More Family Day Stuff

First of all, I'm cheating...I'm way behind in posting, so I'm changing the date to try to keep things in order.

Now, onto Day 2 of the Robertson's visit.

Sunday was pretty low key - we went to the mall, and ended up being there all morning. I've never really enjoyed our local mall - it's small, and doesn't have any great stores - but, Tom and Krystle didn't seem to mind, and they managed to pick up stuff for the whole family.

We stayed in for dinner, and although I planned on making something, we decided on something much better - we had pizza delivered! The reason I mention this is because we've lived here for three years, and never knew we could get pizza delivered out here, could be dangerous information :)

Monday was actually 'Family Day' and we made the best of it this year, we all went bowling! It was Nolan's first time, and he had a blast. And, because he was having so much fun, it was fun for the rest of us.


Nolan's very first try - getting a little help from Dad, and a 'ramp'.


Celebrating his great shot!


Nolan getting into it - by the look on that face, he's hoping for a strike!


And, judging by that face, he may have gotten a strike?!? :)


Check out that score sheet - 'NR' up top is Nolan, and he broke 100! Pretty impressive considering there were no bumpers in the gutters, his only help was that 'ramp' thing...and he didn't even use that every time, he wanted to bowl like us. And, take another look, 'MV' was the big winner with a score of 146 - yup, that was me!

So, I think bowling was a big hit, and it was a fun way to spend the morning.

Unfortunately, that pretty much wrapped up our weekend. After lunch and naps, the Robertson's hit the road to get home in good time, and I went off to skating for the evening.

It was a great weekend - thanks to Tom and Krystle for making the trip! We really enjoyed having you, and can't wait until your next visit.

Belated Family Day Post

Well, I am a full week behind in posting this, but I don't want to skip this post because we had a really fun weekend. Tom, Krystle, Nolan and Abby came for a visit - they arrived on Saturday and left Monday afternoon, so we had lots of time for visiting.

They arrived while I was at skating, and when I got home from the rink, everyone was napping...it was hard to resist going in to wake Nolan up, I'd been waiting for a hug and kiss from that little guy for awhile :)

Anyway, once everyone was awake and ready to go, the boys and I headed over to the rink across the road for a little skate. Nolan was pretty excited to get to play hockey, and I was excited to see how Nolan's skating was coming. However, when we were talking about going, Nolan told me that I wasn't allowed to go because I was 'a bad girl skater'...what?!?! Don't know where that came from, last time we went skating, he didn't mention anything of the sort. Obviously I went with them anyway, but then when I put my skates on and started skating, Nolan told me to 'STOP' and then said I had to have a penalty because I had white skates...what?!?!


The boys out skating; Nolan was the goalie the whole time, so I didn't actually get to see much skating, but he was having fun, so that's OK.


Nolan and I on the ice. You can see that his comments had an affect on me, and that I really love him, because I have a hockey stick in my hand :)

After skating, it was off to town to go out for dinner. We went to a restaurant called 'The Bull & Boar'. We tried this restaurant last time the Robertson's were in town, and we all really liked it, so it may become a tradition when they visit.


Abby at dinner; I think she looks so cute in this picture - look at those eyelashes, and her lips - too bad Tom's toque is on her!

Saturday was also bath night, not that I have a lot to say about this, but I do have a few fun pictures to share.


Just before bath time, Nolan had to come out to the living room to show me his boxers! This one just makes me laugh, Nolan's face is so funny, and Abby looks pretty comfy there with her brother.


Mohawks! You can tell that Abby's hair is getting long, her mohawk wouldn't stand up, it kept flopping over.


We also tried to get a good picture of Abby and I before bath time - we wanted a picture where you could read her shirt, this is the closest we could come. Her shirt says 'My Aunt is my BFF'...I got it for her back in July, when Curt and I were in California.

So that wraps up Day 1 - I didn't plan on this being so long, or having so many pictures - but once I saw how long it was getting, I decided I better break this up. More pics to come from the rest of their visit :)

In No Particular Order

It's Friday night - Curt has a hockey game, after which he'll probably go out for beer and wings, and I'm at home watching TV, which is totally fine by me, in fact, I wouldn't have it any other way.

It's been another busy week, and it's going to be a busy weekend, so I'm glad to have some down time.

