LAX Pic of Dev

Dev in the red. We have had a frustrating season of losses but it is a great game. I am glad he played and I got a chance to coach him. I do not believe he will be playing next year. He would like to try agility if Robbie is able to run in the Spring.

First Outdoor Practice

We did our first scrimmage with the boys at LAX practice last night. The sport of LAX is extremely fast and fun. I am surprised at how quickly the boys are learning how to throw, catch, craddle and scoop. I know it would take me MUCH longer to learn - I'm sure their youthful brains help them.

I am not able to really help; I'm observing and learning. If I see anything, I will talk to the Head Coach and ask questions. So maybe in that way, I can help. If he gives the kids instructions that I don't understand or they seem confused, I will ask a clarifying question so the boys know what to do. I did that last night for one of the drills.

Devin did extremely well in the scrimmage last night - he played a Defense position and was able to steal the ball several times and run down the field. The scrimmages will get Devin excited for the sport, he absolutely hates skill drills.

During one of the lectures (short but necessary), Devin got all fidgety - he learns by doing so listening to verbal instructions causes him to tune out. I was secretly laughing in my head because he reminds me of me. At the end of practice, I was talking to the other coaches and Devin came up and got my car keys and got in the car. Thankfully, he doesn't know how to drive yet, he probably would have driven off and left me there. He does watch me shift the Stang's manual transmission so I have a feeling it wouldn't take him long to learn. I better start hiding the keys, he loves the Mustang.

Realization

I just needed to record this thought whether anyone finds it interesting or not. I took my son shoe shopping for basketball sneakers. The new season starts this Saturday with my husband, Greg, as coach. My son needed a size 6 sneaker. WOW - in another year or year and a half, he will be wearing the same size shoe as me. He is around 4'10 - at age 9.5. So at what point will I be looking up at him? EEK! I'm 5'7+, close to 5'8. I wonder if my husband will ever experience this - he's 6'6.

I Was Serious

Devin did not have an outlet for his energy yesterday because the weather was pretty cold so no outside play at school. As I posted earlier - he reminds me of Troy Polamalu who plays Safety for the Steelers. I caught him jumping from our "half" wall in the kitchen onto the couch - several feet from the wall. GRRR - that is one of our only nice pieces of furniture (I couldn't help laughing anyway at his expression when I caught him). Devin did some sprints in the house too - using his watch, he timed his sprints. He's 9 years old. Scary, huh?

Thank GOD basketball starts in a couple of weeks.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

I got an email today about Lacrosse registration. I'm actually kicking around the idea of offering my help with the coaching. No, I've never played but I have a general knowledge and am willing to read up on the rules etc. It was hard being on the sidelines seeing certain skills not getting worked for football. It bugged me mucho that Devin's three-point stance was INCORRECT. I finally showed him why it was wrong and how to fix it and he tried it. BUT because I wasn't a coach, he felt I shouldn't be telling him what to do :) I can respect his feelings. Greg gets to be his basketball coach, why can't I help with Lacrosse? If I assist, I do not have to be at ALL the games although will probably be at them anyway. Lacrosse season is March through the beginning of May. Robbie will not be ready or old enough to show until mid to late May. I am going to take Devin to registration and talk to the coaches. They may not need help and/or they may not want a MOM helping with boys lacrosse. We'll see.

Got an email from a cycling friend that does 10K races. I was asking for his advice on how to build endurance for a 5K run. I want to make sure I am doing the right things to build up to 3 to 5 mile runs or longer. No marathons; just longer cardio workouts. It seems I am on the right track. Today is a running day. My appetite is way up again and my legs feel stronger. I need better running shoes though. My current ones are leftovers from agility season and do not offer enough padding. So I get to go shopping in a few weeks for new sneaks - love to buy sneaks :)

Next shopping trip will include new jeans - the fat is melting off quickly. Love that feeling!

New Pics

A New Sport

Devin may have a new sport this Spring. I mentioned Lacrosse to him last evening and told him how you are allowed to use the stick in defense. He loved that idea so Greg went online attempting to find a youth program in our area. He couldn't find any but sent out some emails.

Today, Devin went to the Laser Dome for a birthday party and we ran in to one of his football coaches. I asked him what other sports his son does and he said Lacrosse. His son is Devin's age and so we asked him to send the information. I wanted a Spring sport for Devin and several people have recommended this one to us.

Basketball this Winter and Lacrosse in the Spring. I can't wait.

The Apple and The Tree

Wow - now I know how Rosanne feels when driving long distances with me in the car (15 more days and counting). The apple doesn't fall far from the tree? Devin came home on the bus yesterday because Greg was home waiting for a mechanic to come and look at our ailing washing machine. What this means is that Devin didn't get to run around and play football at the after school program. He also didn't have football practice last night.

With no physical outlet for his energy, he was squirming out of his skin with boredom. This extra energy always seems to get directed at me. So I had a brilliant idea - go get the hula hoop from the basement (the reason I have one - the dogs). This entertained him for at least 30 minutes and it took the edge off of him.

Nothing like having 6 dogs (4 of which are high energy Border Collies) and one 9 year old boy that is also very high energy to try to entertain. Thank goodness I was a Border Collie in a former life.

Poor Greg, he will have to deal with 5 dogs and one child when I am in AZ. Sympathy cards can be sent to: Greg Gilligan (ggilligan@philamixers.com) while I am gone :)

Midget Football

At one point, several weeks ago I was not happy that I would be missing Devin's last 2 football games of the season. I am now over that feeling because their football team has a losing season so far and I am sort of tired watching them lose over and over again. They play well but are just not big enough and they get pushed around A LOT. Devin basically got neutralized on Sunday. He only made 3 tackles and was not in the backfield at all! That hasn't happened yet this season.

He is still enjoying it though and it has made him quite fit. He challenged me to a foot race to the car after his game on Monday and he beat me. Now I was not in running shoes but still!!! He was very proud of himself because this summer when we were jogging together, he couldn't catch me when I sprinted.

The latest new thing for Devin is that he is planning torun for Student Council. He made the decision on his own and shocked both Greg and me. Even if he doesn't get elected, it will be a great experience for him. He has to write a speech and give it to his class. Wish I could be there to hear it.

Torrential Downpours

Devin's football game got cancelled....thank goodness because I was not looking forward to standing in the rain all afternoon. It has been re-scheduled for tomorrow and the weather should be much improved.

Last night, we went over to Devin's former Defensive Coach's house...that was a blast. They told me to try Myspace for blogging and connecting with friends. Sounds like they enjoy it so I did check it out today but didn't get very far at creating a space or loading pictures or really anything. I need to get used to the format. It looks like a lot more fun than Facebooks.

Had to cancel my herding lesson for tomorrow due to the re-scheduled football game. I was looking forward to the lesson, Robbie really needs to be worked. He is still too young to do any serious agility training.

Yesterday, LuAnn and I got together and worked our boys. We did some tough handling exercises. Gusto only dropped maybe one or two bars. He did quite nicely. Robbie got to play a little bit. It was so hot that we stopped early and later headed to the outlets for shopping. I hit pay dirt at the Under Armour outlet. I bought Devin a ton of stuff for football and I got some clothes for agility. LuAnn and I plan to head back for a full day of fun at the outlets - so many stores, so little time. They even have an Oakley outlet - my favorite sunglasses!

Today, I hopped on my indoor bike for a quick calorie burn - rode 43 mins, 7 miles. I never know if it will bother my leg until the next day.