It's not even Halloween...

...and someone had already drawn up her Christmas wish list

Here's one from 3 or 4 years ago

The kid is still waiting for a pet, but there is no doubt that she is cool.

Cross Country Champ

Last night, we plotted strategy while cuddling in bed:

- Get in the lead pack as early as possible.

- Keep a comfortable pace.

- Be ready to sprint at the end to push past some of the other racers.

This morning she executed the plan to perfection.

Our little athlete took the lead from the start. For almost the entire 1600 metres, she had one girl keeping pace right behind. Sometimes 3 feet, sometimes 20. (Yes I'm mixing units of measure, but feet are what I visualize here).

The last stretch, the two girls were side by side. One would go ahead, the other would catch up. Leah said that she had never run faster in her life. Neck and neck the last 20 feet, Leah managed to thrust her shoulders over the finish line ahead of the other girl. All she could hear was "I see green" from the race judge. Leah had to look down at her, yes, green shirt to confirm that she indeed had won that hard fought contest.

What a thrill to hear her on the phone telling me she had won. What pride hearing her recount the race to us at dinner time. What a kid!

Post Script

Thanks to a mom of one of Leah's team mates for the following pictures from the meet:

At the starting line

In the lead

Thanksgiving 2010

The usual wonderful weekend...Fun, Family, Friends and Food

Repeat

December 1984 - October 2010

December 1984 - The first time I met most of these kids - the cousins.

I had no idea how much they would mean to me. They have enriched my life beyond my wildest dreams.

October 1st we celebrated Tanya's wedding. Here are the families, partners, friends and children of those cousins who joined in the celebration.

Championship Swag

Chicago Highlights, Sept 21-24

1. 2nd row seats behind the Visitor's bench

2. Buddy Guy threw out the first pitch AND led the crowd in singing "Take me out to the ball game" during the 7th inning stretch

3. The Cubs, a.k.a. The Loveable Losers, won!

Oh yeah, spectacular buildings and great restaurants too.

I'll be back!

Champs again!

We played 5 games on the weekend to make it to the finals.  The last game on Sunday night was a grueling 10 innings - dusk was descending on the park as the two teams slugged it out.   While we were thrilled to win, we weren't sure if our bodies could take any more punishment.

On Monday we nursed our aching muscles and rested (as much as 12 working moms can rest).   Game night Tuesday we started off slow as usual, but managed to win 15-10.

I had a hard time leaving the office early again yesterday for game 2.  I expended way too much energy racing down to the train, changing in the car and getting to the park 15 minutes before game time.  The second wind I found on Tuesday - with the help of advil and jelly beans -  was nowhere to be found last night.  My first at bat found me limping to first base on what was a good double.  It was very frustrating to be so sore and pokey.  Thankfully I played first base and was able to contribute there.  By game's end, winning 11-2, it all seemed anticlimactic.  All weekend, the crowd of spectators had made it clear that they did not want us to win.  Thankfully, the opposing team was gracious in their congratulations as we shook hands at the end of the match.

The after-party helped tie it all together - we celebrated all the good things about our team. We worked hard, threw ourselves in front of the ball, played smart and kept our spirits up if we made a mistake.  We gave our coach his 78 minutes of focus every game.  We also had a lot of fun.   Very few teams were able to do all that this season.   Once again, I got way more out of playing ball than just playing ball.