Banana's on a roll. Her ringette team is kicking ass and takin' names at the city finals. Tonight is the second last game, so I and several of her relatives are going to watch the big matchup. Success at this game would mean the team is off to the provincial playoffs in Fort Saskatchewan in mid-March.

The team experience for Banana has been top-notch this year. Her coach has given fair allotments of ice time to all players - even the less-talented ones; everyone that has wanted to has been able to play goal; the team manager has acquired team hoodies, a team banner and even matching toques for all the kids; the team has only lost 2 of the 20 or so games they have played; they have won both tournaments that they have played in, including the prestigious Esso Golden Ring tournament - everything is just perfect. I've even commemorated the good year by patching together a video from some of my (and other parents) home videos.

This has been a good experience for Banana, who was on a team last year that was friendly and fair enough, but couldn't buy a win in any of their games. I have a feeling that next year's team won't be quite so successful and that her character will be tested more completely. If she's on a team that isn't so hot, she will need to play a little more aggressively in order to get that winning feeling again.