Hockey x 2

Although I'm not a big hockey fan, I do have to say that the female hockey group here seems pretty fabulous so far. They helped out at Lovey's hockey school one day and spent a lot of time working with her and they also put on a free clinic today for any girls that wanted to come try hockey and see what it's like. They provided 24 sets of gear so parents wouldn't have to pay for equipment. They provided a free lunch for the players, their parents and siblings. They broke up the day and had games and activities so the girls could get to know each other. You could keep the gear for the year if your girl decided to join the league. Helmets, sticks, everything,  head to toe! They also put on a weekly girls' practice night for free. They realllllllllly want to get some girls on the teams I think!

Honey had decided to go check it out and the price was right for her noncommittal level of interest! This morning as I was braiding her hair, I asked if she was excited about going. She hesitantly said she "kinda" was. I asked her if she was a bit nervous too and she admitted she was. So I asked what she was nervous about and she replied that she remembered Tulip telling her that  she'd seen one university hockey player rip the facemask off another player and smash him in the face and Honey was afraid THAT was going to happen to her today! i assured her that fights like that don't happen at their level and then I promised her that no one would be smashing her in the face at this event!

She spent the day but had a fall early in the day and bumped her head. This soured her on the hockey experience a bit. (so much for assuring her of her safety!!!) Sweetie and I popped in to see how things were going after lunch and they were just finishing a break so we got to talk to them for awhile (and get in the all important photo op!). Lovey was having a great time and had been looking forward to getting back on the ice for days now. Since she'd done the week of hockey school and the rest were all beginners, she was actually one of the better players there (which I'm sure added to the enjoyment of the event!) Honey was about the same level as the others.

At the end of the day Murray asked if she wanted to play for the year and she wasn't sure. She was afraid if she signed up she might not like it and she was afraid that if she didn't sign up she might regret it. (She's already sorry she didn't sign up for gymnastics with Sweetie). Murray told her that more times than not, we regret the things we didn't try, more than the things we did. and then he wrote a cheque reallllly fast. :))) Sweetie, by the way, has no regrets and is very happy she has nothing to do with this hockey business. So as they say Murray, 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

Midweek Surprise!

Guess who landed on our doorstep the other night for supper and a visit! Grammie & Grandad! The kids had the day off and it was Mum's day off too so they were in doing some shopping (big event coming up so they gotta get prepared you know :))) and came to our house after they finished loading up the car (woohoo!) with purchases.

We had a rather rambunctious meal as my children have never sat at a table before, or used utensils, or been taught not to scream at the table etc. I wish the apes that raised them had done a better job on table manners... :S Oh well, no one will ever claim boredom at one of our "dinner parties".

After supper we took the dogs for a nice walk and the girls next door came along and joined us. You know you live in the sticks when you can pick up your road and take it with you for the walk right?

iPod Part II

So, Lovey gave the matter some thought (almost a couple of hours I think) and decided she too must have an iPod. She'd been saving her violin prize money from last year and then got the same cash influx when I cleaned house & sold off their toys/games/books so was easily able to afford the purchase. After watching Honey with hers in the van, she was pretty sure she needed one. By the time dance class was over that day and we were driving home, she was about 90% sure. By bedtime that night she was surely going to die without one!!!

On Wednesday that week we made a pit stop on the way to violin and snagged one for her and made her life complete ;))) I'm not sure that last bit is entirely true, but so far, she's definitely getting her money's worth.

Have Compass, Will Travel!

Or at least, we would, if anyone had remembered to bring a compass! We didn't let a little thing like lack of compulsory equipment stop us from entering and enjoying an orienteering race this weekend! That's why God made iPhones right? There's an app for that! This is why we hang around Murray's brother, he keeps us current :)

The kids had a great time tearing through the woods in search of the different stations or checkpoints or whatever they're called. It was a nice day for a stroll through the trees and my glutes got a workout on the steep hills!

The girls took good care of Mr Bojangles and got him through all the tricky sections when he got afraid that holes in the earth might suck him in.

We had a great afternoon in the fresh air, won the race (only 1 other family participated though LOL)  and got home in time for a fabulously delicious turkey dinner!!! Nice way to end a day :)))