Sunday morning date with my husband ;)

This morning, Andreas asked me out... for a date.... to play soccer with his regular Sunday league. I happily accepted and, with take-out coffee in hand (he doesn't skimp on dates 😉), we headed to the field. It was a fun game... only 3 women on the field and, out of about 20 players/17 different nationalities, I think that I was the only Canadian 😉 I felt special 😉 Considering we are parents, you take a date wherever and whenever you get the chance 😉

Hope you all had a good weekend xox

Yes, this is a post-game picture so excuse the sweaty look ;)

World Cup humour... or not... the Montreal Italian way ;)

During the World Cup qualifiers, the Swedish team tied with Italy- after having won the first game- thus keeping them out of the World Cup (the black day of November 13, 2017). Now, the Italian community in Montreal is retaliating with the campaign "Anyone but Sweden". Little Italy is covered with banners that cheer on any team playing in the same group (F) or against Sweden (= Anyone but Sweden) ;) It doesn't even matter who it is... just not Sweden. Andreas better stay away from Little Italy for a few weeks ;) It looks like they mean business ;)

Date night

Because Andreas and I simply cannot get enough soccer (wink wink), for our date night, we went to see the Montreal Impact play. We got to yell and cheer without embarrassing the boys which, frankly, was not quite as fun as when the boys get red-faced because of us ;) Part of the perks of being a parent ;) Even though our team lost, we still had a great time!

Today was even more soccer: Alexander's team made it to the Regionals.... and won the finals this morning! Seriously, what an upset... but it was sweet ;) Now I have 8 post-game boys in my basement.. making lots of noise... but happy noise ;)

Happy Sunday to you all! xox

Soccer- Swedish style ;)

In the town where my inlaws live, they have a soccer (I mean, football) team (a real one.. with scores that are announced on the radio and in the newspaper... and that people really care about.... and keep stats about...... and you can buy their team shirt.... and chant their team song.... and they do.... loudly... see here). So, twice this summer (the most recently was last night), we- minus Oliver who decided to play with his cousin instead- went to see the team play and had a really great time. The "stadium" where they play allows you to sit really close to the players... so close that it almost feels like you are on the field with them. Sweden is also so civilized that they serve good coffee and cinnamon buns during the games ;) AND there are next to no line ups for the foods or, importantly, the bathrooms AND it is an open field so you get to enjoy the late afternoon sun... when the weather decides to co-operate! Since where the games are played is in the same small town as where my inlaws live, we even get to walk up to the field (bonus for being able to burn off the cinnamon buns on the way home 😉 ). LSK! LSK! 😉

Wishing you all a happy Sunday! xox

"Our" team is in green...

Boo! The other team scored first... but LSK ended up winning 2-1.

Serious soccer fans ;)

Getting up close

The field

It was an exciting game!

This weekend...

This weekend had a lot of action.. good action... ;) It was filled with soccer, basketball,swimming, coffee, wine, snow and friends!

It is Sunday night now... and there is a snowstorm going on outside =  more snow. The boys are hoping for a snow day tomorrow. I am hoping for trains that are on time in the morning rush hour ;)

Wishing you all a great week ahead xox

All day soccer tournament on Saturday for me :)

My post tournament glass of wine

My post tournament bruise ;) I play defence against ladies with awesome kicks ;)

Ummm... coffee.....

Snow....

.... and more snow....

Happy Sunday evening to you all xox

..

First soccer game

I am not sure if I already mentioned it here (heck, I cannot remember anything these days... just trying to embrace it ;) ) but Alexander made his high school soccer team. We are excited for him because it is a good way to meet new friends, participate in sports and become an active part of his school community. Since he has both practices and games after school, it is also a good way to keep him from coming home and heading to the video game dungeon (ie: our basement). Another bonus is that, on game days, the boys have to dress up for school. Today, Alexander was so excited to put on his favourite pink shirt and his dress pants (... and his running shoes but we won't get into that) to celebrate his first soccer game with his high school team. The only thing that I am sorry about is that I can't get out of work early enough to see it :( Maybe next time...

Good luck, boys!

Wishing them a great game and the rest of you a good day!

My Google tendencies

I have kids. One thing that any mother can tell you is that you end up Googling (is that a word now?) pretty strange stuff. For example, we Google things like "How do you get a marble out of a child's nose?" For the record, this was one of my actual searches. Another one: "What do you do when your kid only eats Goldfish Crackers?" "What the h*ll is Pokemon Go?"

Today, I have another one: "Why do my kids' soccer cleats smell like cat pee?"

