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Disney

I remember dreading the idea of taking my kids to Disney. I'm not a big fan of crowds and lines and live cartoon characters. A couple different, respected sources said the Disney vacation was great. To make a long story short, they were right. We went direct through Disney Vacations, and it was a fantastic seven days away from work and the Massachusetts winter.

I can easily recommend it to anyone. Absolutely everything was handled from getting our luggage to our room, to getting around the resorts on any of the 120 bus routes, to getting kid-friendly meals. We had park hopper passes and went everywhere. Luke and I must have ridden Splash Mountain close to twenty times. Ben did it several times and the Yeti roller coaster at Animal Kingdom. I was impressed. Luke also rode the Rock-N-Roller coaster, which IMMEDIATELY begins with three corkscrew loops. You can see the evidence on his face in the pictures.

Ben

Ben has had an interesting hockey season. It was all very new to him this year, and he'd try for about ten minutes. After that, he'd flop around on the ice like a fish out of water only with less energy. Libby and I thought he was seeking attention, and he got TONS of it from all the extremely patient, generous, volunteer coaches.

It was almost like clockwork. He'd skate well for the first several minutes and then the power would go off. After wondering why his attitude and/or my parenting was so poor and at wit's end, we asked him if he felt OK out there. He said, "My lungs hurt." Gulp.

He's had some asthmatic issues, and I had read about cold-induced asthma's increased prevalence amongst hockey players. The doctor gave him an inhaler to take 30 minutes prior to skating. Worked like a charm. I have some video I need to post, but it's not ready yet. He was eager enough by the end to try out for the travel team for next season. He missed a lot of good learning time this year, and I feel a little guilty. Better later than never.

Luke

I signed Luke up for a hockey skills clinic because I heard they were fun and good for learning. It's an additional weekly skating / skills clinic put on by a respected instructor.

I told Luke I signed him up for it. He said,"Dad, you should have asked me." I said, "You're right. In fact, I think I did ask you. You said, 'No', and I did it anyway. Sorry about that."

He had a game that conflicted with his first session--for 6-8 yr olds--so we went to the 9-10 age group, which Greg said would be no problem. I warned Luke and just told him to listen and try his best.

He did REALLY well, but at one point, an instructor--not Greg--yells, "FOSTER!!!" calls him back to the line to show him something. No big deal (for the average 9-yr old). Luke does not like to be called out. He was in tears for a few minutes while I watched helplessly beyond the glass, but he eventually got through it. He skated incredibly and these few drills Greg had them do were perfect for him. Luke finally GOT a couple key points. Scored a couple times in battles against the bigger kids.

I asked him how it was when he got off. "Fine...I mean, not fun." When we were in the car, he said, "No offense to Greg Carter, but I never want to see him again." What do you think he meant by that?

The rest of the sessions went well, and you can see one of them in the video below. YouTube won't allow me to accompany my video with music without proper license. That makes me mad. I will try to find a way around it. They're also adding a bunch of blank space to the end of my video. Don't watch when it goes black. There's no hidden track.

Luke at Greg Carter Skills

Todd on Home Ice