First Competition Hockey Tournament!

For our first competition hockey tournament with our Team New Mexico, we traveled to Pueblo, Colorado!

Of course I drove, as hauling kids and hockey bags is MUCH easier in a truck! We stayed in a motel that was under renovation -- not quite to my comfort level, as there was dust and chemical smells (like carpet glue) everywhere, so picture me with swollen eyes and snot nose all the time dealing with getting the boys up and ready for games... :( Not a pretty sight!

The kids played 3 games, and won them all! Competition hockey is really exciting for us parents, as it has an atmosphere of pro hockey, complete with up beat music every time the clock stopped. Us parents were all having fun rockin' in the stands! For our fourth and final game on Sunday, we were playing for either first or second place against a VERY physical team that we had already played -- and lost by a point! Darn! But at least we took second! Our team received a very cool and interesting trophy to take home! For our very first tournament, with many of our kids first-year PeeWees (which means the first year for checking for them), they did OUTSTANDING! We were so proud of them!

Okay, about checking... am I ready for this???? The team that was so very physical is comprised of many second-year PeeWees, so they not only had more checking experience, but they were older and bigger. The coach of that team also seemed to be coaching the kids to be more physical, too.

My son played left wing. Wings seem to get checked more. During the third game my son got illegally checked HARD against the boards. His head snapped back, and then his head bounced several times off the boards, he went down, and then his head bounced several times off the ice (all of this within seconds, which, as his mom, seemed like it would never end!). I just held my breath, tears welling in my eyes, my brain figuring out how I could jump over the glass and onto the ice over to my son. Now, my son is not one to stay down when he gets knocked down; he's usually right up and immediately moving again, so I've never had to worry before. THIS time, though, it took him several seconds before he got back up -- and he left the ice! AAAHHH! Do I go over to him? No, that might embarass him. So I stayed put. And fretted. He was SITTING on the bench, too, not standing hanging over the side watching the game like he usually does. AAAHHH! I was numb with worry and indecision. But cheered loudly with the other parents when the kid who checked my son got a major penalty of 5 minutes!

Then he came back out onto the ice! WHEW! He seemed to be skating just fine, too -- in fact, with more agressiveness! When the game ended, I was right there beside him, and asked him how his head was. His response?

With irritation and puzzlement he replied, "My head?!? Nothing's wrong with my head, Mom!"

Oh, okay. So I'll back off.

Later in our room he said he injured his knee during that check. His knee?? His knee had a small bruise and was slightly swollen. And he was having a hard time bending it. So we went off to Target and bought some Icy Hot sleeves for his knee. We put a sleeve on overnight and I gave him a Tylenol. In the morning we put another sleeve on, I gave him another Tylenol, and he said he was "just fine". So he skated again -- with even more vigor! Like there was absolutely nothing wrong with him!

::sigh:: He's obviously ready for this... but am I?