Another week of skating and we finally made it out to the Harbourfront Centre at night. In my mind night skating sounded so lovely, idylic and almost romantic. Isn't it so sad when reality doesn't live up to our expectations.
Last Saturday night was not only a beautiful evening but Harbourfront was hosting LunarFest. Admittedly, I had set us up for failure. Saturday is our busy day...swimming in the morning, sledding in the afternoon and skating at night was too much to ask of an 8 and almost 6 year old. I knew the kids would be tired so I took the time to lay down and rest in the afternoon with each of them. I thought this was good enough...wrong.
Skating was awesome! We stayed and skated for about an hour. Unfortunately, the zamboni came out to clear the ice about 20 minutes in to our skate. Which meant a good 10 minutes of just standing around. But, once the ice was clean we were right back out there. It is amazing to see the progress in my daughter's skating skills. I'm feel so excited when I see that they can actually skate!
So, when did it all fall apart? After the skating. We were so caught up in the skating that by the time we finished all the children's art activities, associated with LunarFest, had closed for the day. Oops. We managed to see the LunarFest lantern aquarium, which was interesting. However, when the girls saw other kids walking around with funny handmade dragon hats, it was more than they could take. And, enter the crying. And, we quickly went home.
Here's the breakdown on skating at Harbourfront Centre...
change room area
small fire pit area
pretty awesome view from the rink
parking - paid parking in lots or on the streets surrounding Harbourfront Centre HOT TIP: there is underground parking at the Radisson Hotel, just west of the centre
cost to skate - free
skate rentals - rentals available for $8 for adults & $6 for kids
skate change area - indoors with lockers ($1)
hot chocolate availability - at the on site cafe
ice quality - great, there is an area off to the side of
the main rink where new skaters can go
kid friendliness - lots of kids skating however, the later it got the busier
the rink became
Looking for a couple of great skating inspired books to read to young children. We love Robert Munsch's book Just One Goal. This story takes you out on the pond playing hockey with an overly enthusiastic and focused young girl. Lots of fun.
And, I wouldn't be Canadian if I didn't include The Hockey Sweater by Roch Carrier. This book is an iconic story of a child living in Quebec who orders a Rocket Richard jersey from the Eaton's catologue. He is sadly disappointed when the jersey arrives and it is a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey instead. The Hockey Sweater captures not only life in rural Quebec, but the passion we have for hockey.
REMEMBER...
It is important to play safe.
Children under 6 years of age MUST wear a CSA approved helmet
Children 12 years of age and younger MUST be supervised
