Sunday, January 13, 2013

Minnesota Monday - Ice Skating

I will concede that winters in Minnesota are not always pleasant...or better yet, rarely pleasant. But, they do have a few redeeming qualities and ice skating is one of them!

My sister and I took ice skating lessons when we were teenagers. Though I was never destined to be a skating star, it did improve my balance on those shiny blades.

Two weeks ago Dave and I took our children out to the skating rink. It's been at least nine years, if not more, since I've been on skates, so I was a little shaky, to say the least.

It didn't take long to get the feel again. Kind of like riding a bike. Pretty soon I was skating backward, doing spins and even trying a few hops.

I'll never forget the look on my eight-year-old's face when I finished that first spin. She wrinkled her nose, frowned at me and said: "Where did you learn to do that?" Like I had been keeping a great secret from her!

It's fun to still pull a few surprises out of my mommy bag. :)

On skates after nine years!
 
My kiddos thought it would be fun to throw snowballs...
 

 


My husband pulled my oldest around the rink -
she thought it was pretty funny.

The boys don't own skate, yet, so they had fun running
around in their boots.

My girls spent so much time on the ice, I thought I'd join them. :)

My oldest, perfecting her skills.
What about you? Have you ever been ice skating? Would you like to try?

20 comments:

  1. Oh wow...that looks soooo cold! :)

    I went ice skating about 20 years ago. I fell down 3 times and the last time I hit my hip and the attendant had to come help me off the ice.

    I never ice skated again!

    But...get me on a pair of roller skates and I can spin and go backwards! lol

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    1. I've had a few crash and burn experiences on ice skates, too, Sherrinda! And I can't even remember the last time I was on roller skates! It's been years. :)

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  2. Lovely photos, that last one is frame worthy.

    Skating? Well, I am Canadian, and just today I was doing a triple lutz and thought, hmmm, how do I do that flying Arabian again?

    Okay, LYING...but I did give birth to 3 hockey players who freak me out whenever I see them play.One son's team took Provincials 4 years in a row, and another son was named to the All-Star team for the province. Colour me PROUD!!!

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    1. Jennifer, our boy's hockey team has gone to state every year for the past five or six (at least), and our town is known for hockey - however, my husband is a HUGE basketball fan, so he's downplaying the hockey thing! I'm kind of partial to basketball myself...much warmer. :) Congrats on those boys of yours!! And, I'd love to see you on skates. :)

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    2. Me? Ohhhh no way. My back couldn't take one more wipe out. I was told my tail bone would actually shatter if I landed a certain (wrong) way. I don't even wear heels.
      But I CAN bake the snacks for after skating!!

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  3. I love ice skating! I always think it's easier at a hockey rink than outside--yay for zamboni machines. And yet outside you get the prettyness of being outside. :Either way, it's so fun! Love that you were able to surprise your kids with your skillz. :)

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    1. Melissa, just being inside a rink is better because there is no wind! Yes, I was happy to rediscover the joy of ice skating. Now that my girls have skates, I'm hoping to take them out a lot more. :)

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  4. I love those photos! How fun! We have an indoor rink, but I can't ice skate. I can skate on 4 wheels or blades, but no to the ice. My husband can, though. It kinda makes me mad he can do something I can't. lol

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    1. Jessica, that's funny! My husband can skate much faster than me on roller blades and it makes me frustrated, too! We haven't been roller blading in years, because I can't keep up!! As far as ice skating goes, I've never seen him try, so I don't know. I'm sure I can skate circles around him on the ice. :)

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  5. I've only skated inside. In the summer to cool off. Does that count? :P

    And how do you know you're not going to break through the ice? I've seen Little Women, you know...so I'm pretty much terrified of skating on frozen water.

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    1. Ha! Lindsay, I can't imagine going skating to "cool off"! We have three outdoor rinks and one indoor rink in our small town, but in the summer they clear off the indoor rink and use it for conventions and events. We go to the lake to cool off in the summer!

      As for falling through the ice (wait until I stop laughing...) :) This is a rink, so it's only a couple of inches of ice on a baseball field. I'll have to take some pictures of ice fishing, though, because those people are in the middle of a lake on ice at least a foot or more thick. It's not uncommon for (stupid) people to go through the ice in the early or late winter, but in the dead of winter, when the air is in the single digits, you never hear of people going through. It's a cool experience to be on a frozen lake. Maybe one day you'll brave a Minnesota winter and come and visit me. :)

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    2. Only if you visit me in July. ;)

      And hey, it was a legitimate question!!!

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  6. I love all of your snow and winter fun, Gabe! Ice skating isn't too prevalent in South Texas, but I've been a few times. Definitely not my strong suit, but I had a blast each time! Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos.

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    1. And thanks for stopping by today, Donna! Having grown up in Minnesota, it's just a way of life around here (although I generally avoid being outside in the cold at all cost!). Since our boys are getting older, I knew we'd start spending more time outdoors in the winter, so I splurged and bought a warm pair of winter snow pants. The first pair I've owned in ten years - and I wore them three times already this winter! I foresee more outdoor winter activities in my future. :)

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  7. I tried ice skating once, years ago, but for the life of me, I can't remember where???? Rumor has it they now have a ice skating park about 45 minutes north of here, but they've had to close it off and on because we've been having such a warm winter. But hey - it's 36 out there now. Then again, who'd ever think you could make a go of an ice skating park in Mississippi? There was a time, however, when I was quite good on roller skates.

    Looks like you and your family had fun, Gabe. I know the snow must get old after a while, but to this Mississippi girl, it looks really pretty.

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    1. 36 degrees sounds so nice right about now, Teri! An ice skating park in Mississippi sounds interesting. :) We did have fun together. It's getting easier to do family activities now that the boys are staying close to us when we're outside! Thanks for stopping by to say hello!

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  8. Mmmmm.... best ice skating memories in the equally frigid territory of Wisconsin ;) is skating on our private pond all afternoon then heading indoors to defrost over chili and hot chocolate and crackling fire. Miss those days!!! Especially since my best friend's brother always tagged along and I had SUCH a crush on him LOL - drinking hot chocolate and staring at the boy of my dreams was heavenly. (no I did not marry him -- I found one even better, but just sayin')

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    1. Oh, that sounds like a wonderful afternoon, Jaime! And I can relate to spending a day staring at the boy(s) of my dreams, then marrying one even better. :) I'm so happy God knows what's best for us, especially when we don't. ha!

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  9. Oh, it looks like you all are having such a blast! The last time I was ice skating, I was in Maryland at an indoor ring, and basically, skated around the perimeter, with my hand close to the railing. LOL!

    I nominated you for "The Sunshine Blog Award", if you want to participate. :-)

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    1. Indoor skating is something I haven't done in years! But I like it better, because it's not quite as cold.

      Thanks or the award! I'll be by your blog to check it out. ;)

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