A Weekend of Hockey - Part 3

After the game on Friday night, Curt and I had to drive to Kingston to spend the night while everyone else stayed in Ottawa. I had another skating competition on Saturday, the last one of the season, and my two skaters both skated early in the morning.

This post is supposed to be about hockey, but I do have to mention that Hannah and Alyssa both did great at this competition - they both improved their skate, and their results, from their last competition (particularly Hannah who forgot part of her solo last time). Hannah ended up placing fourth out of seven...but she was THRILLED with that; as she walked up to me to tell me her results, I could have sworn she was going to tell me she was first based on the smile on her face - it was stretching from ear to ear! And Alyssa ended up placing fifth out of eight - I wouldn't say she was thrilled, but she was happy with it.

And as another side note, I had the unfortunate experience of getting a huge dent in the door of my Jeep on Saturday morning! It was incredibly windy, and the lady who parked beside me at the arena opened her car door and when she let go it smashed into my door...not a great way to start the morning :(

Anyway, back to the hockey weekend - we all met up again on Saturday afternoon, and after a few hours around our house, we decided to go out for dinner. We went to 'The Bull and Boar' restaurant in Belleville, a spot we usually hit when my brother is in town.

Nolan showing off his printing...while we were waiting for our food, he wrote everyone's name, and what they were having for dinner. I can't believe how big he is getting :)
And from there, it was off to another hockey game - this time it was a Belleville Bulls game!

Nolan had the chance to meet one of the mascots...I don't know if this in 'Bullie' or 'Toro'?
Nolan made some friends at this game too, this time it wasn't because he cried, instead it was when he was cheering LOUD when a fight broke out on the ice :) What a kid!

It's a lot easier to change seats at a game at this level, so when we spotted some front row seats that were open down by the visiting teams bench, we decided to check them out during the third period...
Unfortunately this game turned out to be a bit of a waste of time as the Bulls lost 10 to 3 to the Niagara Ice Dogs. Needless to say, it was getting a little boring by the end!

And that pretty much wraps up our hockey weekend! Our out of town guests were on the road by about noon on Sunday, and Curt and I spent the rest of the day resting after our busy, but FUN, weekend!

Big thanks go out to the Robertson's and Waller's for visiting and for allowing us to be a part of their hockey weekend!

A Weekend of Hockey - Part 2

So, after our successful and exciting afternoon, we had some time to kill around the hotel. It involved watching TV, playing games and napping! We all thought Nolan would be too excited to fall asleep, but he did get in a short nap which we knew would be for everyone's benefit by the end of the night :)

Nolan getting his face painted before leaving for the game...
Emily, Tom and Nolan showing their Blackhawk spirit...
Arriving at the arena! You'll notice that Curt is wearing an Ottawa sweater...Curt being a Sens fan made this whole experience that much more fun :)
Nolan with one of the signs he and Tom made...had our seats been lower, this is the kind of poster that gets you on TV :)
During practice...both of them, in awe ;)
'Oh Canada'...let the game begin...
Ottawa got the first goal of the game, during the first period, and when Curt and I stood up to cheer, Nolan got a little upset...as in, he started to cry. I think we were all a little shocked because he has been to a lot of Guelph Storm hockey games, so he knows that 'his team' doesn't always win; but he told Tom that the reason he was crying was because he was mad at me because I was cheering for the wrong team! I felt so bad! I tried to stay neutral throughout the rest of the game.

There was a group of about six or seven people in front of us - one of the guys in that group was cheering for Ottawa, the rest were cheering for Chicago. When they noticed Nolan's tears they were all so nice to him, telling him that there was still lots of time for Chicago to score and trying to make him feel better. The two ladies sitting in the group were absolutely heart broken by his little tears, you could tell they just wanted to give him a big hug.

We got our tickets through my former boss, Russ, and he was there with three friends from the golf course. They had seats in the 100 level, and during the third period they let Nolan and I go down to check out their seats. It was a great view, and we almost got to see Ottawa score, but it went off the crossbar. I don't think Nolan really appreciated how much closer we were, and he eventually just wanted to go back to sit with his dad.

Chicago ended up winning, 3 to 1, so Nolan (and Tom) left happy!

And finally, a picture of Curt and I, just for proof that I was actually there...
There was one more hockey game during the weekend, but I'll have to do another post to cover that one.

A Weekend of Hockey - Part 1

This past weekend was a busy one for us, and for a change, it wasn't ALL about a skating competition (although there was one of those too...more on it later).

My brother and nephew are huge fans of the Chicago Blackhawks, and on Friday night, they were in Ottawa to play the Senators. So, months ago, we made plans to go to the game and to make a weekend of it. And, I guess because it sounded like so much fun, my brothers friend and his family decided to join us too!

Our guests arrived on Thursday night, and by 9 o'clock Friday morning, we were on the road to Ottawa - do you think they were excited, or what?!? My brother had made reservations at the same hotel that the Blackhawks were staying at, with hopes that they would get the chance to meet some players and get autographs. We went straight there, and arrived shortly before the team was expected to return from their morning practice - so, we sat in the lobby, waiting for their bus, armed with a Sharpie and a hockey stick to have signed!

