Charlie Tries Ice Hockey

This summer, instead of going to the pool on our free days, we headed to the ice rink for public skate times.  I would get Lauren's skates on and away she went.  She can easily skate around and entertain herself on the ice, which gave me time to get my skates on and then tackle Charlie's skates/gear.

This summer, Chad bought tiny hockey pads so that Charlie could get used to the gear and would be less afraid of falling.  After all, how much can it hurt when you have pads on your legs, elbows, shoulders, chest, and in the seat of your pants?!?  The shoulder and chest pads were so small, that Grammy had to cut them and sew some velcro attachments on, so we could even get the pads over Charlie's head.  She did a great job and they fit perfectly now!

It took a little getting used to, but I think Charlie has grown to like all the gear.  He especially loves his elbow pads and his helmet.  Chad put a cage on the front, so he could have the same exact helmet as Lauren.  Now he feels like a real hockey player.

Finally, Chad had cut down an old stick for Lauren to use when she was first trying hockey.  She now has a new hockey stick, so Charlie got to use the old hockey stick.  It is much heavier and bulkier than a youth stick, but it will give him an idea of what it feels like to skate while holding onto a stick.

Once everyone was ready to go on the ice, I would take Charlie with me and try to coax him to skate without holding on to my hand.  I wanted him to get used to balancing and, more importantly, I did not want him to drag me down when he fell.  =)

He quickly got the hang of it and began marching around in little baby steps.  It was so fun to watch him take off, but he quickly learned that it was more fun to knock Lauren down.  He spent a lot of time down on the ice.

Fast forward a few weeks, and Chad began taking him out in the "Try Hockey for Free" sessions.  Chad was helping out as a coach, and was allowed to bring Charlie on the ice.  The first few times, Charlie would go out for a bit, fall down, lay on the ice, get cold, and come back to watch the rest of the session on the bench.  We were happy that he tried it out for 10 - 15 minutes and then Chad could focus on the other kids.

But, after a few sessions, Charlie began spending more time out on the ice.  He would fall down, flail around until Chad got him, skate a few steps, and fall down again.  We quickly realized that he LOVED to fall down, but it was the getting up part that was difficult.  Chad didn't have time to spend the entire session picking up Charlie.  So, Charlie had to learn how to get up on his own.  After falling down a few times and struggling to get up, he suddenly figured out how to do it.  Soon, Charlie was falling and getting up all over the ice.

He sill has a long way to go, but we are finally at the point where we can put him in independent ice skating lessons and hopefully he will be out at hockey practice before we know it!!  Way to go Charlie!!