Watching a Girls' Hockey Game - Just as Exciting as the Boys'!

With a long winter in most parts of Canada, Canadians need their sports to have fun and help them to be physically fit and healthy. Hockey is our national sport in which a sizable percentage of our kids are engaged on a weekly basis.

9 year old L. in her full goalie gear

Our 9 year-old grandniece is no exception. She has been heavily involved in this game since she was four years old.

 L. loves hockey; she plays it regularly, sometimes up to five times a week after school.

Currently, L. plays the position of goalie in a junior girls hockey team called Chiefs in Mississauga.




The hockey season starts from Sept-Nov. and runs till March; the team practices weekly. Evidently, she really enjoys the sports, and being a member of a sports team.

                          Hershey Centre , Mississauga.

This afternoon, we watched L. and her team play against another team in a hockey tournament at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga.

The game started right at 12:00p.m.  Due to sickness or other reasons, the Chiefs Team was short a few players and was outnumbered by their opponents in today's game.

Two referees were there for the Junior Girls hockey tournament

Though this was a children's hockey game, it was taken very seriously and played according to some pretty strict rules!

Two referees were present in each of these tournament games to make sure everything go smoothly.

The coach watching eagerly from the side of the arena

The coaches of each team were present to guide and assist their respective team players and watching them play eagerly from the side of the arena.

There were three periods with the first 2 being ten minutes each

This junior girls hockey tournament game we watched at the Hershey Centre lasted for 45 minutes with three periods - 10 minutes in the first two periods and 12 minutes in the last period.

The players were trying hard in their game!

The players came on the ice,each looking confident, enthusiastic and ready to play and have fun in the rink.

A spectator brought a long horn with him to make noise & cheer!

Meanwhile, in the stands were the parents, uncles, aunts and grandparents ready to enjoy the game and cheering loudly for the respective team.

Jo bought a cow bell to make noise and cheer

Some spectators brought some noise makers allowing them to make that extra loud cheer when the moment occurs.

Jo, one of the hockey moms brought a cow bell which was passed from one ex- hockey parent to the next.

It was pretty interesting for us watching the girls' hockey game. We went to our sons' hockey games a lot when they were young.

But this was our first time watching the girls hockey tournament game. These nine/ten year old girls games were just as competitive as the boys'!

Puling the goalie & leaving the net wide open in the last minute

The opposing team pulled their goalie during the very last two minute of the game, leaving a wide open and empty net.

The victory group hug for the Chiefs!

The Mississauga Chiefs won the game!

They got together for a group hug! We were so proud of L. who never let one goal into the net by the opposing team!

The two teams shook hands at the end of the game

I asked my niece how her daughter, L, liked getting up so early every week to go for the hockey practise.
Jo replied:" L. loves the game. She likes the team atmosphere thing!"

Yes, we could see how children  benefit from playing hockey and feeling a sense of belonging in a team!

Keep up the great work, L.!

R.T.
Hershey Centre
Mississauga, Ontario

Creating New Christmas/ New Year Traditions in Our Family

A few years ago around the Christmas holidays,  I asked one of my friends what  he was doing during the holiday, to which he replied:

" Nothing.  Just staying in Toronto and hang out with my friends."

  I knew he had family out east, so I asked why he wasn’t going home to spend time with his parents. 

St James Cathedral, downtownToronto

“ There is no point of going home for Christmas. My family doesn’t do anything special at Christmas. We are not church people. so we don’t have any traditions or special activities during this time of the year. I haven’t been home for the past ten years.”

  His reply surprised and saddened me.

This young man was in his late twenty's,  same age as our children. I felt sorry for him and his parents. Not going home for Christmas for a decade; this was unthinkable! 

We have attended the Christmas Eve's service at St. James for a number of years

Though our son went away for university since the late 90’s, he has always come home each Christmas to visit us.

When our children were young, our most favourite time of the year was spending Christmas on a skiing holiday either in Quebec, or somewhere in the U.S. where good skiing condition could be found.

The Christmas Eve service is packed with worshipers

Our sons are all grown up and each Christmas, we try to make the best of this time when they are here. We have started some new traditions during this special time.

    1.  Attending Christmas Eve Service at St James Cathedral in downtown Toronto – a beautiful historical church that celebrates Christmas with beautiful traditional hymns and readings.

