Fiasco on ice

Well, we at least made it through one full period of AJ's first hockey game. It was painful. Literally. The temperature when the puck dropped was a whopping goose egg. Zip. Zero. Nada.

To try and make the chilling temperature a little more bearable for AJ, I picked up some foot warmers that could fit in his skates. Little did I know, I was making the real problem worse.

How can a child with the impressive verbal skills that AJ has, not be able to say, "Hey, these skates are way too small."? He's told us numerous times that his feet hurt, but he's always said it was because they were cold.


AJ toughed it out through the first period and a half. Then, just about the time his line was set to take the ice again, I noticed as the gate opened, that Jeff was coming through with AJ. And AJ was sobbing. Uncontrollably.

We brought him into the warming house where he continued crying longer and harder than I have ever seen him do before. And he continued to say it was because his feet were cold. Jeff pulled off the skates and we each peeled off a sock. One toe felt slightly cool, but other than that, his feet felt warm. The warmer inserts had done what they're supposed to do. Of course, they'd also created even more cramped conditions inside those too small skates.

It was then that I picked up the skates. The skates Jeff had bought for AJ last year. The skates Jeff had assured me at the start of the season still fit AJ just fine. And that's when I noticed the size 9 printed on the inside. That's three sizes smaller than what he currently wears.

"AJ, do your toes get crunched up inside your skates," I asked, "Is that why they hurt?"

Aha! Breakthrough at last!

We didn't make him finish the game. It was well into the third period by that point, anyway. Though he did want to put his boots on and go back outside, "I want to cheer for my team," he insisted. "I want to help them win."

As we headed out the door, several parents gave us sympathetic smiles as one commented, "Welcome to first year hockey."

Feel the music. Feel our pain.

I just can't wait until next Christmas. AJ and Sydney will be sending a very special present to their cousins Ellie and Ben. A very special, very loud present. What exactly it will be, I'm still not sure. But I've got almost a full year to brainstorm. And I'll be reminded to think about it every time my little darlings march around the house armed with their favorite percussion instruments.

That's Jeff holding up a cell phone so that the New York branch of the Kazel family could hear just how much Sydney (and AJ, too) love the new Princess and the Frog-themed musical instruments that somehow showed up on our doorstep Christmas morning. In the middle of a flippin' blizzard that cancelled church services and everything else around us, UPS made it through with this lovely gift. Joy to the world! It's a Christmas miracle! (Mutter, mutter under my breath.)

The drum and cymbals are the favorites, but there's also a maraca and trumpet that haunt me. The trumpet will need to be "lost" if Sydney ever gets sick. I suspect there's at least a pint of her spit inside it. Not the most sanitary of musical instruments.

Come, they told me, pa-rum-pum-pum-pum...

Our finest gifts we bring, pa-rum-pum-pum-pum...

Yes, there will be a very fine gift sent to New York next Christmas.

How NOT to start the new week/year

I just noticed this is blog post #500 for me. A landmark of sorts in the world of the Kazel Imagination. Ironically, what I have to say this time has very little to do with my kids, who were extremely cooperative/adaptable throughout this latest "Seriously, does this kind of thing happen to anyone else?!?" experience.

More than just the start of a new work week, you could say today is the start of a new work year. Let's hope it's not an omen.

Jeff had a dentist appointment first thing this morning, which meant I had to bring the kids to daycare. This should have meant I got to park in the garage last night, but we weren't that organized. So before Jeff left, he graciously volunteered to start the car and warm it up. (If such a thing is possible when the temperature is -13 degrees.)

About 20 minutes later, I got the kids bundled up, grabbed what I needed for work (plus boots and long underwear so I can go straight to AJ's hockey practice afterward) and steered them out the door to the car.

And that's when I discovered the car doors were locked. With my keys in the ignition. Thank goodness I hadn't yet locked the door to the house.

Back inside we went. I called Jeff's work cell phone and got voice mail. Perfect. I called Jeff's personal cell phone. Voice mail again. Even better. I grabbed the phone book and tried to remember the name of Jeff's dentist. Just then the phone rang. It was Jeff, who saw that I'd call but hadn't listened to the message.

