NEMO ~ {Found}

For the past few days Connecticut and some of the surrounding states have been shoveling out from under about 2 feet of snow!! Blizzard Nemo found us!! We got nailed with a couple feet about 2 years ago, but most people around here are comparing this storm to the blizzard of 1978.  I wasn't around so I can't compare, but this is how I saw the blizzard of 2013:

 It started snowing around 8am, and I'm me so I felt the need to go out in the storm before it got too bad.  The ground was just getting coated and it was actually nice out!!

Mid day was plowing run #1 and you could still see the yard

 

Around 7pm I went out with Dad to do clean up #2, the town was out trying to keep up with the mess too but the snow was already starting to pile up

 

I looked like I had a snowball in my hair when I came in

 

Saturday was the big clean up!! 

Friday night I had shoveled a path on the lower deck to the sliding door

By Saturday morning you couldn't tell

I didn't bother cleaning it again . . .

 

I had a few paths to clear

And had a little fun while I was at it

 

While I was clearing paths on the deck I decided I wanted a pile of snow higher then the banister

So I made one  :)

Yup I made a 7 foot pile of snow, what did you do Saturday?

 

Dad wanted the flat roof cleared off too.  There was a good 3 feet of snow up there and it was heavy!!

 

Of course when I pushed it off some of it landed in the path I had just cleared . . .

Didn't think that one through . . .

 

Ah well!!  It's been an interesting couple of days.  We've moved a LOT of snow!!

I think it's funny that you can't tell where the yard ends,
 the road is, and the lot next door begins

Guess the lighthouse won't be helping anyone for a day or two

 

Well, that was Nemo!!  Luckily we didn't loose power and I had a productive couple of days at home, did some cleaning and baking, we even had time for a little sugar-on-snow experiment. 

Cheers!!

January . . .

Okay I did a terrible job of keeping up with my pic- of - the - day this month, but here are a few of my shots from January:

Cheers :)

Why I Do It . . .

I feel like I need to start this post off with a little disclaimer.
First: All of the pictures were NOT taken by me.  The pictures to follow were taken by the fantastic photographers of Team Photo at the DGS Invite that my team competed at this past weekend.
Second: The pictures to follow are not to show favoritism or anything like that. Like most entries on this site, I had a thought and wanted to get it off my mind.  I work with so many wonderful kids, and this isn't to talk about any kid or two specifically just generally make my point, or get my thought out.
Hopefully that makes sense and won't make anyone mad, so here we go:

Why do I do what I do? Coaching that is.  I've found over the years it can be a difficult thing for most people to understand.  Most of my family and friends just know that about six months out of the year I live in the gym a little more then usually and my weekends are booked solid with traveling and competitions.  It can get a little tiring, I'm not going to lie, but I get to spend everyday teaching kids about (in my opinion) the greatest sport in the world, and when it comes to my team I love having the opportunity to be there for them. Whether I'm on the floor coaching or up in the stands, it's such a great feeling to see all their hard work pay off.
My compulsory girls team competed in their first meet of the season this past weekend and included in their meet fee they get a disk of the professional photos.  I browsed through them and that's what got me thinking about all this, about what I do, about the kids I work with, about all those little things.  When you look at these pictures I'm sure most people will see some cute gymnasts, and you're right they are.  When I look at them I see something a little more. For every athlete I can see the individual fears they've been fighting to overcome, I can see that skill they've been struggling with, I know the hours they've been putting in, the repetitions in the gym, the countless rips from bars, rolls of tape, and I can't tell you how many times I have listened to that same piece of floor music!!
These kids, that's why I do it . . .

HUGS!! I love 'em!! Especially when it's from my kiddos after a job well done!!

That's probably my favorite part :)

To my wonderful gym family, thanks for everything!!

To all my kiddos, keep up the great work!!

To my gym parents, thanks for your dedication and support!!

To my family and friends, thanks for your patience!!

To anyone who doesn't really "get it", that's why I do it!!

Cheers!!

{Dec}ember-2012

~How I Saw December . . .

Had a blast in 2012!! Bring on 2013!!

Cheers :)