Sk8er moms

Do you remember the scene in Ice Princess where the mom yells at the little boy "The toe pick is there for a reason, use it or no friends over for a week!" (1) Or in Blades of Glory when Jon Heder's adoptive father kicks him out of the car and disowns him after he loses the Olympic-type competition? Or best of all in The Cutting Edge when a really young pre-Lost John Locke (2) has the empty case waiting for his daughter to win the Olympic gold medal?

Fact: ShallowGal has horrific taste in movies.

But anyway. Did you ever wonder if skate moms (and dads) are really that bad? They aren't.

They're like 10,000 times worse.

My kids skate. More importantly, my kids love to skate. So for as long as they choose to make this their sport, I will encourage them. And if their interest turns to something else, I'll support that too.

Unfortunately, some parents feel differently. This morning I heard one mother berate her seven year old for 20 minutes while she laced his skates. "Hey lady," I wanted to yell. "Can you do a toe loop? Then back off."

Skating isn't cheap. I spent more before 8 am at the rink on just Jake (ice time, private lesson, skate sharpening) than an entire springtime of Eli's pee-wee soccer. But that doesn't give anyone the right to be so overbearing.

Occasionally I see myself start to slip a little. Suggesting that Jake's leg could go higher on his spiral if he focused. Telling Noa she needs do her routine one more time before she can leave the ice. But usually I catch myself. Usually.

Open note to all the other parents at the rink: They're kids. None of them are going to the Olympics. Can you please chill out just a little? Maybe even smile and give the kid a compliment for once? Thank you.

And I'm counting on you readers to keep me honest here. Thanks in advance.

(ShallowGal steps off her soap box)

Then SG takes a few more steps down and posts this picture of
last years competition where both kids placed first in their age group.
Which is why SG can be so smug. Kidding !

1) There are *so* many mistakes in that scene, by the way, like how the class is called Snowplow Sam, which is a beginners class but they learn stuff like one foot spins and spirals. And the kid says they're getting ready for the USFSA test and they pass the juvenile level which means they skipped pre-preliminary, preliminary and pre-juvenile levels. Maybe Disney couldn't afford an actual skating adviser and just used wikipedia?
2) It really is him under all that hair!