Apparently, I am not the only one. This is, actually, a very popular topic on discussion boards. Who knew it? AND, the majority of people who experience it DO NOT EVEN HAVE A CAT!!!! Kitties, you are OFF the hook! From my very unscientific research, apparently it comes from the sulfur in sweat... which is amplified with a wet environment.... which is amplified when your kids sweat a lot.... which is amplified with a wet environment.... which is amplified when the cat decides to pee in the shoe (just kidding... I always wondered how our super old cat could negotiate herself into the shoe). As I read, apparently, it is NOT the cat.... just the sweat... and the shoe.... even the ones that you spend a million dollars on (or it seems like they are a million dollars... and supposedly made of gold) ;)

I cannot wait until the boys finish their games this weekend. The shoes will get Lysol'd and put on the winter boot dryer. Bye-bye, cat urine smell! May it only be found in the litter box ;)

PS: for the record, my soccer cleats smell like roses... ;) Roses and cat pee ;)

Alexander's NEW cleats which, for the moment, still smell only like boy sweat....

Summary of the last few days...

If I could summarize the last few days, it would be: cosy, rain, pancakes, boys, day to day craziness, more rain, healthy snacks (or making an effort for healthy snacks :) ) and soccer...

I think that I am finally getting over my jet lag. It has been a bad one after this trip but, honestly, I am not sure if it is just the jet lag or the overall fatigue from the last year at work setting in. Regardless, I am starting to feel a little more energetic- I will emphasize little more... no miracles here ;) - and not so overwhelmed for the upcoming return to school (for all of us). It is amazing how fast the summer is flying by!

We're just spending a cosy Saturday night at home.... wishing you all the same! xox

Here are some pictures that I took over the past few days....

Cosy time

Rain

Pancake time!

Happy boys eating pancakes

YUM! They actually tasted better than they looked ;)

More pancakes, please!

Am I the only one who LOVES radishes? The fresher, the better!

Soccer time! For me, that is!

Weekend referee

No, I am not an official referee. I just spend about 95% of the weekend refereeing my sons' arguments (the other 5%, when I am not refereeing, is when they are sleeping... or on their tablets... but, even then, they argue). I was just going to post about how nice it was to sit outside while they played but, alas, that peace-and-quiet didn't last very long ;) I had to blow my ref whistle ;)

Our weekend was filled with soccer, soccer, soccer... and sun! It is tough to have the overlap between school and summer sports but the boys are now catching up on their reading (= kind of quiet... except for complaining about reading... but this time, the boys are in agreement) ;)

Wishing you all a happy week ahead! xox

Sometimes my husband still likes me ;)

Action man

I had to take a picture of this... I have a soft spot for balloons...

My soccer game.... ahhhh... my sanity!

Oliver, pretend sleeping, on the soccer field

Well deserved coffee at the end of the day!

A field of fleas ;)

I coach all 3 of my boys' soccer teams. There are always the pros (it is fun; I get to hang out with the boys; good exercise) and cons (LOTS o'attitude!) with each of the teams but I have to say that the most amusing of all the teams is definitely Oliver's! I like to think of them as a field of fleas (or a bunch of drunk college students- all doing their own "no logic" thing). This past weekend, we had our first "game", which included a 20 minute practice session that included both teams and was run by some young AA soccer players that the league hired. Despite the teeanagers' great intentions and energy, I think that they lost the kids at "kick your ball with your RIGHT foot".... none of the kids had any idea which foot was the "right" foot and just thought it was hilarious. They also seemed to think that it gave them permission to kick at everything (the grass, the flowers, each other.... oh yeah- and the ball) with both of their feet... at the same time even.

Disclosure:  I have to say that the same thing happens when I am coaching them (even when it is not about their right feet) but it is much funnier when I just get to watch ;)

Happy week to you all! xox

What trouble can I get into now? ;)

With your RIGHT foot... no, that is the WRONG foot... I mean LEFT foot.... I mean..... ;)

Football/soccer night out :)

Last night, Andreas and I took the boys to their first ever pro football/soccer game: Montreal Impact vs a team from Pachuca, Mexico (Pachuca FC). The winner would go to the CONCACAF semi finals (Impact tied, by the way, in the last seconds of the game- enough to move them on- see link here).  It ended up being a great game with, surprisingly for a Canadian city (especially a hockey city!), a great environment! The boys LOVED it (and so did Andreas and I).

We drove through a snow storm to get to the Olympic Stadium.... obviously, an indoor game ;).... but so did another 38,104 other people. It was fun to be at the party :)

That poor Mexican team ;)

Nothing like snow to say "SOCCER" ;)

Play on ;)

Ready for action

Woo hoo!

Get the party started!

Can't even see the action! ;)

Resemblance?

Oliver's regular seat ;)

Family shot

The boys... all 4 of them ;)

Mothers like soccer too? ;)

Party animal...

No need for words....

Ahh.... so close!

Go Impact!

More boys

Party!