For the love of.....Hockey!

This boy LOVES hockey.

We have embraced winter sporting activities,

Sledding, skating, and attempts to snowboard by standing in the sled...

He sleeps with 4 hockey sticks, 2 pucks, & a baseball glove

He whacks pucks (any small toy or object) all over the house

and if he spies hockey on the TV... he stops to watch and imitate the players.

We often go to cheer on cousin Luke in his hockey games

BIG EXCITEMENT...

he wears the jersey of his fav player....cousin Luke

As a birthday gift his uncle and family gave him skating lessons.

I laced up T's hockey skates, he was so excited, but he couldn't stand up,

let alone walk.... my unspoken thought was what in the heck am I doing to this kid.....

Then the cousins and uncle Peter took over

Much to my surprise, after an hour of 'skating'

which included a large portion of time being pushed around

on a sled (those cousins are clever) T exited the ice.... 

I offered him my hands and he emphatically told me.... I got it!

and he surely did.... I love my fearless and coordinated child.

He walks on skates!

The best line of the day

"I fall mama, then I get back up."

You keep doing that Sweet T, forever and ever.

Polar Vortex

This weather is killing me.

Bike riding on the carpet... slow going

& we are losing hockey pucks under the stove.

Thank goodness for amazing friends who came inside to play.

We love you Nancy and Frank!

12 Years

Birthdays in our family seem to go on and on...

We had the final family celebration yesterday,

Celebrating 12 years on the 12th of January

cousin Gus is 9 and Theo is 3.... We all have 

great expectations for the new year.

Happy 3!

 Big T is Big 3....

and he's riding a big boy bike!

 Thanks Besu... Coolest blanket ever

 This is my favorite picture of all

Such a happy boy.  Happy Birthday Big Guy!

Christmas

We visited the Krohn Conservatory on Christmas eve

to visit the live Nativity scene, check out the train display and 

christmas village.  I remember going to the Krohn Conservatory at Christmas 

as a child- the nativity scene smells exactly as I remember.

Christmas eve with the cousins...

in their Christmas Jammies!

For the last month Theo has talked about hockey

it is a bit of an obsession- he asked santa for skates, a helmut, and a stick 

Cousin Luke is a hockey player... the duo spent part of christmas eve

in the garage playing hockey- he 'borrowed' a mini stick from Luke and 

it has not left his hands- he eats and sleeps with the Ottawa Senators stick.

Theo starts skating lessons February 1st-

I love having a brother in law from Canada....

It was a fabulous 2 days, 2014 bring it on!

Santa is everywhere....

In the eyes of a toddler Santa really is everywhere.... if you are of slightly advanced age, have a white beard and white hair, in the month of December it is a given that you may get a few comments. 

Theo and I attended an art opening last week, I was really excited to see some of my former students work... As I was looking at their artwork, my talented former students introduced me to one of their photo professors, Theo turned around and shouted Santa, I was shocked, amused & embarrassed.  The professor must not have found it funny, he did not even crack a smile.   The very next day we were out to dinner with friends, Theo spied another 'santa', this santa was dining with a large group of friends.... as we left, we passed 'santa's' table and Theo whispered "santa?" One of 'santa's' friends heard Theo and totally engaged him in conversation... "you think he is santa?, well then tell us, have you been a good boy?  what would you like santa to bring you?" The opportunity to share his wish list was one T could not pass up.... he told them all about the helmet, skates, stick, and bike he is anticipating on christmas morning.... I am frankly SHOCKED he did not ask to sit on the man's lap...

Holidays as a child or holidays with a child are the absolute best.... very merry!

Santa!

                                             

Last year, T was a little afraid of the man with a white beard...

this year he walked up to him and jumped on his lap

before I was ready with the camera

What a difference a year makes....

Since there is a winter storm warning,

we were the only people visiting santa this evening

along with our friends Andrew and Roba-

What a treat, literally, they depleted all santa's candy canes!

The littlest of the cousins split their time

between tackling each other and checking in with santa.

It was a perfect evening and now we can relax

and wait for the snow and Saint Nick.