Nolan was ready, Toews jersey and all...
Unfortunately, as soon as the players bus pulled up, the hotel staff told us that we 'had to respect the players privacy' and then created a bit of a wall so we wouldn't really be able to get too close to the players.

The players entering the hotel; those people with their hands behind their backs, that's the hotel 'security'...
I was disappointed that not one of the players even acknowledged Nolan, standing there wide eyed with his jersey, obviously in awe as they walked by...disappointed isn't really the right word, I was ticked!

Finally, one of the last guys in stopped...he was 'the voice of the Blackhawks', the guy who does the play by play. He was great with Nolan, and had a good chat with Tom...but, not exactly who they were looking to talk to :)
Once the players were all in, and the possibility of an autograph was gone, we went up to the room to relax and order lunch. While waiting for the pizza to be delivered, we decided to go for a walk to check out the pool area. And, after seeing the pool, as we walked to the elevator to go back to our room, my brother saw Marian Hossa waiting for the elevator! Although he couldn't get his attention, we did realize that the players were having lunch in a nearby banquet room...so, if we waited in and around that area, we may actually get another chance to meet players. So, that's what we did...waited...and met about ten players!

Nolan getting his first autograph from Bryan Bickle...
And, from the goalie, Ray Emery...
I can't remember who the guy on the left is...but, the guy on the right, with a cookie in his mouth, is Andrew Shaw. He's from Belleville, and I used to coach skating with his sister - I threw that out there while he was signing Nolan's hockey stick :)
Yet another guy that I can't remember...could be Brandon Bollig? Tom, correct me if I'm wrong.
Nolan was able to get autographs from a few other players, and we did get pictures, but since I can't remember who they were, and I've already included a lot of pictures, I'll leave those ones out.

My next post will be about the actual game, and it too will be full of more pictures!

A Normal Weekend

Guess what I did this past weekend?

Give up?

I went to another skating competition! Yup, another one. Thankfully, this one was in Belleville, so there was no travel involved. Unfortunately, the two girls I had competing didn't really do all that well.

This particular competition, Eastern Ontario STARSkate Invitational Championships (EOSIC), is a big one...skaters from all over Eastern Ontario compete in hopes of qualifying to compete at the provincial level. There are always a lot of skaters competing in each level, and competition is fierce.

You can actually feel that the competition level at this event is more intense than it is at Invitational or Club Competitions. And, because this was the first time both girls competed at EOSIC, I think they were a little caught up in their surroundings.

Jillian skated on Friday, and although she skated well, it just wasn't enough to compete at this level. She was happy with her skate though, and said going in that she didn't expect much. She ended up placing eleventh out of fourteen. And, she was surprisingly OK with that...she said she was just glad she wasn't last.

Britteny skated on Saturday, and I was a little disappointed in her skate (not that I told her that). She is normally a powerful skater, with great speed and flow throughout her solo. That was NOT the case on Saturday...she practically walked through her program?!? I was at the boards whispering 'push, push, push' the whole time! So although she skated a clean program - she landed her jumps and her spins were decent - it too just wasn't enough to compete at this level. She ended up placing tenth out of eleven. She too was surprisingly OK with it...so I guess I should be too. I just know that she could have done a lot better, and all I really want is for my skaters to do their best.

This was the last competition of the season for these two - now it's time for them to focus on an upcoming test day.

It's going to be a busy few weeks, but the season is drawing to a close!

Shooting Stars

This past weekend was Shooting Stars Interclub - another skating competition. This competition is also known as interclub, and it's meant to be a FUN competition - and I know that the five skaters I had competing, definitely had a lot of fun.

I had two skaters, Alyssa and Hannah, competing in two events on Saturday morning. When Hannah arrived at the rink, I was surprised to see her right hand all wrapped up?!? She had a little accident at a school dance the night before, and pulled a ligament in her wrist. She was in a lot of pain, and her fingers were swollen and blue, but she was determined to skate anyway!

Alyssa's older brother was at the competition watching, and he told Hannah that 'the pain will end, but the glory will last forever'. Ha! She kind of adopted that as her motto all weekend!

They competed in Shadow Dance, skating the Canasta Tango, and then did their Similar Pairs. They ended up last in the Shadow Dance, despite skating well, but placed third in Similar Pairs! Everyone was really proud of their great finish because the girls actually choreographed their whole program themselves! I let them work on it on their own, and when I gave them lessons, I really only reminded them about staying in unison.

Hannah and Alyssa - after their skate, they're all smiles as they wait for medal presentations. You can't really tell in this picture, but those outfits were BRIGHT green! I heard people watching talk about them :) Alyssa was able to borrow them from her dance studio.

On Sunday, I had five skaters competing in three or four events each - and, they all won medals in two or three of those events!

My little Ella - she is awesome! She is very determined, and isn't really happy unless she gets first...so, she couldn't stop smiling when she won the gold for her Individual Elements.

On the medal podium...
I think I have mentioned on here that I have a boy skater this year - he competed at this competition, and I think his proudest moment was coming in THIRD in the Individual Spiral & Spin Event (he had to do a forward spiral followed by a one foot spin). A third place finish was big because he competed against seven girls!

