I love the smell of hockey tickets in the morning....

They're here!!!!!

The UPS driver came and brought our most anticipated package of the year! Our Flyers Season Tickets! It's always exciting I think. The smell of the paper (I wasn't kidding), the look of them, the featured pictures on each ticket, the coupons (I LOVE coupons) and the schedule. Mmmm....so exciting!

Now the fun begins! Splitting the tickets into three piles (ours, Julie & Vern's and Jim's). Our pile is the biggest. I'm so thrilled! We have four seats on our plan. Julie and Vern get half a season for two seats, we get half a season for two seats, Jim gets a quarter of a season for two seats and we get the remainder! So half of our games we get two seats and the other half we get all four seats. Sounds complicated but Jack works out the schedule and the math (for payment).

We're going to three preseason games too! So exciting! I've marked the games on the calendar, on the blackberry and on our sons calendar so he can know what games he's going to. AND the Flyers' Wives Carnival flyer was in the package. THAT will be so fun! I can't wait. Tickets go on sale next week. I'm getting them this year. I've wanted to before but never did. For sure this year!

I guess that's enough rambling for now.

"Just throw them in the trash..."

They put out the call. They were in need of a goaltender for the last game of the 3 on 3 Cross-Ice league. We kept it quiet knowing that Sean would LOVE to be a goalie. He's been dying to try it since he could skate. We know it's a very expensive position to play and the goalie gets a large part of the blame when the team loses.

Today, the day of the game, another email went out. We decided to ask Sean if he wanted to try it. It was the last game, why not? He emphatically agreed and was thrilled that he was getting the chance to mind the net.

We got to the rink. Just me and him. Husband was working. He was very disappointed he wasn't getting to see this.

I get the loaner pads from the front desk and it's obvious that they are a bit too big for him. I, having no knowledge of how to apply the apparatus, asked another Hockey Mom for some help. She was very helpful. There we were, my son laying face down on the floor while myself and another mom strap these enormous pads to my son's skinny little legs.

He was so excited! He looked great! He stacked his pads and got into position right there by the locker room. He couldn't wait to get out on the ice.

He got out there. He skated around and didn't fall down right away. He skated around the rink a couple of times. He fell down but was able to get up on his own. No Problemo!

I looked out across the ice and noticed he was crying. I didn't see what happened but he was really bawling! He came to me and said he fell and hurt his belly. He also said he doesn't want to play hockey anymore. WHAT???!!!?!?!?!?!?

I calmed him down and he was able to get back out there. Then the game started. He was crying even harder. Coach gave him some encouraging words but he just couldn't recover. He couldn't even hold the gigantic stick! He couldn't get it together and I brought him off the ice.

My boy stood there crying and I couldn't comfort him. He said, "I never want to play hockey again. I want to throw these skates in the trash!" He was an absolute wreck. We left. There was no recovering from this tonight. I think it was partly that he's tired, partly because he's been sick, and partly because he might have been a little scared about it. That's a lot of pressure for a 5 year old.

I'm secretly (well, not so secretly) glad he didn't like the position but I wish I could have held my baby and make him feel better.

Anyway, he did look pretty scary in the equipment.

Dusting off the jersey

With the start of hockey season in view, I thought it was time to dust off the ol' jersey.

My usual jersey (the one I wear to all the games) hasn't been washed since our loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the playoffs. I have a bit of a superstition regarding my jersey. I'm sure many other hockey fans can relate.

The jersey is worn to all games. If my team wins, the jersey gets hung in the closet until the next game. If my team loses (ugh!) the jersey is immediately stripped off the second we get home and washed.

The last game was a loss but I was so disheartened by it that I didn't wash the loss out of it. However.... a brand spankin' new Carter (2008-09 46G, 38A) jersey was recieved in the mail yesterday! WooHoo! I can't wait to see what kind of luck it will bring the team this season!

On the non-NHL front, I've now checked out the Rowan University Ice Hockey schedule. They have a pretty long season and their home ice is literally 5 minutes from my house. It's great for nights when there's no NHL games to watch and Sean doesn't have practice or a game and Sean's hockey addiction needs to be fed. The games are cheap ($5 a game) and my son loves that he can get really close to the players. He loves to high-5 the players as they come off the ice. We'll also be checking out some of the local high school games. They are great for killing time. AND they sell candy really cheap! LOL!

