Ottawa

A wrap-up post (now that we've been back for three days). Well, ya know. I didn't want to rush it. :)

It was annoying to go down to the lobby to hook into the free WiFi, and it just didn't happen after that last post on New Year's Eve day. So here's a wrap-up of the rest of our stay in Ottawa. By the way... have I mentioned it was COLD?!?

When I last wrote, we were headed to brunch and thinking we were going to hit a museum in the afternoon. Plans changed. When we were leaving the hotel, we discovered a bunch of Keeper Boy's teammates were headed to a local park for some shinny (pond hockey). So we got the address and decided we'd head over that way when we were done eating. We went back to Tucker's for brunch. Hubby, Keeper Boy, and J-Mav enjoyed it just as much and Mom, Dad, and I had a few days prior.

Bellies full, we dropped Mom and Dad off at the hotel and headed to the park. When we got there, most of Keeper Boy's teammates were getting ready to leave. It was (shocker) cold outside, and snowing hard, and most of them had been out there for close to two hours at that point. A few stayed, and Keeper Boy played around with them for awhile. Hubby and I put our skates on, too, but we just skated around the perimeter since we didn't have any sticks. I didn't skate too long. While the skates were comfortable once I got them on, it wasn't the most comfortable feeling in the world to shove Frankenfoot into a skate (or get it out for that matter). But, I DID IT. That was a goal in scheduling the surgery for early November. So, while the Rideau Canal wasn't open for skating, I DID skate in Ottawa, albeit very briefly.

Back to the shinny. After a while, Keeper Boy's remaining teammates left and quite a few "locals" had arrived to play pick-up. I'd never seen a stick pile sort in person... only on commercials on TV. It was very cool. Everyone who was there who wanted to play threw their sticks in a pile in the middle of the ice. Then someone randomly picked them up and threw them toward one side of the ice or the other. That's how teams were decided. Of course, you have to know what your stick looks like for this to be effective. I was a little worried about Keeper Boy since he was borrowing a teammate's stick... goalie sticks don't work so well when you're skating out!

Long story short, Keeper Boy had a blast and said that was his favorite part of the week. :)

That night, we went to the All-Star game and cheered on two of Keeper Boy's teammates, one of whom was awarded hardest worker for his team during the game. Very cool. Nothing special for New Year's Eve. We kept forgetting it was a special day. The kids were in bed by 10, much to their chagrin. Mom, Dad, Hubby, and I stayed up and watched the ball drop, wondering how many more years ABC is going to parade Dick Clark out during the New Year's Eve telecast. It's really just getting sad. Please make it stop. We were in bed by 12:05, I think.

The team had its final game on New Years Day. Keeper Boy was in net, and we lost 4-3. It was a game we should not have lost, but we did. I think we were out of contention for advancing before that game was even played, but if not, that cemented it.

That afternoon was a Skills Competition. Very fun event, and our kids did well. Everyone participated. One of our captains won the accuracy competition, so that was very fun.

After the competition, we all went back to the hotel. A bunch of families ended up going out to dinner together at an English pub-type place a short walk from the hotel. It was fun and I got to know some of the other moms a little better. Oh, and have I mentioned that it was cold?!?

Saturday morning, we checked out of the hotel and said goodbye to Mom and Dad as they headed home. We had some shopping to do. We checked out a very cool store called Hockey Life. It was about the size of a Sports Authority, but it was ALL HOCKEY EQUIPMENT! The entire second floor was goalie equipment. It was even better than the place we went in Toronto over the summer!! Keeper Boy got a new blocker as his is falling apart. That sucks since it's less than six months old. We have an email in to the store we bought it from in Toronto... hopefully they will replace it or fix it or refund our money. Anyway, after we wandered around in Hockey Life for a while (they even had Captials stuff!), we checked out the Roots Factory Store down the street and hit McDonalds before hitting the road. It was almost like we were avoiding the L O N G drive home! We finally got on the road around 12:30pm.

No problems at the border and, as expected, we drove through snow (sometimes heavy) through most of New York. But it was all good. We stopped once for a gas/potty break, ignored the tire pressure light when it came on a few times, and stopped for a sit-down dinner in Pennsylvania. We got home around 11pm, unloaded the car, and went to bed. Long day.

Sunday we got everything put away, did mounds of laundry, put away Christmas gifts that were still lying around the living room from before we left, and vegged in front of football. We were hopeful, being as we live below the Mason-Dixon line and all, that it'd be a little warmer here at home. But now... it was so windy, that I think it was just as cold here as it was north of that other border!! Gah!

Yesterday it was back to the grind... work and school. After two weeks off, the boys weren't ready to get up and get going, but they managed.

In summary, Ottawa was an amazing experience for Keeper Boy. I hope he has the opportunity to do it again. I just wish it wasn't so flippin' cold!!

Happy new year!!

Ottawa

Two games yesterday... lost both. Keeper Boy was in net for the morning game against Finland. It was a 7-2 loss, but Keeper Boy was awarded the hardest worker hard hat for his team. Pretty cool. The game yesterday afternoon was against a team from outside Toronto. Another loss, but definitely one we could've/should've won. We've pretty much been eliminated from advancing beyond our last game tomorrow. We will be heading home on Saturday in what sounds like awful snow through New York. Ugh.

Last night we went to the Ottawa Senators game. Good times! Ottawa lost to Colorado, but we didn't really care about the outcome anyway. :)

Today, no games. There is a ceremony tonight and an all-star game. Two of Keeper Boy's teammates are playing, so we will support them.

The pin trading here is amazing. Keeper Boy has collected a ton of very cool pins. His hat weighs a ton with all the metal. Ha ha.

Getting ready to head to brunch... maybe a museum this afternoon. We'll see.

Ottawa

Holy. Crap. It's COLD! We should've listed to the concierge this morning. When we asked the best way to walk to the Byward Market, he said, "walk to the corner, then hail a cab." We laughed and said we'd be fine walking. Problem was, with the wind chill, it was -30. Yes, that's celcius. When converted to farenheit, that's a balmy -22. Yes, MINUS 22. Oh. My. God. I think my legs are STILL numb... 12 hours later!!

Other events of the day included a lovely lunch at Tucker's and a fun "friendly game" with a local team on which there is a kid who used to play at the rink Keeper Boy currently plays at. Pretty cool. Some people from the teams have kept in touch, and this is the second year we've played this team in a pre-tournament "friendly game." Appropriately, the game ended in a 3-3 tie. And we all had dinner together afterward at a nice restaurant in the rec facility (which was amazing).

The Marriott we are staying in is great. Great location, great rooms, great ammenities. There are two kids zones on the fourth floor (along with an indoor pool and a very well-equipped workout room). This is a place that is obviously used to hosting youth hockey teams. The kids zones are stocked with gaming systems, sofas, a foosball table, a giant slide, and toys for younger kids. A separate kids zone boasts a six-hole mini golf course, an air hockey table, tabletop shuffleboard, and an area set up for shooting hockey... complete with a net, goalie equipment, sticks, and tennis balls. Guess where Keeper Boy has spent most of his free time?

Tomorrow we have a busy day... game at 11:15 against a team from Finland. How cool is that? Keeper Boy will be in net for that one. Another game at 4:45. And then we're going to the Senators/Avalanche game tomorrow night. Busy day...