Boxing Day and Beyond

In Canada, the traditional Christmas Day celebration centered around the family and the religious obligations of the season. Gifts were simple and were exchanged in the early morning before services. All the gifts were then put back in the boxes so the family could attend to the duties of the day, church meetings, service opportunities, etc. The following day, Boxing Day, the gifts were again removed from the boxes and the toys could be played with, the clothes worn to parties, etc. Now it seems about half of Canada enjoys he additional time with family, and the other half enjoys the many end-of-season sales. There are still many many parties to attend, and we were invited to several.
Jacob always seems to attract the attention of the locals. It must be the Jo Malone.

As he was packing for his next transfer (back to school in Rexburg) he was cleaning out his closet, and was prompted for a quick stroll down memory lane. We laughed at some of the stories this little pose conjured up, including one or two about a former football player for the Minutemen who was still bragging abut his glory days on the grid iron from the days when Amy and Ashley were still in school. We all had a good time.

"Look, they did not kill Kenny!"

This is a self portrait after a quick run in the late afternoon because the gym was closed for Boxing Day.

We did manage to get conned for another gift or two. Jacob and Sam wanted NHL jerseys for the daily shinny game (hockey without pads) Jacob wanted an Oilers Jersey, and Samuel wanted a Maple Leafs one. Joseph already has 2 jerseys, including his trademark Sharks.

At the game. It looks late, but it is really only about 4 pm. Joseph is sporting his new gloves (in lieu of another jersey) We also had skates sharpened today, and the guy who owns the sporting good place, Bob, is a good friend of mine. He was teasing Joseph about how big his size 13 skates are. You need to know that Bob is all of 5'-5" and weighs 110 pounds and wears a size 6.

If you look closely you can find all three boys in this shot. The worst part about outdoor hockey is not the cold, because today we enjoyed a high of -6, about 20 to 25 degrees C higher than normal for this time of year. No, the worst part is the noise. Because of the blowing snow, and the fact that the snow here is very small flakes, it sounds like everyone is skating on Styrofoam. The squeaking is very distracting. In today's game, Joseph scored a goal with assists from Samuel and Jacob. It was too much fun.

Hugs and Kisses,