I really wanted to write a post while I have the time, but I don't really have anything to write about, so here comes some random thoughts from the week.

1. As I mentioned, we're in for a busy weekend - and that's because we're having company, my brother and his family are coming for a few days, and I'm REALLY excited! I haven't seen them since Christmas, and that's too long to go between visits.

We were hoping to go skating while they're here (on the rink that Curt made in the park across the street), but, it's been really mild the last two days, so it's more like a pool now. The forecast says it's going to get cold again, so maybe we'll get lucky and it will re-freeze.

2. So yeah, it's been mild for a few days...I think it was 7 degrees this afternoon! It's been a nice little taste of spring, but the reality is, we still have plenty of cold weather to get through before it's really spring.

3. We've started working on carnival at one of the clubs I coach at. We decided on 'Around the World' as a theme - and anyone who knows me is going to think it was my idea, but it wasn't, another coach came up with it - but, I am very excited about it! I will be choreographing a number with my older STARSkaters, and I'm going to use music from Africa! I started looking for music last weekend, it's going to be hard to select just one song :)

4. Curt and I are going to Acton in April, although Curt doesn't really know this yet ;) My nephew Nolan is going to be in his own skating carnival, and I can't miss that. He's going to be a monkey...ha!

5. Curling continues to be a lot of fun, but, we're not doing as well as we were when we first started. I guess we had some serious beginners luck, and it's run out. A few weeks ago, Curt figured out the league standings, and we were tied for third...we haven't won a game since then, so now we're probably down to fourth or fifth. Hopefully we can turn things back around, we need to get ourselves into the "A" Pool for playoffs!

And, I'm going to finish with the most random stuff of all...

6. Last weekend we watched the movie 'Conviction'; it was really good, a tear jerker, and I highly recommend it. And, I'm reading a really good book. It's called 'The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society'; it's a weird title, and I never would have bought it, but, some friends and I started a book club, and this is the first selection.

And now, I have some carnival stuff to prepare for tomorrow - and when that's done, I'm going to read for awhile - then it's off to bed nice and early, so I'm well rested for the weekend!

Distant Memories

This post is long overdue, but I wanted to go ahead and write about two skating competitions that I attended with my skaters back in January. The first one was Shining Waters, a competition for my CanSkate/lower level skaters, and the second one was Whitby Invitational, a competition for my STARSkate/higher level skaters.

SHINING WATERS
Shining Waters Interclub was hosted by Norwood & District Figure Skating Club this year; I had six kids competing, four from Tweed and two from Quinte.

There was a lot of drama surrounding our Tweed entries - one of our registration packages was received a week after the deadline, and they weren't going to let the majority of our kids in. The worst part was that most of the kids who were going to be turned away were our CanSkaters - this was going to be their first competition, so they had gone out and purchased new dresses, Tweed jackets, etc. and it looked like it was all going to be for nothing. The other concern was that this competition is often what helps hook young skaters in, they experience a fun competition and can't wait to do it again. About a week and a half before the competition, an error in the scheduling was discovered, and we were informed that our skaters would be allowed to compete - so it all ended well, it just caused a lot of stress for a few weeks!

One of my favourite parts of the day was when my little skater Ella, who is only five, placed third in Individual Elements. This was the first time she won a medal; and leading up to the competition, her mom told that if she won a medal, she would give her a toonie! So, when her mom lifted her up to show her the results sheet, she looked at her mom and said 'Do I really get a WHOLE toonie now?!'

Another highlight was having another skater, Alyssa, place first in both her Individual Elements and her FreeSkate. This little girl works so hard, my older kids could really learn from her and the work ethic she has! Anyway, she said to me after she found out about the gold in Individual Elements, 'That was my goal, because last year I was second, so this year I wanted to get first!' Way to set goals, Alyssa! :)

It was the first competition for one of my Quinte skaters, Kaitlin, so when she placed third in her Individual Elements she was VERY excited (as were her parents)!

Unfortunately, two of my skaters placed last, or second to last, in all of their events...that is always really hard to handle as a coach. It's not that they skated poorly, they went out and did their best, it's just that they had some stiff competition. They have another competition in two weeks, and I certainly hope that they do better there - I made some changes to their solos, and they get to do a different set of elements, so hopefully that helps.

WHITBY INVITATIONAL
I had four skaters competing at this competition, all from Tweed, and it was a great competition...well, for three out of four of them, anyway.