And, here's a group shot of some of the Tweed skaters that competed throughout the weekend...

Left to right: Madison, Hannah, Amelia, Ella, Leigha, Jamie, Adrianna, Jessalynn and Sydney.

I was kinda dreading this competition - just because it was spread out over two days and with each skater competing in multiple events, it can get a little chaotic making sure they get to the ice when they're supposed to and stuff. But, it ended up going really well - and, the fact that I had Monday off for Family Day was perfect, it gave me a chance to sleep in!

So, that's four competitions down...two to go!

Valentine's Update

I hate to brag...but, I have the best husband in the world!

If you read my Valentine's Day post, you know that we didn't have any plans last night because we had curling. Which, as a side note, was horrible last night - we got destroyed! The other team got five points in the first end...five more points in the second end...three points in the third end...and then we stopped keeping score! No one on our team was playing great (obviously), but we did get a little better as the game went on...it was just too late by that point! But, that is not the point of this post.

After curling, while we were having a drink and chatting with the other team, Curt mentioned that when we got home, he needed to have a few minutes in the house before I could come it? I'm not good at waiting for a surprise, so I was ready to leave as soon as he told me that! I ended up leaving a few minutes after Curt, so he had plenty of time to 'set up' before I got home.

And, when I did get home, Curt directed me to the first clue for a little scavenger hunt...

After eleven clues...going up and down the stairs four times...and getting a few extra hints from Curt along the way, I found this in one of the drawers in my bedside table...


A NEW Sony e-reader! I have had a Kobo for a few years, and love it and use it all the time. I had the original model, and e-readers have come a long way over the years. So, this is an upgrade for me - I now have WiFi, and, it's a TOUCH!

I was pretty comfortable with my Kobo, so this is going to take some getting used to, but I know that I'm going to love it!

A Valentine's Post

I came across this little questionnaire on another blog today, and I thought it would be a good post for Valentine's Day.

Click on the button below to go to the blog 'From Mrs. to Mama' for the original Love Story questionnaire, and almost 300 others!

1. How long have you and your significant other been together?
We started dating in October 2003 - so we've 'been together' for eight years!

2. How did you meet? {What’s your “love” story?}
We met through friends at University. I went to University with Curt's best friend from high school, Isaac, so when Curt would come to visit, we would end up hanging out, but always in a group. I later found out that Curt did ask his friend about me at one point, to see if I had a boyfriend at the time because he was interested in me, however, that friend told him that he wouldn't really like me, so nothing ever happened at that point!

Isaac married my best friend Jeanette, and Curt and I were both in the wedding party. We spent a bit of time together during the weekend of the wedding and got along really well. However, I was scheduled to leave for Africa later that summer, so wasn't really thinking about starting a relationship (I was supposed to be working in Africa for two years!).

Curt and I spoke through MSN Messenger a few times while I was in Africa; I told him that I was having a tough time being there, and he was always very encouraging during our conversations. I ended up coming home after only a few months - and we started dating a few weeks after I got home.

3. If married, how long have you been married?
We were married on July 30, 2005 - we'll celebrate our seventh anniversary this summer!

4. If you are married, where did you get married? Big or small wedding?
We were married in my hometown - the ceremony was at Knox Presbyterian Church, the church I attended my whole life to that point. The reception was at Blue Springs Golf Course, the course I worked at during the summers while attending University. There were about 150 people at our wedding - I consider that to be medium sized :)

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? Do share!
Two main nicknames - I call Curt 'hon' and he calls me 'babe'. Curt has a few other nicknames for me, but they are more of a joke - he calls me 'hollywood' when I wear sunglasses, and 'coach' when I'm going to/coming from the arena.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.
He is encouraging - He is smart and very driven - He is willing to try new things.

7. Tell us how he proposed?
He went ABOVE AND BEYOND with his proposal, and I love sharing our story. I don't think I'll type it all out here though, I have a link just under my blog title to a page all about the proposal, if you don't know the story, check out the page!

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?
Ummm, I don't think Curt fits into either of these 'categories'?!?

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?
A sunset dinner on the beach might be nice while we are on vacation, but it's not a reality for us in Ontario :). I'm more of a pop a movie in and relax on the couch kinda girl anyway.

10. Tell us one thing you’d like to do with your significant other one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?
Curt and I both want to travel to Africa together, to do some type of mission work. We've done this individually, before we were dating or married - as I said earlier, I've been to Africa, and Curt has been to Romania. I would love to go back to Malawi, Africa with Curt - but anywhere in Southern Africa would do!

11. Tell us what you plan on doing this Valentine's Day.
I'm writing this post on Feb. 8th, but setting it to post on Feb. 14th - so, as of right now, we don't have any plans. It's a Tuesday night, which is the night we have curling, so we'll have to do that.

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?
Curt and I don't usually exchange gifts for Valentine's day - so, no!

13. Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love.
Respect and appreciate each other. Spend time with each other - people often say that this is important, especially when you have kids - we don't have kids, but life can still get really busy, so it applies to us too!

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you.
An old picture, but it's worth breaking it out for this post :)