Candles are lit for loved ones

In our modern electronic wired society, it’s nice to see young people like our sons to take time off from all the electronic gadgets, sit quietly to reflect on things and blessings of the past year.

22.  Christmas lunch/ dinner at home with invited guests who are not surrounded by their own family members or loved ones.


        We live in one of the wealthiest nations on earth, but we are also living in a society with much social isolation. We try to invite others with whom we can spread a little Christmas cheer and share a Christmas dinner with them,

       

 3.     3.   A mini driving holiday to Niagara Falls after Christmas !

3.   
–    

The Double Tree Hotel where we stayed at Niagara Falls, Canadian side

       
W        
      We have accumulated a lot of things in our lives and really do not need another thing to fill up the house. 

What we treasure the most now is time spent with our family.

Lobby of the Double Tree hotel where we had our mini holiday

    
 



                 

A nice and comfy lobby at the Double Tree Hotel

    


























      We embraced the idea of spending a night in Niagara falls together as a Christmas gift from our first born when we suggested it!
    
      We especially love the few hours we have with our son as the captive audience while en route to our destination.  





     

 Night  view of Niagara Falls - Boxing Day, Canada

Festival of Lights, Niagara Falls, Canada

    
      After talking for a couple of hours in the car, have something to eat, he 
      drops us off in the Fashion Outlet
      Mall of Niagara Falls, on the U.S. side. 








     

We enjoy ourselves shopping in the mall while he goes to visit his friends.  










     

The Skylon Restaurant was all lit up

We all have a great time doing our 
       own thing. 

 Killing two birds with one stone! 

     

The restaurant at Niagara Falls, Ontario

     


      





   

Christmas trees were all lit up in and around the Niagara Park, Canada

      
      After shopping and dinner,  we took a night walk this year as the weather was mild and enjoyed the light show put on around the Niagara Park for the  Festival of Light.

A buffet breakfast was served until 11:30a.m. in the Double Tree Restaurant

We spent the night at the hotel, and enjoyed a relaxing breakfast in the hotel restaurant the next morning.

Lingering over good food & hot coffee with loved ones - the best Christmas gift

 A great way to spend time with loved ones over good food and a hot cup of coffee!

We treasure the time spending with our grown children

We love these special activities so much that we want to make them part of our annual Christmas/ New Year holiday traditions year after year!





Things change in our lives;  we are grateful that our children are independent professional adults with their own busy lives.

Creating new traditions in our family, hopefully, will help us to spend more time together and make our reunions more pleasant and fun each year!

R.T.
Double Tree Hotel
Niagara Falls, Canada 

A New Canadian's First Christmas in Canada

2015 Festival of Lights - Niagara Falls, Canada

Canada is a wonderful free, democratic country. We welcome newcomers, immigrants and visitors to our country each year.

 One of the most exciting things for someone new to Canada is spending his/her first Christmas here!

I still remember vividly our first Christmas in Thunder Bay where we landed over forty five years ago!

The first snow fall, the smell and taste ( Yes! I did taste the white stuff when I first saw it falling from the sky!)

2015 Festival of Lights - Niagara Falls, Canada 

The sights and sounds of Christmas fascinated me; the hospitality and warmth of our neighbors and church people overwhelmed us and warmed our hearts!

I have never forgotten my family’s first Christmas in Canada!

We would like to give back the same kindness and generosity that were given to us years ago to the newcomers.

This year, we have the opportunity to do that as Jenny was spending her first Christmas here in Toronto!

We made sure that she got to experience as much as possible a Canadian Christmas. She landed in Toronto at the beginning of December, and we invited her to a number of Christmas events.

1.   

  1. The Christmas Lunch at 105 Gibson Centre, Markham – It was a lunch organized by the Centre staff for seniors in the community.

Volunteers prepared lunch and entertained guests at 105 Gibosn Centre Lunch

   

 

       Organized by the Centre and run by volunteers, the event was opened to all mature adults and charged  a

      nominal fee of $7.00 per person for a turkey dinner.  

  

  

T

Staff of 105 Gibson and T3C Church sang at the Senior Christmas lunch

     
       There were entertainment programs  provided by some of the volunteers and staff of the Gibson Centre and the Toronto Christian Community Church.

