This Crazy Life!

February Break

2024-02-25T10:52:00.000-08:00

I always look forward to February break. After the hustle and bustle of Christmas break, February break is always a welcomed relaxing break with no real holidays or commitments.

We started out the break with a quick overnighter to Youngstown to see the girls play their first home game. The new recruits and their families were invited to the game and dinner afterwards. It was so nice to the girls get to know each other and support each other.

And I love spending time where Claire is going to live!

And they have adorable penguins everywhere! This isn't even the cutest one but it was the only one I got a picture of!

Then we celebrated Greg's birthday and the new arrival of Carl! Who is the absolute sweetest dog ever and we are all a little obsessed with him!

Little issue with the ice cream cake but we all enjoyed the ice cream soup.

Again, we all loved Carl!

I ordered a new vanity for my bedroom at the lake so Claire took a ride out with me and we put it together! It came out so cute! And once my valances are up, this room will be finished. I love that Claire is always up for little projects like this with me.

I read three books!!! I just love having the time to relax and read!

Claire took her road test. Here she is checking to see if her results were in yet.

And she got them! She is now a licensed driver!

Here is Mark explaining how much likes his car and how much he would like to see it stay in one piece.

We had fun at trivia night with friends. Even though we are all terrible at trivia!!!

Mark and Oliver had fun at the Sabres game and sat right by some good friends!

Love these clowns.

Claire and I had fun thrifting and shopping! I got this guy for the lake! Augh, I can't wait for summer!

Mark and I even snuck a date night in at Winfield's (which used to be Sage's 3rd base by my old house and Mark and used to walk up there to play darts and have drinks 25 years ago!) and had a great time!

It was a great and relaxing break. We spent a lot of time relaxing and just hanging out and it was amazing. Now tomorrow it is back to the real world of school, work, appointments, practices, and driving everyone all over the place!

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

2024-02-10T12:59:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we all celebrated Grandpa's 70th birthday!

It was a great night with family celebrating my father in law!!!

And they just happened to have this! Youngstown is everywhere!

Winter Classic Tournament

2024-02-10T12:09:00.000-08:00

After snow week, Oliver had a hockey tournament and his team won!

I love these boys!

Us Moms are pretty great too!

And we had some of the cutest fans come to cheer us on!

Dominic Hasek is now a super fan too!

So proud of our boys! They played so well and gave it their all!

Snow Week

2024-02-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

After a super mild winter with barely any snow we got hit hard! It snowed like crazy and we had an ENTIRE week off of school!!!!

It was completely insane! Poor Mark was very busy digging us and our tenants out the whole week!

I loved trying all kinds of recipes in our new air fryer and...

Relaxing in the tub with my book (I read 4 books throughout the week)...

Taking some nice snowy walks and...

reading more books! Claire and I also watched a ton of Love Island!

The Bills still had to play and the fans actually had to come and shovel out the stadium! Claire had fun walking up to the Bills game and somehow her and Kathleen ended up here!

We all loved the week at home relaxing and enjoying the time off. Well, everyone except Mark who had to keep shoveling!

Happy New Year

2024-02-10T11:51:00.000-08:00

This new year was quite tame! Pretty much everyone was sick or just getting over being sick so we all enjoyed a delicious dinner, visited, and then headed home for an early night. Although it wasn't our usual rage, I will enjoyed the night with some of my favorite people!

The boys did a great job making us a delicious dinner, as usual.

Merry Christmas

2024-02-10T11:44:00.000-08:00

We started off our Christmas Eve with our lunch with friends!

This year Beau joined us and we all loved having a baby around!

After a great lunch and visit from Santa, it was time for dinner!

My guy!

Love all of these ladies!

Our annual family pic!

And the kids did their annual tossing of the reindeer food with Uncle Greg so that Santa could find our house!

Then it was Christmas morning!

I love that these two still made a plan to get up early and wake us up! And then wait for us to come down and see if Santa came!

After a great morning of opening gifts and having breakfast with Nana and Papa we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner!

It was yet another great holiday with all of our favorite people!

Holiday Fun

2023-12-16T07:52:00.000-08:00

We kicked off our holiday fun with the return of our favorite elf, Cozy!!!

Mark got into the holiday spirit and was cheering on runners that go through our neighborhood for the Holly Jolly 5k.

Then we headed off to another event that I love, the Festival of Lights!

I love that they still humor me!

I love these people!

And then we wrapped the evening up with our annual Mighty Taco trip. Even though I wish it there was more snow, we still had a blast!

