Sledding and Other Adventures

One would think that given how much the kids like fishing, hiking, swimming, and just generally being outdoors in warm weather, that Abby and Sammy would be somewhat depressed at the colder temperatures and falling snow of winter. One would be wrong.

The bacchanalia of Christmas passed with much fanfare and shortly thereafter the gray and snowy skies of Winter descended upon us. And in this case descended is a literal since we got about 2-3 inches of snow just before New Years. Being basically a (too) large kid I promised Sam and Abby that we could go sledding on New Years day. Unfortunately, what I hadn't counted on was that the sledding hills at the closest golf course were closed; evidently 2-3 inches wasn't enough snow to open them. Undeterred we ventured to a hill close by our house where we had seen kids sledding before, but what we found was simply a huge patch of sheer ice on a very steep slope. And while that would certainly be fun to go down, Cindy and I weren't so sure about Sam and Abby making the climb back-up. Thus we opted to return home and have a monumental snow-ball fight, during which I somehow ended up on the wrong-end of a slush ball. After hot chocolate and a resounding and glorious Rose Bowl win for the Buckeyes (incidentally, I 'm not sure OSU has ever faced a more arrogant team recently than the Ducks) salved some of the disappointment, but nonetheless I felt obliged to take the kids sledding, if for no other reason than so I, er they, could use the sled I used as a boy.

Thus on Sunday after a couple phone calls we found a golf course that was open. After another couple hours of getting people to go potty, put on long-johns, and whatever else (Why is it that ventures out of the house seem to require more planning and execution than the Normandy invasion?), we, along with our kids' friend Katie, were finally able to make our way over to the Gahanna Golf Course where a glorious time was had by all, as can be seen in the pictures below:

Abby making her way back up the hill.

Katie and Sammy get ready to go

Aren't you a little old for this?

We were a bit worried that Sam especially may have difficulty with steering and such, but the little guy proved to be quite adept at it. At one point he took off in the vintage sled and looked to be heading for a tree. However, with skill that certainly would impress Danica Patrick he steered the sled away from the tree and almost certain calamity.

About the only downside to the day was the lack of manners or common sense among some of the folks there. The hills were fairly crowded and unfortunately it was far too common for kids to walk back up the middle of hill which resulted in long delays at the top as we waited for kids to get out of the way. We also had issues with kids jumping in front of Sam and Abby in the queue at the top and then taking off before we could say something, which delayed us even further. But perhaps the biggest annoyance were the number of folks with little to no control over their sleds. Poor Sammy got whacked about 5 times by kids who had no clue how to steer their sled.

Still it was a good day, and I'm glad to report that the latest in 1950's sledding technology is pretty much faster than anything else out there.

In other activity Abby's soccer team is playing indoor soccer this winter, which for her is probably good in that she'll get some exercise and develop her skills further. However, her team is playing an age group up because they've been asked by their outdoor league to move up an age group in the Spring. The upshot is that they're playing against bigger/faster girls which should help them prepare for the outdoor season. The downside is that they're playing against bigger/faster girls and drubbings like the one they took on Saturday (6-0) are likely to occur. The game itself might have been more tolerable had it not been for an overly enthusiastic father on the other team yelling encouragement at his daughter Maddie every 10 seconds or so. By the end of the game Cindy really wanted to punch him. As for Abby, she took the loss pretty hard and was pretty depressed about it all weekend. Sadly, I think she gets that trait from me.

Sammy is again taking ice-skating lessons and seemingly having a good time. He was very excited when we went skating Saturday to wear a pair of hockey skates for the first time. They were a bit beat-up but seemed to fit him better and are a bit more comfortable than figure skates. He was very excited to wear them again for his skating lesson on Sunday and had a good lesson until he fell down and hurt his knee toward the end. Unfortunately, that sort of ruined the whole experience for him. But still he's doing well and manages to stay up pretty well and more importantly gets up immediately after falling.

Another Big Day

Last weekend was a big one for both Abby and Sam. On Friday night Grandma and Uncle Ray came from Indy, so that Ray and I could go to the game while Grandma got to spend a day with Abby and Sam. In the morning after pancakes--chocolate chip for Abby and Sam, blueberry for Cindy and Ray, and peanut-butter with chocolate chips and blueberry for me (Grandma had some as well though I forget which kind)--Grandma, Sam, Cindy and Abby went off to her soccer game while Ray and I, after his traditional stop at our local Tim Horton's, went off to the football game. In contrast to the game Cindy and I went to (YSU) we had little problem finding parking and getting on the shuttle from the West Campus lots. The game itself went pretty well and wasn't nearly as close as the final score indicated (34-21). In some ways the most remarkable part of the whole experience, aside from the game, is the efficiency with which OSU and the city are able to move such a large volume of people-100K+- in and out of the campus area.

[Cindy wrote most of this]Sadly Abby's soccer team went down 2-1, but Abby got her first experience at fullback and liked it. Apparently Sammy had a grand time playing with Grandma. After the game they went to one of our favorite metroparks, Blacklick, for a special celebration at the park. They went on a tram ride, went wading in the creek (Abby saw tadpoles), and created some beautiful artwork at a couple different craft stations. Then they came back home to meet up with daddy and Uncle Ray so that we could all go out to dinner at Abby and Sammy's favorite restaurant-- the Buckeye Hall of Fame Cafe! This has been their favorite place to eat for a couple of years now. Abby looooves their cheese pizza and Sammy likes their kid-friendly marinara pasta (when he's in the mood for eating). They also love to go to the game room and watch mommy and daddy win lots of tickets for prizes. Abby really likes that awful crane game (you know, the one that is virtually impossible) but Chris was able to win a Care Bear for her. However, he was unable to harness a stuffed gorilla for Sam. After an hour or so in the arcade it was time for Grandma and Uncle Ray to head back to Indianapolis, much to the kid's chagrin.

A few random items/thoughts:

• For reasons known only to him Sam really wanted to sleep naked tonight. We're not sure why, but he had a monster fit putting on his jammies. It sort of reminded me of the old song, Pink Pajamas. If you don't know it ask a Boy Scout.
  
• The House really let us down yesterday. Hopefully sanity will set in the next couple days.
• It may amuse some to know that 20 years later calculus has once again reared it's head in my life. I'm taking an Ag Econ class this quarter in which some facility with calculus will be integral to my success.
  

Abby's Big Day

Saturday was perhaps the greatest day ever for Abby. In the morning she played soccer and played 2 quarters at her favorite position, goalie, which incidentally was my first position as well. Her team won 5-2 with Abby only letting in one goal which wasn't entirely her fault. The girl who scored on her put the ball to the opposite corner. After her game she went to her friend Teah's birthday party, and had a grand time. But the biggest thrill was later after the Buckeye game when Abby, her papa', and I went fishing and Abby caught her first fish, which turned out to be a turtle. It was a small thing obviously but Abby was rightfully proud. After we put it back Abby caught another which this time was actually a fish! It was a small bluegill as you can see in the picture. So all in all it was big day for her. For those keeping track, I haven't caught anything yet, darnit!