Mom bought tickets and invited three of her friends to the lunch

My mom also bought some tickets and invited three of her friends to come along.

I had not seen my mom laughing so hard for a long time since my father passed away.

Mom enjoyed herself tremendously at the lunch 

When I was nice to someone, I did
not expect that my mother could have so much
fun at this event too!

Jenny took part in our family's annual Christmas Dinner!

2.   Our big fat annual extended family dinner. 

Our family Christmas dinner is a 45 year old tradition in Canada!

It must be a shock for Jenny to attend a family dinner with an attendance of about forty people.

The 3rd and 4th generation are continuing the family Christmas tradition!

The  oldest attendee at our family gathering was 89, my mother, and the youngest, Harper, at almost two years old.

The Kids' Corner!

M. and her family hosted this year's family dinner at the condo

The potluck Christmas dinner was hosted by my brother, Dave and his family in their downtown condo's spacious party room.

Dave & his wife started planning the dinner in November!

Dave and his wife, Sue started planning and organizing this annual event at the end of November.

Everyone brings a dish to the party

Everyone brought  a dish to share and a gift to exchange.
( Only if they wanted to. It was not compulsory to bring a gift if one didn't want to take part.)  

The Gift Exchange game starts during dessert time

The younger generation used to exchange their gifts by playing a gift stealing game after dinner.

Dave and Susan had a new idea for the gift exchange - a Bingo game!

But last year, Dave suggested a bingo game for the gift exchange so that older people could take part.

It turned out to be a very popular game among most people.

Everyone has fun at the bingo game

Everyone brought a gift for the gift exchange and Dave gathered them and put them on a gift trolley.

Whenever you bingo, you could go up and pick out a gift. But that didn't meant hat you could keep that gift!

We love the game!

The next person who had a bingo could either pick a gift from the gift trolley or steal the gift you had in your hand.

Sometimes the noise and laughter could be too much for the little one!

Harper to Luke " Are they driving you crazy too?"

However, the same gift could only be stolen once so that the stealing game could come to an end.

( So that the little ones can go home afte the adults have their beer and fun!)

Jenny, George and Amanda were guests at our family dinner

It was a fun game for everyone who participated!

Even for my friends, George ( and Amanda) whom we lost touch for over forty years and were reconnected that evening!

Jenny's first win at a Bingo game!

It was double fun for Jenny when she yelled bingo and got to pick her first gift from the gift trolley!

A time for family to catch up with one another!

Everyone always has tons of fun attending our annual big extended family party.

Relaxing after the big L's dinner party! It took a lot out of ya!

I was glad that Jenny got to enjoy and see for herself what a family Christmas party is like for our family!

3.  







         

    

Christmas Lunch at our house on Christmas Day

              3. Our Family Turkey Dinner on Christmas Day at our house .

Paul and his family enjoying the turkey dinner

       This was Jenny’s first more intimate family gathering with just a few families.


   

A lot of food for the Christmas lunch!

      Being in a smaller group setting and knowing a person who could speak her language,  Jenny was more at ease.

   










      We had a traditional turkey dinner  ( at lunch time) thanked God and toasted each other.

Opening the gifts!

Another new experience for Jenny was the opening of gifts after dinner.

Jenny's first Christmas gift from us!

She was very surprised that we prepared gifts and presented to her as she totally did not expect that at all.

E. opening his gifts after the guests were gone

We explained to her about the custom of gift giving in Canada and that a gift did not have to be expensive, but one that had been chosen and given with thoughts and consideration for the recipient.

Showing off the gift she received!

She opened her gift and exclaimed in sheer delight as she received a warm sweater in her favourtie colour!

She immediately tried it on and posted for a picture!

Jenny expressed to me later how special her first Christmas was for her that she spent at our house and how deeply she appreciated it. 

Christmas is a time for family get together - old & young!

My family and I were delighted! We only did a little bit and we have made four different families very happy!  

We were happy that they had a great time and got to spend Christmas and experienced love and caring people during this special season!

Our church has applied to sponsor some Syrian refugees into Canada.
They should be arriving soon. It's our sincere hope that the new Syrian refugees entering into Canada would also experience warm hospitality and reception after their arrival!

R.T.

Toronto