Happy 60th Birthday to my daddy!

Today is the 60th birthday of the greatest, smartest man I know. A man I'm lucky enough to get to call my DAD. I know he's not happy about getting "old" (his words, not mine!), but the truth of the matter is, he is in better shape than most people half his age and is totally going to kick 60's ass!!! :)

I love you dad! I know spending the day with Kendall will ease the pain of entering a new decade.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!

Think they'll hassle the Hoff in Japan?

It's the end of an era....ok, maybe not an "era" so much as it is "the end of a lifelong minor league career". Yes, Cubs AAA and sometimes big club player Micah Hoffpauir has decided to go play in Japan...you know, where mediocre MLB players go when they are out of options. Like Micah. Does anyone else find it freakin hilarious that the name of his new team is the Ham Fighters? Anyone? Hello? Is this thing on?

Best of luck to Hoff....he's still hot and for that, I will miss him. For his like .150 average, I will not miss him.

Now begs the ever present question-who will be the Cubs first baseman next season? The rumors are still swirling that super hottie (and future All-Star, just sayin) Tyler Colvin may fit the bill. I'm not so sure that's the best idea. Tyler is a GREAT outfielder. He's got a good, strong arm, I'd had to see that go to waste at first base. I mean, let's face it, first base is probably the position that requires the least amount of athleticism, right? I mean, sure, periodically you need to be able to do the splits when you receive a wild throw from Aramis Ramirez and, yes, you need to be able to throw to third, but really, other than being able to catch a ball, that's about your only job requirement. Right?

Here's what I want to see happen-get rid of Fukudome. I'm sure he's a very nice guy and his little Japanese baby was really cute, but seriously? He gotsta go. The Cubs will probably have to eat some of his horrendously high salary (another Jim Hendry special!), but get rid of him. He serves no purpose. For reals.

NOOOOOOOOOOO!

I can get over the fact that the Blues lost 8-1 last night, ending their 7 game winning streak and giving them two whole losses this season. I can. What I can't get over is the fact that even though they were killing the Blues, the Blue Jackets (dumb name, but whatever) continued to pick at them...picking fights and, well, playing like assholes. And now we've lost our best player. Yep, TJ Oshie broke his ankle last night because of some asshat. Now, Osh hasn't scored as many goals as we'd like, but he's leading the team in points and his mere presence on the ice is a team lifter. This is not good news. The Blues already have a ridiculous amount of injuries thanks to concussions and whatnot. To lose your best player, probably for months, is a huge momentum killer. I hope the team can regroup and remember that they are actually good, and play well enough until they start getting some of their guys back. To put this in perspective, this would be like the Cardinals losing Albert Pujols for most of the season. It's that big.

My niece is 19 months old today!

My little sweetie is such a big girl! I just can't get over how big she is! And how smart-she's a sharp little cookie! And so cute it's ridiculous.

She is definitely a sports lover. Every time she sees a football game on TV (even if we're out in public), she yells "BALL!" and points. We also taught her to raise her arms as we yell "touchdown". It's super freakin cute. She also yells "blues" when she sees hockey on TV. Kid's gonna fit right in. Yesterday I asked her if I could come and babysit her next weekend....she shook her head yes. How freakin adorable is that?????  She's also a sweetie-yesterday at church, her daddy put her down and she ran straight for her Aunt Kerri.....kid just melts my heart every time. She was also telling us all to "sit" as we were standing while singing a hymn at church. Ok...so she's a bossy little thing too. :) I love it.

The Blues AND the Rams are in first place???? Don't wake me if I'm dreaming!

Seriously people, when is the last time this happened? Let's talk about the Rams first. Sure, on paper a 4-4 record is not much to brag about, but when you're in the division they're in, a 4-4 record puts you in a tie for first place. We'll take it. And here's to kicking some 49er butt this Sunday!

Now on to the Blues. Wow. That's about the only word I can use to describe them. At 9-1-2, they have 20 points on this young season, only 2 other teams have that many points in the entire NHL. That's right folks, our Blues have the highest point total in the ENTIRE NHL. Um...when has that ever happened? Me thinks never in the time that I've been following them (which has been since around age 13, so you know, only a couple of years).

This is exciting stuff! My sibs and I are going to the Blues game on Dec 1, I can't wait! My niece loves them too, yelling "Blues" every time she sees hockey on TV. Both goalies are amazing, and it's a different guy scoring every night. Granted, they seem to not be able to score on the power play, but I'm not complaining. They've won 7 in a row, including four shutouts. Um......awesome.

7-1-2

I know it's only been 10 games.....but our St Louis Blues have won 7 of them. Are they for real? Still too early to say but I'll tell you this-Jaroslav Halak appears to be the real deal in goal. WOW is he impressive. The Blues won again last night, they are undefeated at home, and they now sit atop the Central division. Yes, that's right, I didn't stutter, the ST LOUIS BLUES are in first place. Sounds strange, doesn't it? Try saying it out loud Blues fans, maybe it'll be easier to believe if you practice. I'm so excited! This is just what I need to help me get over the ending of the baseball season. It's so much fun being excited about Blues hockey again! Let's face it, it's been awhile. Mike D'Agostini and David Perron are on fire with five goals each and Halak is, well, just amazing. Three shutouts in his last four games......seriously? Yes, seriously. I love it!!!!!!!

Holy Brian Wilson's Beard, the Giants have won the World Series!

Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants, winners of the 2010 World Series. I was rooting for Texas all along, but somewhere along the way, I developed what should probably be considered an unhealthy obsession with Giants closer, Brian Wilson. Actually, the obsession started way back around the time of the All-Star Game. Dude is just hilarious. And completely bat-shit crazy. I love him.

Let's face it, the Giants pitching is amazing and they completely shut the Rangers down. They won, fair and square. I was hoping it would go seven games because I'm not ready for baseball to be over.....but now it is. Pitchers and catchers report in February, here's hoping I can make it until then.

Good thing I have some good distractions-the Rams are 4-4 going into their bye week-can't argue with that. And the Blues, yes, the ST LOUIS BLUES, are ranked #1 in ESPN's latest power rankings. For reals. They are currently 6-1-2 and, well, are pretty damn good. They are right behind Chicago for the lead, despite the fact that they've played FOUR less games than Chicago. Get excited folks, get excited! WOO!