My first skater of the day, Britteny, didn't skate her best - she is usually a very powerful skater, with lots of speed, but she was hesitant and looked slow at the competition. The main components of her solo were done well, but she skated it slow and ended up finishing just behind the music. She was devastated, and really hard on herself, even when she found out that she placed fifth out of ten. I had never seen this side of her, probably because this is the first time she hasn't placed in the top three - but, this is also the first time that she has faced this type of competition. It was a good lesson for her, even though she doesn't know it yet :)

My second skater of the day, Jillian, is the one who didn't fare so well - she ended up placing seventh out of nine. This poor girl is just not meant to jump, she's been working on three main jumps all season, and still can't land them. So, unfortunately, I knew going into the competition that she wouldn't do well. Prior to this competition, Jillian, her mom and I had had a little meeting, and we discussed the struggles she has with jumps, and the three of us decided it might be best to take a break from them for a bit, so she doesn't just get frustrated and want to quit skating - so, now that the competition is behind her, we've been choreographing an interpretive program, and she seems to be having a lot more fun.

My next skater, Kate, had a great skate and like Britteny, placed fifth out of ten.

And finally, Leah, she is my 'loose cannon'...I just never know what to expect from her when it comes to competitions. But, she skated a great program, had one of the best axle attempts I've seen her do, and ended up placing fifth out of eleven.

So, three fifth place finishes...at least they're consistent!

This was the last competition of the season for these girls, so I'm glad that it went well for them.

Now, it's time for them to focus on Dance and FreeSkate for an upcoming test day.

Continued Absence

Well, as you know, things have been really quiet on my blog for the last few months...and, unfortunately, I think they're going to stay that way for awhile.

Last week, my contract at work was extended, again...and, not just for two weeks (which I was expecting), it's been extended all the way to May 20th.

Honestly, I have mixed feelings about this...

There are the obvious positives - it's a job; it's a 'real' job in the social services field, so I'm kinda using my degree; it pays well; they've accommodated my skating schedule; and, it's Monday to Friday.

But, there are some negatives, too - although it's a 'real' job in the social services field, sometimes I feel like I used my degree more while working at the golf course; it's been pretty hectic working all day Monday to Friday, and then skating three nights a week and Saturdays; and, the work itself is boring and monotonous.

This job has been a very good experience, and I've learned a lot, even in the short time that I've been there.

I've learned a lot about social services - I had no idea this program even existed prior to starting, so that alone is big; but, in dealing with the clients, I've also learned a lot about other programs that exist in our area.

I've also learned a lot about myself - I can be really patient when it comes to teaching kids to skate, not so much when I'm dealing with irate people yelling at me on the phone; no matter how boring and monotonous the job, I'm still going to give 110%; and, I'm on the fence about whether or not I'm really a Monday to Friday, nine to five, kinda girl.

So, I'm trying to be positive and appreciate the opportunity while I have it. I'm sure the next few months will fly by and I'll be back to the dreaded 'job searching'...I can only hope that this new experience is beneficial on my resume.

And, that turned into a really wordy post, and all I'm trying to say is that my posts will probably continue to be few and far between for awhile.

Belated Florida Post

I can't believe that it's already the end of January...and, the last time I posted was the beginning of January :( To say that this month has been busy is a bit of an understatement.

My last post was just a few days before we left for Florida. We had a great trip, and enjoyed getting away from the snow and freezing temperatures! One of my co-workers questioned us going there because it wasn't 'that warm'...but hey, green grass, palm trees and flip flops (in January), are good enough for me!

Some of the typical stuff we enjoyed while there - shopping at all the awesome Outlet Malls and other favourite American stores (like TJ Maxx, Ross, JC Penney, Kohl's and Target), going to Webster's Flea Market, hanging out by the pool and spending a little time just relaxing around the condo.

And, we played golf, of course! Our first game was at Celebration Golf Course - we'd heard good things about this course, and it definitely did not disappoint! We were paired up with a father (from Tampa) and his son (from Wisconsin), and had a great time with them. I used to be really intimidated about playing with strangers, but I'm getting used to it, and so far, it's always worked out really well and we've met some great people (plus, I just remind myself that I'll never see the people again, so it doesn't matter if I don't play well!).


