Anna & Leo's first hockey game

By K.J. Cardinal

In perfect fashion, Anna and Leo's first hockey game was none other than one of Ethan's games at the New England SportsCenter on Saturday morning.

With Ethan's Bantam team playing in a three-game, two-day tournament less than 10 minutes from our house, Bill and Ethan came down to stay with us for the tourney.

Ethan had a rough schedule which consisted of a 10:30 p.m. night cap on Friday night, an 8:30 a.m. contest on Saturday morning and then a 9:30 p.m. game on Saturday night. Crazy.

That schedule obviously meant that the only game we'd be able to take the kids to was the Saturday morning game. So, we bundled everyone up and off we went.

Leo obviously had no clue what was going on, but looked adorable in his "fuddy duddy" hat, and Anna seemed to like the Zamboni and arcade in the lobby more than anything. Nonetheless, it was their first hockey game.

More important than the actual games was the fact that we got to hang out with Bill and Ethan for two-straight days. I can honestly say that it's been about 15 years since I've been able to say that... which is a shame and something I'm hoping to change because Bill's always been one of my all-time favorite people and Ethan is following in his footsteps, that's for sure.

Anyway, the best part of the whole weekend was learning that Anna shared the same affinity for Bill and Ethan that I do. On Saturday, there was a lot of time between games and we just hung out at our house. Anna used this time to make Bill her play date... which was hilarious.

The two were making puzzles together, horsing around on the couch, playing catch in the kitchen and basically anything else that Anna could think of. After a good while of playing together, Bill sat down on the couch to get a break and Anna relentlessly came over to him and asked him to play some more. I was doing my best to interject and convince Anna to give Bill a break, but once she said to Bill, "You're my best friend. Do you want to come play with me?", all bets were off. I mean, not only did that leave me speechless, but it really left Bill with no choice, but to go play with his new BFF. It was classic Anna.

The icing on the cake of this great weekend was seeing Ethan score a goal in his final game on Saturday night. What a perfect way to cap a great weekend. Thanks for coming down guys. Hopefully we can do it again sooner rather than later... I mean, Anna can't go long without seeing her new bestie.

Leo meets the Lords

By K.J. Cardinal

Yesterday Leo got to meet one of my all-time favorite families... the Lords. Bill, Kathy, Ethan and Kaeleigh were in the area for a hockey equipment sale and we parlayed that into a day of hanging out at our house.

We had a blast as it was really a love-fest all around.

Ethan took to Leo, kind of like how I took to Ethan when he was a little kid. The age difference is about the same, so it's a good comparison. On several occasions Ethan tried to talk Bill and Kathy into having another little one, but I don't think he'll have much luck there :)

It was so great to hang out with Bill and to get to see him with Leo. The males in our family all have a great way with kids where they gravitate to kids and vice versa... so we were all in our glory.

Not only did Leo and Bill get some good time together, but by the end of the night, Anna was sitting on Bill's lap and gave him a big kiss when they left. No disrespect to Bill though, but he wasn't Anna's favorite on the day... that title, without question, goes to Kaeleigh.

Anna shadowed Kaeleigh all day and the two became fast friends. Most girls Kaeleigh's age would probably be annoyed by having such a relentless shadow, but not Kaeleigh...  she seemed to love it.

Anyway, Angie and I had such a great time too. Those of you who know them can attest that Bill and Kathy are two of the easiest going, fun people to hang out with. With a collective six kids between our families, life is so busy, but we are hopeful that we can make a conscious effort to hang out more often... with the love-fest that goes on, it just seems like the right thing to do.

Thanks so much for coming down, guys. Hopefully we'll see you all (and Sam) soon!

Family visitors

By K.J. Cardinal

This week we were fortunate to get a handful of family visitors that were eager to get their hands on Leo.

On Monday, Angie's sister-in-law, Lisette, paid us a visit along with Jaden and Kassie. It was special for us to have Leo meet Lisette because Leo's middle name (Michael) is after Angie's late brother Mikey.

Needless to say, Lisette loved the little guy, as did Kassie and Jaden. I'm pretty sure Kassie would've taken him home with her if we would have let her.

Then on Wednesday, my Aunt Carol and Uncle Bill made the trek South to see the little guy. Several people told me how anxious Auntie Carol was to meet Leo, so we were psyched for them, as well as Leo, that they could meet.

In typical fashion, they spoiled the kids with gifts while they were here too. Leo got a slew of much-appreciated Red Sox gear, while Anna got a cool remote control car... Daddy, of course, approved of everything.

Also in typical fashion, Anna ended up stealing the show. She took to Uncle Bill in a hurry and before you knew it the two were out on the back deck just chatting it up.

It was so great to get some quality time with Auntie Carol and Uncle Bill and for them to get some QT with the kids too. I know that Auntie Carol was not only glad to meet Leo, but also that we renewed the name Leo Cardinal for another generation.

Thanks so much to everyone for coming down to visit!