Sledding!

Good wintry weekend. Ed Hull and his son Gabriel invited us to go sledding at a local park. Up to this point Sam's experience with sledding has been quite limited.

Sledding has a tarnished reputation in the Collins family. My Mother, cherishing her own good memories of sledding, liked to drag us out each winter to share the experience. Her ungrateful children complained at leaving the warm indoors, and returned whiny and cold and damp.

In one of those mysteries of parenting, I have followed my mother's path exactly, wanting Sam to enjoy everything sledding can be. We took Sam once last year to Mendon Pond in single-digit temperature and before even getting to go down a slope the sled overturned planting him in deep snow and embittering him on the outing.

Yesterday was a tremendous improvement. We spent two full hours sledding down a high, fast slope with Ed and Gabriel. (And, part of the time, with Sam's fearless friend Ian, until he got blindsided by a passing sled.)
Not one wipe-out! And we weren't timid. Following E&G's example we not only went down double-decker (I lying on my stomach, Sam on his, on my back, holding on for dear life) but did three-sled trains which roared down the slope at ferocious speeds. All this while trying to steer around other sledders and avoid the lone wooden toboggan "of death" (as Gabriel called it).

When we left Sam was shivering and ready, but not eager, to go.

The rest of the weekend: A few errands, a pleasant gig as dinner-guest stand-ins for some friends, a tiny amount of shopping, and not enough sleep. Oh yes--made sugar cookies with Sam, which started well and spiraled down into my drying his tears while he sat on my lap out on the back porch. BUT at least there were cookies. :-)

Merry Christmas!