This year we couldn't get on my favorite train ride and I was sick about it. But there are still so many fun things to do during the holidays that we tried something new!

So we headed up to Canada for the Festival of Lights! Of course, we stopped at Swiss Chalet first!

Again, I wish there was more snow but we still had so much fun! It was really beautiful and there was a lot to do! We walked up to Clifton Hill and the kids went on the ferris wheel! I think we found a new tradition!

Oliver had his holiday chorus and orchestra concert!

We celebrated Popp Family Christmas, even though I didn't get many pictures this year!

And we celebrated Tiffany's birthday!

So far, it has been a fun holiday season! Although I do wish we had more snow!

Thanksgiving

2023-12-02T07:27:00.000-08:00

What would a holiday be without some bumps in the road. This year my Mom was sick and couldn't make it so we hosted dinner over here and then went to my in laws. We didn't get any pictures at my in laws but I did snap a few at my house!

Mark doing his cooking!

Not too shabby for a table thrown together at 8am!

Halloween

2023-12-02T07:16:00.000-08:00

This year was another first in the changing of all of my traditions! This was the first year that the kids went trick or treating around the neighborhood all by themselves!

Love these kiddos. Even if they are growing up way too fast!

He is such a clown!

Field Hockey

2023-11-18T09:22:00.000-08:00

So we all know that Claire is a lacrosse player through and through. But, in the fall she plays field hockey for school with a lot of the lacrosse girls and some other amazing athletes. Well this year their team was absolutely amazing and THEY MADE IT TO STATES!!!!

So we had to play Clarence for the sectional. Clarence is an amazing team and honestly we never thought that we would win!

And then with .6 seconds left, this happened! It was incredible!

So we won the section and then it was off to Rochester!!!!

We went in super happy to just be there! We never expected to win!

Then my baby scored! THEN SHE SCORE AGAIN AND WE FREAKING WON!!!

Here is Claire's interview after the game!

I am so beyond proud of not only how hard she played but how amazing she is as a person!

Next stop LONG ISLAND!

We played the State Semifinal on Saturday and we WON AGAIN!!!!

Claire was in the paper! It was totally insane!

The girls were on a roll!

In the end, we lost the final game. But I am so incredibly proud that these girls made it to the final game!!! So second in the STATE is not too shabby!

The girls had a blast and this was an amazing experience!

Mark wasn't able to join us because Oliver had a hockey tournament in Lake Placid! But the three amigos had a blast sightseeing and enjoying some great food!

It was such an amazing experience and I am so proud of this entire team!!!

Halloween Fun

2023-10-29T06:25:00.002-07:00

Halloween is a little different around here now that the kids are getting bigger. When they were younger we seemed to have a different Halloween event every night. Now we just have a couple but I am holding on to them with both hands!

My school hosted their trunk or treat event and our car won first place!!! Claire and Kathleen came to help out it was a ton of fun!

Then we spent our Friday night at Grandma and Grandpa’s for their Halloween Bash! Of course Erin and I had some fancy drinks!

The kids had fun carving their pumpkins!

The Komos girls had fun being goofballs like usual!

And our favorite grinch loved carving his pumpkin!

Great Grandma had dinner plans but stopped by afterwards to visit!

And I just had to add these! Here are the kids trying to show Mark how to use Instagram!

And the other night Oliver went to the Bills game with a friend and made it on TV!

Hockey, A Birthday, and Sad News

2023-10-22T11:14:00.005-07:00

We had some sadness this month. Oliver's good buddy Krystian passed away this month. It has been so sad and so hard. I am so proud of Oliver and his friends for coming together and helping each other through this super tragic and sad time. Krystian was a sweet boy and we will miss him very much.

Oliver had a hockey tournament right after his friend passed and I was so impressed by his hockey buddies and how they all come together to help him get through this. His coach was also amazing and it reminded me that this is what hockey is all about. All the early morning practices and games, all the frustrated losses and fun wins, all the traveling, and all the waiting in the car. It is all about being a part of something that when you need it the most it is there for you. Hockey has been such a huge part of helping Oliver through this difficult time and I am so grateful that he has this amazing team and coach.

Our alternate jerseys...

Such a great group of goofballs. It was so great to see Oliver laugh with these clowns.

We came in second place!

We saw this rainbow after Krystian's wake!

Then we got to celebrate Nana's birthday!

And Claire even let Oliver hug her!

Homecoming

2023-10-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was Homecoming and Claire had an absolute blast!

She played in the powderpuff game and totally crushed it! The Seniors won (as usual) but it was still so much fun to watch!

Claire's big run!

