell, if they get knocked out in the round robin, I'll be perfectly happy. Of course, with the way they have been playing, I would be surprised if they do win a game.
All that said, Lucas has had a pretty good season. He's had a couple of crappy games, but for the most part, he's been one of the few shining lights on the team. Playing in B after a year of playing a level higher in A really shows as he can hold his own against just about anyone, and he is only a first year Peewee. I'm interested to see how he does next year with some extra size.
So that's all the news for now. Check back this weekend--hopefully Saturday--for the results from game 1, which is scheduled for 4. See ya!
Tuesday, January 8, 2019
Quick One
It turns out that if I leave the browser open for a while, the problems I'm having go away so I'll make sure to turn it on at least an hour before I post.
Here's a couple of pictures from New Years Eve. We went over to our friends Rick and Jenn's and had a blast. The kids did too since there were a boatload of them.
Beatrix actually cooperated during a photo for once.
And jumping ahead a bit, this was taken yesterday at the Sens game. We went with Lucas's hockey team.
Browser just froze up again so that is it for now.
Here's a couple of pictures from New Years Eve. We went over to our friends Rick and Jenn's and had a blast. The kids did too since there were a boatload of them.
Beatrix actually cooperated during a photo for once.
And jumping ahead a bit, this was taken yesterday at the Sens game. We went with Lucas's hockey team.
Browser just froze up again so that is it for now.
Monday, January 7, 2019
No updates
Just a heads up that I probably won't be able to update for a while. Something happened to our Internet browser, and it has made doing anything almost impossible since there is a good 5 second delay when doing anything, including typing. This paragraph alone has taken almost 5 minutes. Unfortunately, I can't update via the mobile devices so I'm at a loss as to what to do. We may buy another computer eventually, but for now, I can't promise any updates.
Wednesday, December 26, 2018
Christmas 2018
Scenes from Christmas morning 2018.
You may notice the matching pants in the previous photo. Those two--plus a pair of my own--were provided courtesy of Marilu's mom.
Our new professional Fortnite gamer. :)
Santa brought Marilu a portable herb garden. If times are tough, we'll rent our space to the local pot growers.
It wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't get a couple of board games. I'm also wearing the new LA Rams toque. I'm still a Falcons fan as well, but I gotta root for my old hometown.
Lucas tries out his new gaming gear.
And does a little dance as he prepares the eggs for breakfast. (This was supposed to be a video, but I can't get it to run so I'm just leaving the thumbnail for now.)
You may notice the matching pants in the previous photo. Those two--plus a pair of my own--were provided courtesy of Marilu's mom.
Our new professional Fortnite gamer. :)
Santa brought Marilu a portable herb garden. If times are tough, we'll rent our space to the local pot growers.
It wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't get a couple of board games. I'm also wearing the new LA Rams toque. I'm still a Falcons fan as well, but I gotta root for my old hometown.
Lucas tries out his new gaming gear.
And does a little dance as he prepares the eggs for breakfast. (This was supposed to be a video, but I can't get it to run so I'm just leaving the thumbnail for now.)
Sunday, December 2, 2018
Hockey Team Photos
We just got back from Lucas's hockey game. It was their second straight loss and their second straight game with no goals. Suffice to say, his team ain't looking that great. On the plus side, Lucas is playing really well. I may sound biased, but he's easily the best defenseman on the team and so far this season, his +/- rating is overwhelmingly positive. Tonight was a rare -1 for him, but it's hard to go even or positive when the offense can't seem to find the net.
Here's a picture of the team from last week, posing with their jerseys. They got sponsored my a local restaurant so they are showing off the name tag for the restaurant.
Here's a picture of the team from last week, posing with their jerseys. They got sponsored my a local restaurant so they are showing off the name tag for the restaurant.
And here's a team photo from a few weeks ago in their away jerseys. Unfortunately, we didn't get an official one done since, for lack of a better explanation, his coach screwed up. It's a long story, and I won't go into it here, but rest assured, I will pull Lucas from hockey before we play on this guy's team again.
Before we left for tonight's game, Lucas helped clean the ice off the car. I took a picture of him since he cut an "interesting" figure.
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Halloween 2018
Some pictures from Halloween 2018. Here's Lucas killer clown costume. Both with mask...
...and without.
This was the crew of mischief makers en route. I figure this will probably be the last year I walk with him so I'm glad I got to experience it one last time.
Lucas carved a pumpkin on his own this year (after I removed the guts). Not bad for a first attempt though he forgot to do the teeth. Oh well, there's always next year.
Here was my entry for 2018. Not bad considering I finished it in about 15-20 minutes since I was running late to the gym that night.
Here's the final candy haul. This year was our longest trick or treating route and it shows.
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