Coach Ben

I've been meaning to post about this for a while. Over the past few months, I served as an assistant coach of a 2nd grade girls basketball team. My uncle, Randy, was the head coach. I helped him out at practices once a week, and Jenelle and I both helped at games on Saturday mornings. There was one game when Randy couldn't make it, so Jenelle and I handled the coaching duties ourselves.

There are things that make coaching at this level very easy. For example:
1) There are ten players on the team, and each plays for two quarters, so you don't worry too much about substitutions.
2) Since the kids are still working on the basics of the game, it's pretty easy to give direction and instruction. Even though I am far from a basketball expert, I have enough knowledge to be a decent coach.

On the flip side, there are things that make coaching at this level very difficult.
1) Sometimes the kids can whine and/or complain a bit more during practices and games. "Can I go get a drink?" "We're taking a break in five minutes." "But I'm thirsty now!"
2) For whatever reason, not all of the players are focused on the game. You sometimes have to remind them whether they are on offense or defense. I am pleased to report that our kids never took a shot at the wrong basket, like one of our opponents. Unfortunately for us, they missed.

All things considered, this was a great experience for me. Below is a picture from the warm-ups at the game where Jenelle and I were the only coaches, and also a picture of almost everyone on the team taken after one of our practices.

Extended Weekend in Minnesota

Andrew & Holly recently had the opportunity to travel to Hawaii and experience the Pro Bowl. This also became a blessing for us, as we went to Minnesota to watch our nieces, Ella & Lily, for a few days until they got back.

We arrived late Friday night. On Saturday morning, my parents, who had been watching the girls for a few days, went to the airport for their flight home, leaving Jenelle and me in charge. While we didn't do everything perfectly on the first day, we managed pretty well. We got Ella to swim class on time. Jenelle watched Lily while I watched Ella swim. We played in the basement and did all kinds of activities in the afternoon. For dinner, we had Burger King with Dairy Queen for dessert (I call it the "Fast Food Royalty" combination). We didn't have much trouble putting the kids to bed, but Jenelle seemed to be the popular one. Both girls really wanted her to read to them. I was thrown into the mix as a compromise - telling them, "I will read you one story, and then Aunt Jenelle will read one." :)

On Sunday, we went to the Mall of America. Ella and I did several rides, including the swings and the Pepsi Orange Streak roller coaster (twice). Lily wasn't as excited about the rides, but she did do the Blues Clues ride with Jenelle. We had lunch at the food court, and played a few carnival games after that. Everyone was very tired by mid-afternoon, so we headed home to relax. We took it easy for the rest of the day.

On Monday, we took Ella to school in the morning. All four of us made the trip, and then Jenelle, Lily, and I went to the grocery store. We got home, and Lily had some time to herself to watch TV and do some other activities. Before we knew it, Ella arrived home on the bus, and we had lunch. We played in the basement and did all kinds of fun stuff in the afternoon. After dinner, we had "movie night" and all watched The Great Muppet Caper. I hadn't seen that one for quite a while.

On Tuesday, Andrew & Holly arrived early in the morning, a half hour or so before the girls woke up. Our flight didn't leave until Tuesday evening, so the six of us had some time to enjoy each other's company. Things seemed a lot easier with four adults instead of two. :)

All in all, it was a great trip and a wonderful experience. I put some PICTURES on Shutterfly. I should have taken a lot more pictures of the stuff we did around the house. I really enjoyed spending time with Ella and Lily, and I hope they liked spending time with Jenelle and me!

Refinancin'

The most exciting news of the day -- we refinanced our mortgage. Exciting, right? We reduced our interest rate by a whopping 1.5%, and I estimate we'll make up the closing costs in six months. We're still using the same bank -- I wouldn't dare go anywhere else.

In other news, yes, it's still cold, but it might hit 40 (gasp!) this weekend. That would be very nice indeed.