For homecoming week, it was dress as your favorite person day! So these two clowns dressed up as each other! I love it!

Just some field hockey fun!

My beautiful girls!

She even let us be in a picture!

I love watching Claire have so much fun at all of the school events! They are so much fun!

September

2023-10-01T10:09:00.001-07:00

Ok so here is September's wrap up!

We had fun at Oliver's supply drop off for 8th grade!

Oliver and my Dad have been having so much fun fishing at Uncle Bryan's house!

And I am just soaking up every last minute of my favorite place! Here is Oliver and his best buddy Dan swimming!

Dan and Kate came up and we had a blast!

Wrapped up the summer with the Strictly Hip

Jammer TV

This is just super depressing.

Claire started her JUNIOR year! Her goals this year:

~To get good grades

~To find a good college

Oliver started 8th grade! His goals were:

~To get stronger for sports

~ To have fun!

Field hockey was in full swing!

Oliver had a super fun hockey tournament in Ohio!

Top Golf Fun

Oliver may have been ejected from a game and missed a game but we really had a blast!

On the way home Claire went to a prospect clinic at St Bonaventure!

We have been looking at colleges and really having a lot of fun doing it! It is such a big decision and I am so proud of Claire for taking her time and really looking around!

August!

2023-10-01T09:37:00.001-07:00

So I missed some stuff in August, like all of it! So here is an August wrap up!

We started August by celebrating Papa's birthday!

And now blogger is being annoying and putting my pictures in from oldest to newest, so we are just gonna have to go backwards!

We wrapped up the month with these ladies getting their nails done and 3rd earring holes for the start of sophmore and junior year!

Had a lice scare!

Some hockey boy fun!

Of course some hockey!

I got a new water bottle!

Oliver got old!

So much fun with the Jamaica crew!

Where did our babies go?!

Uncle Nick had some amazing ideas!

Instead of Jellystone we did a beach week this year! And it was a total success!

Game Nights

Fun with old friends!

So much reading!

Four square tournaments!

Claire won the sniper award!!!

Claire had her Empress banquet! We have been so impressed and happy with this organization! Claire had a blast, learned a ton, and made so many new friends!

Blueberry Picking

HAPPY HOUR

August was wild! We had two Beach Weeks back to back!

Boston Baby

2023-07-29T14:44:00.003-07:00

Claire's last lacrosse tournament of the season was in Boston, so us ladies packed up the car and we were Boston bound! GIRLS" TRIP!!!

The beauty of this trip was that is just us girls. This meant that we could stop as much as wanted!

So of course we hit up Chik Fil A and Starbucks!

And I got a bed all to myself!

I loved watching Claire play!

This is really a great group of girls and they were so sad that the summer season is over!

We made some amazing memories on this little trip and had a blast! And yes, the girls showered in a truck stop shower!!!!! They were so sweaty from their 2 games in the blazin heat and we had to drive for 7 hours. What started out as a joke quickly turned into a reality! Overall, I was SHOCKED at how clean the truck stop shower was and we will definitely but using this again for travel hockey season!

Delaware!

2023-07-12T08:40:00.004-07:00

Last weekend Claire had a lacrosse tournament in Delaware. Even though we drove around A LOT we had a lot of fun!

Of course we made time for a little field trip to the Dupont Mansion!

There were some rain delays but the girls had fun podcasting while they waited!

We had some nice meals and enjoyed a beautiful beach!

To say these poor girls were beat is an understatement! They had early games and it was like a billion degrees!

It is a great group of girls and I love watching them play!

Happy Birthday Claire & Oliver!

2023-07-12T08:33:00.006-07:00

Because life is wild, we had Claire and Oliver's birthday parties together this year!

After a delicious dinner and cake we headed down to the beach for the amazing fire works!

The kids had a blast night swimming!!!

Overall it was another perfect 3rd of July!!!

Sweet 16!

2023-07-12T08:18:00.002-07:00

Welp, Claire turned SIXTEEN!!!!

For her birthday she had a combined birthday party with her buddy Sadie!

Then on her actual birthday she GOT HER PERMIT!!!!

And headed for the open road! She is already a pretty good driver!

I am so incredibly proud of the young lady Claire has become. Ever since she was a baby she was old soul and has had this amazing personality. I wish I would take all of the credit for how incredible she is but honestly she teaches me more than I can ever teach her! She loves lacrosse, her friends, The Jersey Shore & Kardashians! She is super hard worker and extremely self motivated! I am so lucky she is mine!

