Yesterday, we did something we had not done. We skated at the Raymond Borque Arena at Endicott College.
What a great experience. First, it has been years since Emmie and I were on skates, so that alone made it a wild time. On top of that, Bri and Kiff have really come a long way as skaters. It was great to see them on ice.
The arena itself is a beautiful place. It is wonderful inside and there is a room with a pair of old Borque skates...how cool. The rink is awesome and the ice is simply fabulous. It was an honor to be on it.
To top it off, we were able to make our own cups of hot chocolate. It was the perfect ending to a great day.
Overall, it was a fabulous time...and we cannot wait to go again!
Thanks, Endicott, for a wonderful experience.
This past Monday, we experienced something we have never experienced before....
The Skating Test
Emmie and I have never taken true skating lessons, but this year Kiff and Bri are taking them. They love the lessons. And one thing that we did not know is that, at the end of sessions, skaters take a skating test.
We weren't too sure what to make of this, so we got there extra early. But once we got there, we realized that it is rather routine.
Students go thru the drills, literally. They demonstrated how they can skate forward, backward, stop, and turn. They ever receive an official US Skating booklet to keep their test information in. How cool is that!
But what might have been even more fun is that the kids were able to get a badge to keep. Now, the badges can go on an eventual skating jacket or even a tote bag that they keep their ice equipment in.
Very cool!!!
On January 1st, we did something we have never done before as a family. We went for our first family skate.
We were originally hoping to do this at a rink last year, but that never quote materialized. So, we decided to give it a try on ice to start the year off right.
We went to the Meadows in Danvers. What a great take! Highly recommended.
What fun!
Bri seemed to get the knack of it pretty quickly...though she did stumble on the ice a ton. But, luckily, she has gone to the Roller Palace several times and has learned how to roller skate. So she was able to do the Frankenstein walk (that all new skaters have) across the ice pretty well.
Kiff had a little tougher time at first. The ice and the feel of the skates was a bit new. But, after a little while, and some practice, he was able to get the hang of it, too. He still needed someone to hold onto him - he didn't have the Frankenstein walk down, but he was well on his way.
A couple of things that stood out. First, the new types of skates that they have are amazing. They are adjustable. Second, watching teaching that kids that "clear ice is slippery," proved fun because they wanted to see for themselves...did they learn.
