Late this afternoon, we had a little skate date downtown at Nathan Phillips Square. This must be the most beautiful rink in the whole city--overarched by Christmas lights and hanging stars, a beautiful tall lit tree right beside it. Gabriel took to the ice right away, nearly picking up right where he left off last winter and made us all proud.
Gabriel's been talking about skating for weeks and weeks. Every time we go outside, if it's at all slippery he says "It's swippery as ice. Needa states in a winta." Contrary to last year, it just hasn't really been as cold this year and so the little rink we've been intending to build in our back yard, sits unattended and filled in with green grass still. It might seem a little bit strange that we want it to be colder this winter than it is. But cold means ice and ice means skating in this house.
Gabriel took this picture of me. He's becoming quite the little photographer, following in mama's footsteps.
Of course Maggie can't skate yet.... so the two of us sat on the side all cozied and watched the skaters whiz by. I am always surprised at how she loves to just sit and watch. Gabriel was always on the move, never wanting to sit still. This is true of Magdalene too sometimes, but she often likes to sit
back and watch the action too.
Tonight, our particular entertainment was a group of jovial young men from Saudi Arabia who were out skating for the first time. I couldn't help but laugh out loud. One man put on a pair of skates, didn't lace them tight and stood there wobbling in his skates while trying to stand up. His hands were bare and he wore no gloves! He was laughing and laughing as he tried to gather his bearings and off he took latched onto another friend and the two wobbled around one lap of the rink before collapsing in laughter at the edge once they returned. It was a sight to see. Ha! They were all quite good sports and kept us entertained with their banter and endless rounds of selfies which I am sure their families in Saudi were enjoying.
It was so beautiful downtown and we were actually surprised that on a Saturday evening before Christmas how easy it was to get downtown and park and hang out. There is so much to see and so many beautiful lights and displays. And the best time to go, just at dusk to even catch a couple of hours. Toronto at Christmas--so pretty!
You might also like:
- Christmas Market: A Family Date!
- Date with the kiddos: Lakeshore Parade
- The Shopping Date: The OOAK!
- My Gingerbread Man: A Gabriel Date
- Tree-Lighting and Tree-watching: A Family Date.
- The Twelve Dates of Christmas.
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