End Of The Year Fun

2023-06-28T09:03:00.005-07:00

We wrapped up June with lots of lacrosse and traveling! Here are the only picture I got of us for Claire's tournament in Ohio.

We did have a delicious meal on the way home at Raising Cane's!

Oliver spent the weekend in Ellicotville for a friend's birthday so it was just the 3 of us.

Claire had her lacrosse banquet (which we weren't invited to :( ) but I still got to see her awards. I am so proud of my girl! She also made second team all western New York!

After some amazing people in my life raised some money for me when my brother passed away Mark and I wanted to do something special to honor my brother. So we put together a scholarship for someone who is pursuing a degree in criminal justice.

I was very proud to present the scholarship to a student graduating from West Senior.

Then it was time to take Oliver off to his lacrosse tournament!

I love watching this kid play!

While I was with Oliver at his tournament, Mark was with Claire at her tournament.

Then it was time for the "Greatest Day"!!! We had the best driver!!!

I love our end of the year party! We always have so much fun with everyone from work!

And now the summer officially begins!!!

And now I am back in my favorite place!

Happy Birthday Oliver

2023-06-28T08:44:00.010-07:00

Because our lives our too crazy, we are saving Oliver's birthday party until July 3rd and we will celebrate Claire and Oliver together. That being said, I still want to celebrate my special guy.

Oliver has grown up into such an amazing little man. He is so kind and sweet. He is the first to hold the door for people and ask them about their day. He is so thoughtful and always take other people's into consideration when doing things. Even though he is navigating being a teenager he still has a heart of gold. This guy loves all sports but hockey, lacrosse, and basketball are his favorites right now. He loves to go the Y with me and just shoot around and out at the lake he packs up his basketball and rides over to the courts to shoot around. Oliver loves babies, kids, and the elderly. Yesterday we went to the Y and when I went to get him from the gym I saw him playing with a few little kids. It was so sweet. He was so patient and kind to the them, it was so sweet. Oliver is super smart and does well in school, even though he is learning how to stay organized! Oliver is very social and loves to visit and chat with just about anyone! He is my little guy and I am so proud of the amazing guy he has grown up to be!

I can't believe this guy is 13! Love him to pieces!

A Wedding, The Beach, and More Lacrosse

2023-06-07T15:06:00.001-07:00

We ended the month of May with a lot of fun stuff!

We spent some time at the beach!

We had a great time at Bill and Saira's wedding!

I love when we can all get dressed up and be together!

Although I may have danced a little too much and my favorite shoes broke!!!

Thanks to my buddy Margaret I have a new favorite summer drink!

After the lake we headed back to the lake to hear the Strictly Hip!

Claire's team lost in the sectional game to Clarence. It was a tough loss but I love watching this girl play lacrosse!

It is really just a great group of girls!

This guy crushed it in his modified season too!

I love watching him play! He has so much fun on the field and he always cheering everyone on! No one celebrates like Oliver!

Then it was back out to the lake to celebrate Sue's birthday and Father's day! I somehow didn't get a picture of my Dad though!!!

I love when Greg, Sue, and Alice come out to the lake and watch the sunsets and have a fire! Such a great way to get the summer season started!

Crazy May

2023-05-27T10:54:00.005-07:00

It's no secret that the months of May and June are so crazy around here but I do love all the events!

Claire's team had their Senior night and I was so excited when Claire got to honor Lizzie. Lizzie's dad was one of my brother John's best friend growing up so I love that they play together! And Claire didn't even cry this time when she had to speak!

Oliver had his chorus concert.

Oliver had fun with Connor and he loves his sister Mia.

Oliver and his lacrosse buddies.

Claire's team made it to the playoffs!

Then we finally got to get out to the lake!

So much fun kicking off the summer with Nerds Gone Wild!

I can't believe these girls are now playing Varsity!

Oliver has been having a good season on Modified lacrosse. He was pretty pumped when he could squirt through the hole.

They girls are now onto their third game of play offs!!! So proud of these ladies!

Mother’s Day!

2023-05-14T18:34:00.003-07:00

Mother’s Day weekend is always a big weekend for us! On Friday I celebrated with my crew at our favorite family restaurant PFChangs!

On Saturday we had a nice dinner at Connors with a delicious dessert at Tiffany’s house to celebrate my Mom!

And then on Sunday we had a super fun dinner at my in laws house to celebrate my Mother in Law and Mark’s Great Grandma!

It was a nice weekend full of amazing ladies!

Orchestra

2023-05-07T12:26:00.003-07:00

We all loved attending Oliver's orchestra concert! He told us that he practices so much that he has calluses!