I think we have had the best weather of the summer this past week - warm, sunny, blue skied days without humidity, cool mornings and no rain. Andrew and Kate spent the afternoons, this past week, at tennis camp, enjoying all the warmth and sunshine. Not sure that has happened all summer.
So, it seems so odd that I spent the day yesterday shopping for skates, helmets and mittens. Skating season starts a week Friday. It will be Kate and Andrew's third season - and Declan joins the mix this year.
A bit of a new adventure this year - Kate and I drove across town to the premier (and perhaps only) figure skating store in Toronto. Parent and nanny chatter indicated this place was a good destination for lightly used, more supportive (and expensive) figure skates. The $40 variety from Canadian Tire just wouldn't cut it. While I think $130 for a new pair of kid's skates is a lot, even $80 for a pair of used ones ... the store has desperately expensive skates - upwards of $1,000 for a pair of awesome skates, boot and blade bought separately. I didn't feel too put out with the $80. I should be able to trade this pair in for a decent return in price and buy another new used pair in a few months as foot growth requires. Kate is still so petite - 7 years old and size 12 1/2 skates. The skates are in awesome shape - a few minor nicks off the toe, which could easily occur with only one use. I refused to buy the special skate 'yoga' pants - $75 for a kid's pair of pants. I told Kate I would go to Children's Place and buy several pairs of their much less expensive pants as well as a nice light fleece.
Declan & Andrew spent the morning with Jim and got their hair buzzed in time for school. They spent the afternoon with me shopping for skates and helmets. Their skates were pretty inexpensive, and pretty banged up. I tried to buy a better pair for Andrew but he said the skate was desperately uncomfortable. Forty dollars later, I owned 2 new pairs of skates and traded in 3 old pairs of skates - sharpened, and ready to go.
The helmet was a whole other adventure. I knew it would be a problem buying a helmet for Declan. We can't buy a bike helmet that fits his head very well. A few weeks ago, we spent an hour at the bike store trying to build up an older child's helmet with padding so it would accommodate the wide part of his skull but still fit somewhat snugly across his narrow forehead. We couldn't do it. He is still wearing his kid's helmet (same helmet as Kate and Andrew - which fit perfectly). You just have to pound it down a bit.
I couldn't get Kate's hockey helmet on his head yesterday (it fits her head fine, and her head isn't exactly petite). I levers off the wide rear axis of the kid's head. So, we bought this absolutely huge kid's hockey helmet at the skate store. He loves it. I need to tighten a few screws, but otherwise it fits very well - except it is huge. He looks so out of proportion with this massive helmet on his head. (I don't buy used hockey helmets.) The sales guy did suggest he should be able to wear the helmet for several years as long as the head doesn't grow to proportionately (which I don't think it will). He ran through the library at full speed without stumbling once so he seems to cope very well with the size and weight of it all. On skates, it might be a different story.
So, good bye summer, hello school and skating season. I just need to find snow pants that fit this week.
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