Genesee joined the Mighty Mites league this September to learn basic soccer and movement fundamentals through fun games and drills! She was especially encouraged to sign up after learning that her bud, Annalia, would be joining her on the field. Another cherry on top was that I got to be assistant coach because Coach Ryan asked me to help the next generation find their greatness. But perhaps the biggest incentive for enrolling in 4 weeks of soccer was that Ashlee said she’d come and watch Genesee tear up the field!

It was an added bonus that Ashlee brought Katie along! Then mom treated us all to dinner at Señor Villas, which was followed by a grand tour of Ashlee and Katie’s La Crosse home.

If this is what Mighty Mites is all about, I hope Genesee signs up again next year because it was mighty fun!!

Apologies for the photo dump, but I was too busy livin’ the good (summer) life that I forgot to slow down and blog about it. From basketball camps, soccer tryouts, birthday parties, and Loggers baseball games to fishing, 4-wheeling, golfing, working out, and tubing, we maximized every day, but it still went by too fast. Summer should get a speeding ticket.

Home is where you park it.

Over Labor Day weekend, we parked it at Russell Memorial Park and Campground.

This time, it was all about the water wars, dinosaurs, and late night s’mores. Because memories are always made by lakes and campfires. I’m not so sure that memories are made at flea markets, but that dinosaur was pretty cool!

To kick off the fall 2022 soccer season, we decided to chase trophies across the great state of Wisconsin, at Kenosha’s Battle on the Border tournament. Maddox and I worked hard to represent the 8-year-olds, while playing with our Rush U11 team… It was exciting, tiring, and challenging! And even though it rained on our parade a bit, we helped the team finish 2nd place in our bracket before getting our butts beat in the semi-finals.

Nevertheless, we had a blast! Especially since we camped in the Renwick driveway and got to zip through a forest and test my courage on a glow-in-the-dark ropes course at Boundless Adventures!

The most special part of the trip, however, was when we visited Papa and Nana Florence at Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery.

Alongside the kernel of popcorn we tucked within the stone border, we also left a piece of our hearts. It’s true what they say: “Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.”

With a super stylin’ third grader and a cutesie-wootsie kindergartener in the house, we are back and better than ever! To mark this special occasion, we enjoyed a bacon-breakfast-in-bed and then posed for the obligatory photo shoot.

The first day of school was everything! Mom was our chauffeur, we made new friends, and then we had a backseat dance party on the drive home. It was all fun and games until we went from being too cool for school….

…to too tired for school.

We might need a minute to get settled into this new routine, but with 178 school days left, we’ll eventually find our groove.

What do you do on the last Friday of summer vacation?! Well, after you get your annual well-child check-up at the health clinic (complete with a vaccine shot for your little sis), you follow these instructions to have a fun day:

First, you go to Pearl Street Books to shop local and then you kidnap Beth and take her to Polito’s for a bigger-than-your-head slice of pepperoni pizza.

Next, you must run your little hearts out at the Children’s museum and treat yourself to Super Premium Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream (and popcorn, of course), at the Great River Popcorn Company.

Finally, this ultimate fun day requires discovering a new favorite store: Genie’s rock shop on downtown La Crosse’s historic Main Street! (Thanks, Laura!) You’ll be overstimulated by billions of beautiful rocks of all shapes, colors, sizes, and prices. (Pro Tip: If you want to purchase the $6,300 gem that greets you at the front door, do not visit with my mother because she gives you a $5.00 purchasing limit.)

Genie’s Rock Shop is WAY cooler than Target, but you should probably end the night with a routine stop at Target anyway, just for good measure.

And after all of that, you can confidently add an enthusiastic exclamation point to the end of your summer story, with no regrets, because you’ll finally feel pumped and ready to write the sequel: Back to School!

It was an easy 35-minute drive to explore a new-to-us campground at Fort McCoy! There was only one spot left when mom called to make the reservation, and we were more than pleased with our randomly-assigned corner lot, right near the miniature golf course.

It was just the trip we needed… a wind down before the hustle and bustle of back-to-schooll!

We rented a 4-person pedal bike to tour the premises, walked down to Trout Falls Bridge and splashed in the water, played all of the games (frisbee golf, miniature golf, and basketball), concocted our own slushies in the main lobby, tested the digital speed limit signs with our electric scooters, and then listened to our favorite tunes while we roasted perfectly golden marshmallows over the moonlit campfire (well, some of us did… poor little G just can’t hang with the cool cats).

We were truly honored to be invited guests at Authrene and Tony’s special day! I was highly anticipating this event for months, as it had been too long since I’ve seen some of my favorite college buddies, and the day did not disappoint!

I pursued every hug I could and then I smiled until my cheeks got sore. There’s just something about seeing one of your favorite people so happy… it made my heart full.

It was such a beautiful day! Besides my sister’s questionable decision to wear pink hair extensions and a unicorn headband accessory, everyone looked stunning!

Equally stunning was that dessert table, although it got a little awkward when Genesee couldn’t keep her hands off of it.

Thankfully, no one passed judgement because it was, after all, a love story for the ages. I mean, Authrene and Tony’s love story is an incredible one to celebrate, too, but Genesee and cake pops were truly meant to be together.

Cheers to forever! And congrats Authrene and Tony!

Anyone remember when my mom made me a handwritten eviction notice? Well, guess who grew up and learned how to make his own signs?

Five years after I got kicked out of my room, I finally got a new bedroom to call my own! The bachelor bad of all bachelor pads, with no sisters or parents.

It’s the freedom and independence I’ve been waiting to…. share with somebody.

Anyone want to spend the night… keep me company? I hate to hoard all of this independence to myself.

Guess who’s fiving and thriving?! This girl:

To celebrate Genesee turning 5, we hosted a unicorn-themed birthday party (for the the third year running) and enjoyed a slow-cooked, shredded chicken taco dinner, per the birthday girl’s request.

At five years of age, Genesee is becoming very independent. From buckling her own seatbelt, to getting herself dressed, to sleeping in her own room without me, she’s practically a grown-up!

These days, Genesee has not only inspired me to become a lover of popcorn, but she has also taught me what it looks like to be an upstander. In fact, Genesee is the fiercest defender I know… always standing up for what she believes is right. And since I’m always right, anyone who wants to mess with me will have to answer to my little sister first.

Happy birthday, Gigi Luigi! May all your unicorn dreams come true!