Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Phoebe on Ice





This weekend was a first for Phoebe. We had decided to use the long holiday weekend to go up to the house in Vermont. Plans had been made with various friends and their children, but all had fallen through leaving us blissfully alone. A happy threesome. The weekend was a snowy one. We watched most of it through the big windows of the house, content to do very little and just enjoy our change of scenery. On Sunday, we decided to venture out and give ice-skating a try. I wasn’t sure if a three year old would be able to stay upright on the ice, but Phoebe had an amazing first outing. The Riley Rink of Manchester, Vermont is equipped with sliding metal hand-rails that allow little kids to find their feet while learning to skate. The first go around the ice, Phoebe was being helped along by Mom and Dad, but was constantly looking around at the bigger kids doing it all by themselves. We talked to one girl who stopped near us. “How old are you?” we asked. “7” she said with a missing tooth smile. “See Phoebe,” I said, “You’ll be skating like that when you are 7.” Not satisfied with waiting that long, Phoebe soon abandoned the hand-rail and would only skate holding our hands. I was so impressed by her determination to figure this new sport out on the very first try. The whole outing didn’t last very long, but by the end, Phoebe could walk off the ice balancing on her skates. Coming soon: Skating in New York City before the ice melts.