Where I confess that I'm a bad mother...

Last night Emmaline had her first of three ice skating lessons. There were 4 instructors and 18 kids - all between the ages of 4 and 6, and all new to skating. They started the lesson off the ice, teaching the kids to fall down and get up without getting hurt. Then they herded the kids onto the ice. This instantly caused all the parents watching to start busting up laughing, because as every kid stepped on the ice - KERSPLAT! Legs and arms everywhere, except for a couple of kids clinging valiantly to the wall, trying desperately to keep their legs underneath them. It was a riot.

Now here is the part where I talk about what a terrible mom I am. I did NOT have my brain on yesterday. When I got her ready to go - I was thinking about what would be *easy* to skate in. I didn't think about the fact that it was 14 degrees (it is an outdoor rink). Poor thing. I dressed her in her fleece jacket and mittens. I realized my error almost as soon as we got there and saw all the other kids dressed in snowsuits/pants and heavy coats. The lesson was supposed to be 30 minutes long and she made it through 15 minutes before she was shaking so bad from the cold that her instructor picked her up and skated her back to me. I took her straight home to get her all warmed up. You would think growing up in Alaska that it would have occurred to me to dress my child in proper cold weather gear (after all - she wore her snow pants and heavy coat just earlier in the day to play in the snow!!!). Anyway, next week I hope it goes a little bit better.

Emmaline's comments on ice skating? "That was h-h-h-h-h-hardddddd."

Rating: 5 Fireballs (3 for being a bad mom and 2 to help Emmaline warm up!)