Well, back to getting ready for hockey season...pre-season game on September 22. Can't wait! Go Flyers!!!!!!

He's Baaaaccckkk.....

He skated for the first time in about 3 weeks today. He wasn't even wobbly. It was nice to be sitting on the cold metal bench at the rink, drinking my coffee, snuggled up to my honey, watching our boy skate across the ice.

He still won't stay out of the crease and he's still a terrible goaltender. I hope to get some pics of his last game next week. Then we'll have to get him really skating in earnest for a few weeks after that before the "evaluation" day. If he's not ready for limited travel he'll just stay in instructional for another eight weeks.

We'll see....

Pneumonia? But can he skate?

I wasn't asking for me...

A couple weeks ago, Sean had been having some intermittent fevers. We'd decided if he wasn't better by Monday he was going to the doctor. One trip to the doctor, a trip to the radiology place and THREE pharmacies later, we got confirmation of what I think we already knew...bilateral pneumonia.

Well, now he's finished his antibiotics and a week of nebulizer treatments and we got the OK for him to skate again. Just in time for his last game of the summer 3 on 3 cross ice league and just in time for "evaluation" for the house limited travel team. He's got another week or so of breathing treatments and we'll see what happens after that.

The doctor wants him to see a pulmonologist which we've schedule for the next available appointment...in two and a half months!!!!! Gotta love specialists!

He's going out for stick time on Wednesday.

The Beginning...

My little baby boy. What a precious gift. He was HUGE as a newborn. Almost 10 pounds. We named him Sean.

By the time he could walk he was kicking a ball. When he could talk, one of his first words was "football". At about 2 years old he was throwing a football and hitting tiny pucks in the livingroom.

At age 3, his first skating experience. He didn't want to touch the ice. His skates were so tiny. He spent 5 weeks of lessons being pushed on a chair by his dad. It was so sweet but a waste of money.

Ever since he could walk he's been shooting pucks. He's been collecting hockey equipment. He has hockey sticks in varying lengths numbering in the double digits. He's LOST more pucks than I've seen on the ice at NHL warm ups. He watches hockey of all kinds...doesn't matter who's playing.

Christmas, age 4: Hockey skates and 6 weeks of lessons. He got out on that ice and it was almost as if he'd been born wearing skates. He was gliding while the others were marching. He took off for the other end of the ice on the second week. He heads right for the crease everytime. Six weeks of Learn to Skate 1, Hockey 2, and an instructional hockey program and now he's finishing a summer 3 on 3 cross ice league.

I didn't start out wanting to be a hockey mom. In fact, I was pretty much against it. It's so expensive and time consuming. How about soccer, I said. We tried that but it didn't last. He LOVES hockey. And I spend two nights a week at the rink for a couple hours. We drive 45 minutes to a state of the art training facility. I put up with pucks and sticks pretty much EVERYWHERE in the house. There's even a few dings in my car.

I'm a hockey mom...I'm HIS hockey mom....

and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Getting Ready

Shorts, cup, shin pads, hockey socks, elbow pads, chest protector, jersey, helmet, mouthguard, skates, gloves...I know we're missing something...OMG! I forgot his stick! Sean says, "that's ok, Mom. We'll just go home and get it." Uh, no son, I won't be driving another 40 minutes through rush hour traffic all the way home just to get your stick! We'd never make it back in time for practice...

Thank God for the pro shop and my ability to find a bargain...$14.99 for a wood stick, yup! They'll cut it down while he gets dressed...Awesome! My taping job...not so much!


This is why God made DADS!!!! I shouldn't be handling my son's CUP!!!

Anyway, thanksfully we're just starting this (very expensive and time consuming) trip. My son is just 5 and has only been skating for 8 months. He LOVES hockey though. He's been shooting pucks since he could walk. He turns on the NHL network on a Saturday morning before Spongebob. He talks trades with the neighbors, goes to games and doesn't even care who's playing. He's a "hockey fan, Mom".

We've done Learn to Skate 1, Hockey 2, Flyers Future Stars program at the rink, and most recently we're about to finish his first summer 3 on 3 CrossIce program. The countdown will then begin...September 18th at 5 pm..."try outs" for the house limited travel team. I'm not nervous at all....

Not nervous at all.....