I won't repeat what he said. This is a family-oriented blog, after all.

Amazingly, neither child whined to take off coat/hat/mittens during the 20 minutes we waited for Jeff to drive home. So once I saw him in the driveway, we were able to get on our way pretty quickly.

Here's the kicker. While Jeff was driving home, I called the dentist to warn them he'd be late. They weren't yet open, so I left a short message. Jeff was about halfway back to the dentist when the receptionist called him and basically said "If you're going to be that late, don't bother coming." Jeff didn't immediately reschedule. I suspect this may finally be the motivation he needs to switch to my dentist, which is only a mile from our house.

Is this going to be a great New Year, or what?

Indoor fun

Brrrr! We've reached that wonderful stage of winter when pop cans explode in our garage. (Only one this year, before we moved all beverage containers inside.)

With temperatures below zero most of the weekend, and the novelty of the Christmas presents wearing thin, we packed up the kids and headed to the Children's Museum.

Say "Click!" Sydney's so obsessed with Diego that instead of asking her photo subjects to say "cheese," she instructs them as her favorite cartoon song does, "Say 'click.' Take a pic!"

Sydney apparently thinks AJ's taking her on a sight-seeing excursion. That's right Sydney, let the boy do all the work of rowing.

Hopefully the "lens" on Sydney's camera is cleaner than Mommy's. My photos seem to be smudged. Such as this one of AJ showing off his tower.

Sydney found the coolest puzzle. It's created by the same wonderful team that wrote/illustrated Sydney's once favorite book Polar Bear, Polar Bear what do you hear. Each puzzle piece is a different bug. As you move the piece into place, some sort of sensor reacts by making appropriate sound effects of the bug chomping, scurrying, etc.

I believe we've now made it through the worst (-25 degrees) of this arctic front. By early in the week, the temperature should actually get above zero. Break out the sunscreen!

Skating glory

Ahhh... the joys of hockey motherhood. Watching the delighted smile on my first born's face as he happily skates around the rink... it warms my heart so much that I forget the bone chilling cold that has invaded the very fiber of my being. Don't I wish.


And apparently the "fun" is just beginning. Come Monday, I'll look back at these chilly practices at the unheated Carlton arena with fondness. That's because Monday is the start of outdoor practices in Esko.

I just can't wait.

And on Tuesday, AJ will play his first game. Outside. Oh boy!

Frigid, sub-zero temperatures aside, AJ continues to make progress. Here's a look:

Hair do... and don't

I convinced Sydney to sit still for Mommy's hair-styling attempts by promising to give her "Jessica hair". (The two dum-dum suckers I offered probably helped as a bribe, too.)

As it is, I think my first attempt at french-braiding Sydney's ultra-fine hair turned out fairly well. Though Daddy's first comment wasn't to note the resemblance to her cousin, but rather, "it's Heidi".

All this came about after a much needed bath and hair washing. Sydney had been wearing her hair in a small ponytail, and when we pulled out the binder, well... see for yourself...

Can you say Flock of Seagulls hair?

Welcome 2010!

Happy New Year to all! We rang in the new year in just about the best way I can imagine: with a low-key, yet intense, celebration at our house with the Jaski's. Jeff grilled steaks, and we ate non-stop all evening. In addition to Korey, Becky and Gayle, who all spent the night, Tim joined us for dinner, before heading home so that he could get up early for work.


We had told everyone to bring swimsuits for the hot tub, not knowing that the temperature would drop below zero. That didn't stop the kids. Silly, silly children. Brrr! In addition to AJ, that's Tanner on the left, Jenna in the middle (pretty much hidden by the steam) and Jake on the right.


Once back inside and warmed up, the kids turned to calmer activities...


...for about two minutes. And then the intense part of the party began. Break out the Nerf guns! This was a battle.
And no one was off limits!

Do you suppose it's because Gayle's known Jeff since he was a boy, or because she's raised three boys of her own... nothing seems to phase her.

Now I'm just waiting for Jeff and Sydney to wake up. (AJ and I have been up since a little after 8 a.m.) As of 11 a.m., my favorite party animals are still snuggled together in dreamland.