This is a horrible picture, but the only picture of Curt and I from the whole trip. We didn't do very well with the camera on this trip.

And this is going to seem ridiculous, but one of the best parts of the game was seeing an alligator on the course!! :) We've played a lot of golf in Myrtle Beach and Florida, and courses always have signs saying don't feed the alligators...but, we never actually see any - in California and Arizona, the signs were about snakes, but we didn't see any of those either!


Here he is! I know it's not a great pic, but can you find him? He was on the other side of the pond, which wasn't great for pictures, but probably best for our nerves!

We played our other two games at Kissimmee Oaks Golf Club, and I was spotting alligators in all the ponds there! It was cold for gators though, so these ones were all in the water, and all I saw were their nostrils.

The other thing I have to highlight is our experience at the indoor surf center, a new addition to the 'resort' we stayed at. You may have seen something similar to it on commercials for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines - they call it 'FlowRider' and have it on a few of their ships. Here is how it's described on the Royal Caribbean website...'The FlowRider sends a thin sheet of water up a sloped and (thankfully) cushioned platform to create a wavelike flow of water.'

The one we tried was all indoors, and although it was cushioned, it still HURT like crazy! It hurt when I fell, and I was sore for days afterwards (my arms were so sore I wasn't sure I would be able to play golf!?!?...all because I was so tense during it). We had a half hour session, and although I could stand up on my own, I still couldn't even move around by the end. Curt, on the other hand, was pretty good by the end...of course, he always picks things like that up pretty fast.


A picture of Curt 'surfing'...we have a video too, and I was really hoping to post that so you could see his wipeout at the end, but I can't get it to work.

No pictures of me surfing; I told Curt he couldn't take any until the second time we tried it - but, then I was too sore to try it again :) I'm OK with that though - we'll try it again next time we're there, and hopefully I'll be better, and won't be too embarrassed for pictures.

We've been home two and a half weeks, and I already feel ready for another vacation...especially after writing this post! My parents head to Florida for a few weeks at the end of March...maybe we'll have to crash their trip :) Just kidding, don't panic, Dad.

*I forgot to include this picture yesterday, when I originally posted about Florida...so I'm adding it in today...


On the left, an odd 'Lobster Car' advertising a seafood restaurant, and on the right, our awesome rental car - a brand new Jeep Liberty! I love the Jeep Patriot I drive at home, but originally I wanted a Liberty - it was more expensive, and not as good on gas though, so we went with the Patriot. When booking the rental online, we paid for a mid-size, and expected a Toyota Corolla, so we were really excited when we were told to pick anything from a certain row in the parking garage, and sitting in that row was the Liberty (well I was really excited, Curt maybe not so much).

So Far, So Good

So, we're officially three days into 2011, and so far, it's been a great year!

We didn't have big plans for New Year's Eve, we were just going to go to a house party for a potluck dinner, games and visiting. So, when I wasn't feeling great on Friday, I decided that I wouldn't be missing too much if I stayed home. And, that's what I did - stayed home, and even went to bed before midnight. Curt went ahead and went to the party, so he didn't miss out on the fun. New Years has never been really big to us...for the past two years, we've been in Myrtle Beach on golf trips - we liked to play golf early New Years Day, so we never ended up staying out too late, or doing anything too exciting, in Myrtle Beach, either.

Saturday, New Years Day, was a really relaxing day around here...Sunday and Monday have been too, actually. It's been great having three days off, and being at home for them. We've been sleeping in, watching TV, eating, napping, cleaning, blogging...oh yeah, some of you may have noticed that I finally caught up on December posts, I wrote all those in the last few days, and just changed the post date to reflect the date I meant to post them :)

One of the best parts of having all this time off, at home, is that it gave us a chance to get our Christmas decorations all cleaned up. It's always great to have the decorations out for the season, but equally great to get them put away when it's all over!

Another benefit of this time off, we've had lots of time to pack...for our trip to Florida! We leave on Wednesday, and I couldn't be more excited. I finished my last load of laundry today, and did the ironing I needed to do, so I'm pretty much ready. I'll have a few last minute things to throw in the bag on Wednesday morning, but that's it! (The trip is part of the reason I decided to skip out on New Years Eve, I don't want to be sick for the trip - and although I'm still coughing, my throat isn't as sore, so I think it was worth it).

So, here's to hoping that tomorrow goes by really fast!