First Time Ice Skating

This past weekend, my family convinced me that my kids would love ice skating.  I didn't need very much convincing.  I just knew I could not, would not, put on a pair of skates, so who would help them learn? Well, Skatetown in Roseville has a brilliant solution.  We came inside from the sunny California day to a frozen playland. We had to wait for the zamboni to polish up the ice for us.

I stayed on the sidelines and tried to take decent photos through the reflective and scratched up glass while my brother and sister-in-law taught my kiddos the basics of skating.  The rink has a brilliant solution for young (and any beginner) skaters.  These buckets are perfect!  They are allowed on about a quarter of the rink, and the capable skaters enjoy the rest of the ice bucket-free.

Ian was perfectly happy to scoot around with his pile of buckets.

Anika leaned heavy on hers for awhile, then gained confidence.  She did fall a few times, she told me, but she didn't care.

Ian tired of the skating before the others. "Games, games," he insisted.  And it wasn't so cold, but it was cold enough that I was happy to escort him to the arcade.  I didn't think anyone could wobble anywhere on these narrow strips of metal, but no one seemed to mind.  Kids were running and reaching and acting like they wore everyday shoes.

Everyday shoes don't looks half so fancy or fun, though.

I was glad to skip the whole balancing, fast-moving, slick-ice part of the day.  But it sure looked fun!  And the kids had a blast.  Anika has already scheduled her next skating trip.  Next time I'll get her spinning :)