Merry Christmas Everyone!

We didn't get to cut down and decorate our Christmas tree on the day after Thanksgiving as usual. But we still couldn't go to a tree lot or use a fake tree...Heidi wouldn't allow it. So we visited the tree farm the following weekend and picked out the perfect (aka crooked) tree.

Nathan, Allison, and Heidi next to the tree we picked out...
Decorating and eating pizza, our little tradition...
Even Zoe got into the Christmas spirit...

After running all over the state in the worst weather I can remember, we had Christmas at the Weiss'. Unfortunately, we missed Christmas Eve at Grandma & Grandpa McDaid's due to the ice. But Brian McDaid still stayed with us Chrismas Eve and Christmas morning which was nice. Bubba, Papa, and "the girls" came over Christmas Day to play with all the presents. And we had Christmas with Mom, Ken, and Brian yesterday. Now that all the parties are over we can try to find our house again and start to get back into the usual routine.

Nathan with his gift from Santa - mini hockey nets (the goalie set was from Allison). He didn't even wait to finish opening presents before starting a game.
Allison with her gift from Santa - a Hannah Montana electric guitar.
Breanna, Kelsey, Nathan, and Allison McDaid

Up North, Hockey, and Awful Driving Conditions

Since Nathan's games were both up north (Cadillac and Ludington) over the weekend we stayed up at the trailer. That was the first time Heidi and the kids had been up there since October because we've been so busy. There was plenty of snow and the kids got to play in it for a few hours before we had to make our trips to hockey games.

Allison posing on Scott's snowmobile (no, she didn't drive it... but Uncle Scott gave her a ride).

Allison and Maddeline in the trailer. Trevor and Maddeline stayed with us between the Cadillac and Ludington games. The boys lost to Cadillac 2-4 (only had 7 skaters) and then lost to Ludington 2-5 the next day.
Zoe staying warm. Must be nice to be able to relax!

Nathan and Trevor hamming it up for the camera.

Nathan learning the fine art of "donuts and fish-tailing" on the driveway ice.
The drive back from Ludington on Sunday was AWFUL! Blizzard conditions made it a very long ride. The roads weren't really that bad but the blowing snow made it difficult to see more than 10ft in front of the van. Luckily, we all made it back safe and sound... now bring on Christmas!

He Shoots....He SCORES!!!!!!!

Hockey results were a bit mixed this weekend. The boys played a non-league game at the Battle Creek Bruins on Saturday night. We were up 3-0 early but they battled back and tied it up 3-3 midway through the game. Then, BC scored in the third period but Trevor got a breakaway and tied it up 4-4. With time running out, BC put on some serious pressure but the boys held them off. They had the puck deep in our zone and at one point, one of their players was coming around from behind the net for a game-winning wraparound and Nathan got there just before the BC player and knocked it away to save the game! That happened with 20.5 seconds left (I know because I immediately looked at the clock thinking... they were about to win the game right there). Anyway, the game ended in a tie. The kids skated well enough to win but couldn't seal it.

Then, this morning, we hosted East Kentwood who we'd beaten 3-1 at their place last month. They were a good team back then and showed they were even better now. Our boys have really be skating well the last few games and are doing a great job of attacking the puck. Nathan has been itching to score a goal all season. He's had a lot of chances but hasn't been able to sneak one by the goalie. Today was different though. We were down 2-1 and Trevor was off on a break-away. Nathan and a defender were right behind him and they were all skating at top speed. Trevor tried to go high, glove side. The goalie made the stop and Nathan was right on the rebound. He got some good wood on the shot and the goalie got a piece of it but Nate shot it hard enough that it deflected up and over the goalie and into the net to tie the game at 2-2. We went NUTS!!! Everyone has been rooting for him to get his first Squirt goal and he's been skating really hard. He definitely earned it. He learned today that it pays to "crash the net". He actually had a couple other chances for goals today but they couldn't find the net. We ended up losing 3-2. Another good game that could have gone either way.

Coach Lou made it a point to give Nate the game puck and now he's planning on using some of his saved money to buy a little display case for it (too funny..). The team manager made sure to get a picture of Nate with his puck after the game for us. It's below (click to enlarge). Next weekend will be tough. We play two very good teams (Cadillac and Ludington). Go Hawks!

Blast From The Past

As promised, here's a little gem I stumbled across while backing up photos from the computer. This is a video clip from Pat & Anna Weiss' wedding reception back in August of 2005. Allison was a dancing machine at the reception and had us all stunned. She was only three at the time but she clearly has some rhythm... Enjoy!

Just Checking In...

With everything that's been going on lately, I haven't had a chance to update with what we've been up to. Basically, we've stayed busy doing the same things we've been doing the last couple months: work, school, dance, and hockey.

Parent-teacher conferences went well and both of the kids are doing a good job keeping up with their school work.

We finally got to put up our Christmas tree last week. Traditionally, Heidi insists that we go get it the day after Thanksgiving. But this year, we were in Lansing for the tournament so that didn't work out. But fear not, it's up along with the lights and endless decorations. I still can't believe Christmas is in two short weeks. Where does the time go!?

Allison is enjoying her dance practices and is getting ready for her competitions coming up in March and June. She may also be performing at Festival in downtown Grand Rapids but no details on that yet. She's competing in three different routines: tap, jazz, and hip-hop. I don't know how she keeps all those moves straight. When you see her, have her show you the "freeze" move they do in hip-hop... too funny. Heidi has been able to see her do the jazz routine a couple times and said she does really well. I guess I'll have to wait until the competitions to see it. Also, stay tuned 'cause I've got a really cool "blast from the past" to post soon...

Nathan is having a great time with his hockey team. I think he really has a good time with his teammates. Since the Lansing tournament, the team beat Southside 4-2 and then travelled back to Lansing and dropped another game to Capital Pride 2-4 on Sunday. This week has been the play-down against the other HAWK teams to see who will go to the district tournaments. Monday, we beat Hawk #2 3-1 and tonight beat Hawk #3 6-2 so we'll be heading to the district tournament at the end of the season. That's about all I know about that at this point. Overall, the kids are really starting to skate as a team and play aggressive hockey. I just commented to Heidi at tonights game that Nathan has been improving every game over the past month. And it's showing. He's got 5 assists in the last 4 games.

Tournament Action Shots

As mentioned in the previous post, a bunch of the parents went together and got a whole CD of pictures taken by the tournament photographer. Here are a few shots of Nathan during the tournament games... click to enlarge.

Versus Capital Pride (first meeting)

Versus Soo Burger King (Canada)

Tense moments in semi-finals versus Capital Pride

Versus Capital Pride in semi-finals