Notes and highlights from the ringette tournaments we went to in February:
Queen City Classic (Regina) with White Out and Mojo, Feb 1-2
- Sophia and Madeline missed a day of school; Georgia went to school until recess Friday afternoon
- Neil and I volunteered for rink marshall/registration table - one shift on Friday; two on Saturday
- Madeline (White Out) played four games; their record was 2-2 so they didn't advance and Madeline was disappointed
- Sophia (Mojo) played five games; their record was 3-1 after the round robin (2nd in their pool), so they moved on to play a quarter-final (vs. KW Extreme who went on to win gold) - they played this game on Saturday with just a one-hour break after their last round robin game
- Madeline went to Subway (at the Coop) for lunch and then sold 50-50 tickets with her team
- Sophia went to Humpty's for brunch with her team, and invited two of her team mates to our house to watch a movie between games
- we were free on Sunday - which was nice; Friday and Saturday were exhausting!
In Regina, at the end of an exciting round-robin finish to put Mojo in 2nd place in their pool.
- we left home at 7:00 am Friday; L&B were heading to Medicine Hat, too, so they picked up Sophia and left just ahead of us; the highway to Moose Jaw was pretty bad
- Bronwyn's team, Rush, also played in the tourney - it's too bad they couldn't stay at the same hotel as us
- Sophia's team played one game Friday afternoon, two on Saturday, and two on Sunday - they had a great schedule with nothing late in the evening or first thing in the morning
- Mojo was 2-1 after the round robin (2nd in their pool), so they went on to play a semi final Sunday morning (vs. Bow View IN10CT), and then played for bronze (vs. BP Black)
- Mojo won bronze! The game was 7-7 with about five minutes left, and we parents could hardly breathe until it was over - super exciting! So proud of the girls - they played hard and deserved it :)
- all weekend, the parents cheered hard for Mojo, ringing bells our family had collected from Rams football games
- Sunday was challenging because Mojo's superstar goalie had come down with a stomach bug overnight and she didn't play either game on Sunday. Also, one of Sophia's team mates broke her arm in the semi final. Poor girl!
- Madeline and Georgia each bought themselves a pair of plaid flanel lounge pants with "RINGETTE" printed across the back; Sophia bought herself a pillowcase that says "Ringette Dreams"; and I bought ringette tattoos for Mojo which they applied to their faces right before the bronze final
- we stayed at the Medicine Hat Lodge which was fantastic - great room, breakfast buffet, and water slides for a good price (note to self: pool side = ear plugs required)
- the team spent some time making signs for their hotel room doors
- the kids went swimming/water sliding on Friday and Saturday evening
- for meals:
- we ate lunch on Friday with L&B at the Medicine Hat mall food court
- we enjoyed the Lodge's hot breakfast buffet both mornings (where I was introduced to Bircher's Muesli - yum!)
- two meals with the team: a private catered pasta, chicken, and salad buffet at the Lodge on Friday, and Medicine Hat Buffet on Saturday
- we ate at Boston Pizza in Swift Current on the way home
- otherwise, we ate food we brought with us in an electric cooler - oranges, apples, cheese, nuts, pepperoni sticks, turkey sausage, hard-boiled eggs, and cheese & sausage egg muffins
- the younger siblings of Mojo players also had a fun weekend together - there were six sisters (including Georgia and Madeline) who enjoyed hanging out in MH and all season
- Madeline stayed with a friend (Bella) both nights, so Sophia had a queen-sized bed all to herself (Georgia slept with us)
- our room was where some of the players and younger kids relaxed and watched DVDs between games and after swimming in the evening - mostly Hotel Transylvania and a bit of Scooby Doo and Harry Potter
- we got home after 10:00 pm on Sunday. It was a long, but great weekend!
The road to Medicine Hat was free of snow! We were traveling to a warmer climate.
Sophia - number 14.
The view from our 4th floor room at the Medicine Hat Lodge.
Sophia (right) and a team mate holding the Mojo banner after winning the bronze medal game.
Sunrise shining into the MH Lodge. / Sophia at breakfast before the semi final. / Bronze!
Saskatoon with White Out, Feb 15-16
- we left for Saskatoon after Sophia's trombone rehearsal, about 10:15 am; Madeline and Georgia missed a full day of school
- Madeline's team had a poor schedule - they played 3:30 Friday afternoon (which was fine), 8:30 pm (awfully late for children!), and then 8:00 am the next morning, followed by an 8-hour break
- White Out was 1-3 after the round robin, so they didn't play on Sunday; Friday night, they played the best novice team we've ever seen - from Sherwood Park
- we stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn downtown - our room was nice and the pool was okay (nothing special), but the hot tub was icky
- the team spent some time decorating t-shirts with fabric markers
- for meals:
- on Friday, we ate supper with the team in the hotel restaurant
- our family went to Fuddruckers for lunch on Saturday
- Madeline had pizza with one of her team mates on Saturday night
- otherwise, we ate food we brought with us (similar to last weekend)
- the kids went swimming in the hotel pool after each game on Saturday (normally, the team wouldn't be allowed to swim between games, but they had an 8-hour break and couldn't advance anyway)
- after lunch on Saturday, we visited Grandma Byrns, popped into the U of S, and went shopping at the Midtown (across from our hotel) for a few minutes
- six players from Sophia's ringette team had sisters playing in this tourney, so Sophia had a good time with some of her team mates - she went water sliding at the Travelodge with Jenna on Friday afternoon, and stayed with Jenna and family Saturday night
- we left Saskatoon around 9:00 am on Sunday, traveling at the same time as another family - Sophia rode with them while their youngest came back to Regina with us. The highways weren't great, but we beat the worst of it.
The road to Saskatoon. / Fuddruckers, of course! / View from our room, early Saturday.
Our fan flag for Madeline, also known as Maverick. :)
Madeline passing from the free circle.
