Long weekend review

Well, that was fun! I had a great visit with my daughter and grandson, saw some great curling matches, chatted with some interesting curling fans, and managed to stay warm most of the time.

It was cold when I drove out on Thursday afternoon and stayed that way through the weekend.  Every morning, it was in the -30C (-22F) range with windchills making it feel even colder.  The weather finally improved by noon on Monday when I was starting my drive to home.

I spent lots of time with Eli. Here's he's sitting beside me on the couch watching cartoons.  That's his juice glass in between his legs.  What a character this kid is!  I'd be sitting with him, reading or talking to my daughter and he would jump up, grab me by the face and give me a kiss.  

The photo on the right is blurry but shows him on the stairs early one morning, like 5 a.m. or so, with his I-pad. What you can't see is the little turkey is butt naked!  His mom followed him shortly and got him dressed.


On Monday I joined them at the indoor park for a bit before I headed for home.  He loves it there, playing with his friends and all of the toys.  That day there were four moms (one a foster mom) there with six children though at times it sounded like many more.  

At one point, D left to run a couple of errands. Eli wasn't happy she was leaving but soon settled down with me sorting colored popsicle sticks.  He is smart (proud grandma here!), knows and can say his colors very well. 

D has completed her application for pre-kindergarten for the fall.  I'm sure he'll like it there too though he'll have to learn to deal with a little more structure.  Won't hurt him.  His teacher might want to...

I drove to the nearby community for the first curling game on Friday morning. It started at 8 a.m., and I arrived shortly after the game started.  When I got to the door, I learned that the pass I bought was good for the games starting Friday evening at 8 p.m.  However, the pass didn't indicate this and was dated for January 17-19 so the volunteers allowed me in.  Later in the day, someone in charge wrote a note on my pass that indicated I was permitted to attend the noon and 4 p.m. games that day as well.  

I didn't stay for the 8 p.m. game as I was tired, it was dark and cold and I was ready to head back to my daughters.  I did the same thing on Saturday night so ultimately I only saw one additional game. Saturday the draws were a little earlier, so I saw a bit of the sunset on my drive back to D's. 

I was able to watch the Friday's late game on television, but Saturdays was broadcast on a channel I couldn't get!  I was disappointed as it was the semi-finals.  But Eli was up early that morning so we were too, and I wouldn't have wanted to be driving back at 10:30 that night.

Sunday was the finals, the first draw at 11 a.m. and the second at 2:30 p.m.

First up were the women, Anna Hassleborg of Sweden and Kim of Korea.  The latter team had three players named Kim and one named Ha.  It was a defensive game throughout.  Anna managed to get her two points in the first end and then it was back and forth for the rest of the game when Kim tied it up in the 8th end at 5-5.  In an extra end, Sweden scored their point and won.  It wasn't an exciting game, but the strategy and shot making were terrific.

Next up were the men, Brad Jacobs' team from Northern Ontario, and John Epping's team from Ontario.  Jacobs got his two points in the first end, and then it got ugly.  At one point the score was 5-1 for Jacobs after a couple of stolen ends.  But Epping fought back and tied it up in the 7th end.  In the 8th and final end Epping did all he could and was lying first and second shot when Jacob went to throw his final rock.  You could have heard a pin drop in the audience.  His sweepers got on the rock immediately and it stopped just in time for the win.  The place erupted with cheering.  I wasn't one of them because I had hoped Epping would win.  But, this game and the one before it came down to the last rock on the last end.  Perfect for spectators, maybe not so nice for the curlers.

It was an earlier end to the day and the sun was setting as I made the 30 minute drive back to my daughter's.

I had a busy few days with more driving than I've done in a long time. The weather was cold, but my car didn't give me any trouble, and the time spent with D and Eli was priceless.  Even so, it was good to get home and sleep in my own bed last night! 

Have a great week everyone!