The Hockey Clinic

Mikie has always professed to love hockey. And, during every skating class he has attended, all he asks to do is play hockey on the ice with a puck and a stick. Unfortunately, I've been reluctant to sign him up for hockey because of the investment. More than just the cost to join, you need to pay for all the equipment. It wouldn't bother me if I knew he was going to really love playing. It's the thought that I may spend a small fortune outfitting him with miniature hockey gear only to have him hate playing after one day on the ice that makes me cringe.

So, I was happy to hear that FMC Hockey and the Boston Bruins were running hockey clinics for 4-7 year-olds around the state. Perfect. They provided all the equipment. Mikie got to enjoy playing hockey. And, best of all, it was FREE.

Since we were celebrating a belated Easter the next day with Mike's family, I decided that Hannah and I should stay home and run errands while the boys went to the clinic. Mike promised to take lots of video so we could relive his experience.

Mike had a very different opinion of what his experience should be like. Rather than doing drills like the other kids (which he considered to be a waste of ice time), he spent much of his time off in his own world, hitting pucks towards the goals. For the brave who have five minutes to spare, you can view the video footage here. I did do you all a favor by speeding it up, since none of the kids skate that fast (it was torturous even for his parents to watch).

And, for those of you who don't feel a strong desire to watch Mikie skate attempt to skate, you can get a chuckle from the pictures below:Go Bruins!

Love, The Trahans

The Church Interviews

In two years that we've been hear, we haven't officially joined a church. Since we wanted to baptize Hannah, we decided to buckle down and pick one to join.

There are three Catholic churches close to our house (actually, there are more, but I picked the ones within a five mile radius). So, we spent Sunday's during March and April attending each one:

St. Patrick's is HUGE. I actually think any church named "St. Patrick" must look like a mini cathedral, because I haven't been to a St. Patrick's church that wasn't large. Unfortunately, the parking lot was minuscule. By the time we found parking, and walked all the way back to church, mass was already underway. We snuck in and, not seeing any seats, stood in the back.

In the chaos of getting situated, the priest, Father Michael, called all the children forward to dismiss them to the Children's Mass. Mikie started up the side aisle by himself and, halfway to the front, sat down with a random family. I told Mike to go get him. When Mike got to where he was sitting, Mikie decided to follow the rest of the kids out. Unfortunately, by the time he got to the front of the church, all the kids had left through a side door. So, Mikie stepped up onto the alter and stood their looking around. During this time, Mike was walking back towards Hannah and I and didn't see what was going on. As the congregation broke out into giggles, and the Father Michael came down from where he was sitting to help Mikie, I was whispering (as loudly as I could) for Mike to go rescue him. Eventually, both Mike's made their way to the Children's Mass. And, I only had to relive my humiliation three times when running into neighbors at the grocery store afterwards.

St. Peter's was much smaller. Unfortunately, the week we went, they had suspended the Children's service. So, Mikie was forced to endure mass with the rest of us. This did not make him happy, a fact he verbalized over and OVER again during the first reading. At one point the priest came down and informed the woman reading that she was reading the wrong passage. During the silence that ensued while they searched for the right passage, Mikie could be heard screaming, "DAD, you're making me have to be MAD at you." Mike managed to quiet him down (without smothering him) and the rest of mass passed uneventfully. Afterwards, Mike was rewarded for his "patience" by getting a lollipop from Father James.

When we got in the car, Mikie asked "Who wants my Amen Popsicle?" To which Mike responded, "I'll eat it." And, when he realized that it was orange, he added, "Hey, Mikie, next time you get an Amen Popsicle that you don't want to eat, remember that Daddy likes the red ones." Now, I live in fear that the next priest Mikie sees will be greeted with the demand of a "red Amen Popsicle for his dad." Hell, here we come.

Luckily, with the exception of Mikie introducing Father Brian to his sister, "Nibbles" (which of course required an explanation), we don't have any embarrassing mishaps to share about St. Mark's. Because, we can't show our face at the other two churches ever again.

Love, The Trahans

My Son the Bully

I think every parent worries that their child will be bullied. But, Mike and I figured we didn't have to worry about Mikie, since he's Mr. Popularity. Until last week.

On Thursday afternoon, Mikie had an incident on the playground. The school has a rule that you can't have more than three kids on the jungle gym at a time. Evidently, some big kids were playing on the jungle gym. Mikie climbed on, even though there were three kids already on it. One of the boys, a fourth grader, told him to get off or he would push him off. (I know, what is a nine year old doing on a jungle gym?) Anyway, Mikie didn't take too kindly to being threatened, so he bit the kid in the stomach.

When we got home, I told Mikie to tell Dad what happened with the big kids. And, instead of telling him about the playground, he started telling a different story. Two days earlier, some big kids were playing catch inside when we arrived at school. Their "baseball" (which looked to be a Nerf ball) landed a bit to close to Hannah. Mikie picked up the ball and yelled, "Hey, you almost hit my sister!" The teacher took the ball away. But, Mikie was still so enraged, that this was the first "big kid" story he could think of.

Warning to any big kids: don't mess with Hannah or Mikie. Or, there may be throwdown on the playground.

Love, The Trahans

Spring Shower

If you have kids (or have been forced to bathe one), you know that it is no small task. I imagine it's like bathing a dog or cat (although, I really wouldn't know since I don't have either). They are small, wiggly, and very slippery when wet, so trying to bathe them in a full size bath tub is scary (for both parent and child). Worse, try using a small sink without hitting some body part on the faucet. Before you start to worry that my kids are the smelly kids at school, rest assured that for under $20, you can buy a baby bath tub to make bath time easier.

Unfortunately, baby bath tubs are a pain to travel with. In this instance, showers become a good substitute, as was the case Easter morning at Grandma Pookie's house.

As you can see from this video, Mike and I are VERY easily amused (or maybe just me). I am so easily amused that I insisted on calling my entire family into the bathroom while Mike was in the shower to see just how amusing shower time with an infant can be. Thankfully, they were all just as entertained as I was. So, once again, we grabbed the video camera to add to our collection of moments that will embarrass our children when they are older.

Love, The Trahans

Four or Forty?

The problems that plague preschoolers: What should I eat for breakfast?. . . How am I going to convince my parents to buy me that Bakugan my friend has?. . . What am I going to do with the five o'clock shadow I have on my chin?

Yes, as you can see in the video, Mikie's biggest problem on Friday was that he needed "a shave". I don't know who told him this (maybe one of his many girlfriends from school). To be honest, I'm less surprised each time something like this comes out of his mouth, and more and more thankful that it isn't something offensive.

If this is what he is like at four, I shudder to think what lies ahead.

Love, The Trahans

Child Abuse

My name is Hannah Reilly Trahan, and I am abused. My brother tries to smother me with kisses on a daily basis. And, my mom makes me eat washcloths when I am STARVING and craving a bottle of formula. No, we don't abuse her (although Mikie really does try to smother her with kisses on a daily basis). You can click the picture above to view the video of how tasty a washcloth is. It was just too cute not to document for posterity. Especially when she gets so excited at the end, she can't even focus (she does that when she's eating too)!

Love, The Trahans