MORE TO FOLLOW SOON.....

Hockey in Philadelphia

Hi everyone! Most of you already know that Hayden and I took almost a week long trip to Philadelphia for an ice hockey tournament. Hayden had been selected to play for a team that was to represent North and South Carolina. What a great privilege! We drove 3 1/2 hours one way just to practice and then came home again. Total dedication, but I have to say that I loved it. Then came the big day where it was time to leave. Our trip was 11 hours one way. We stopped over in N. Carolina and picked up the next day and drove straight through. It was a great trip, and we were both amazed at how many states you can drive through in such a short period of time. The tournament was great, playing time was abundant, and the body checks were free flowing from Hayden! I was very proud of him, as most of you know he loves to check, and also seems to keep the bench warm in the penalty box! He ended up with only one 2 minute penalty out of 5 games. Quite an accomplishment ~ on top of that, he played great hockey and even got on the scoring sheet himself on 2 of the games. During downtime, he entered the competition for the most accurate shot. He ended up winning a pair of hockey gloves with 3 out of 5 shots in different holes. Neither of us can wait to go again next year! Out of the 20 kids that went, the coach selected 10 for next year, and Hayden was one of them. Hopefully, we can go to the tournament in Toronto, Canada. That one is on the wish list of the

Game Time

Here's a picture of Hayden after game number 5. Each game they awarded the top 3 players an award. Hayden received one of those awards! Hayden only received one 2 minute penalty the whole tournament! Now, for those of you who know Hayden, you will say that this cannot possibly be true. Well, it is. He was allowed to check, check and check again ~ my oh my was he in his element! Aside from that, he played really good hockey and scored goals too! I don't think you can ask for more than that! Now I can't wait to go again next year! (you might notice that his shirt says "Florida" and not NC/SC like it should. Well, they did not have enough, and I guess they figured that since he came from Florida he wouldn't mind. How correct, he couldn't care less as long as he was playing hockey!

Duck Ride

Well, here we are in downtown Philadelphia. The one thing the kids all wanted to do was ride this "bus" thing that went on the road, and then straight into the water! It was fabulous! As you can see, the boys all had these yellow "duck beaks" that when blown made a quacking sound. They had so much fun with the music and songs! To be honest with you, I think the duck ride was the highlight of the whole hockey tourament! Go figure!!!! In case you don't see Hayden, he has on the green striped polo.