Summer in Colorado

Away from family and away from what I’ve known for the past 4 summers. It’s weird not being up in Minocqua, Wisconsin with my family, performing in Min-Aqua Bats shows, but I’m enjoying what I’m doing. I’m happy that I have the self-constraint to realize that the best thing for me to do is to stay at home and focus on hockey. I’ve made some sacrifices this summer, if living in the Vail Valley for a summer is a consequence…I’ve decided to stay at home in Colorado, while my family goes up to our lake cabin in Minocqua, Wisconsin.

Right now, I am the only one living in my house. It’s kind of an eerie feeling because no one is here but me. My dog isn’t even here to greet me every time I come into the house. The house has kind of become a hockey factory. All I do is shoot pucks in my garage or cook food for myself, as I eat a lot. I’m realizing what a tough job my mom has feeding me because I’m constantly either making food for myself, buying food for myself, or thinking about how I need to make food for myself. Buying the food hasn’t been very hard of late; I bought cereal, milk, and Oreos last time I went to City Market. The fact that I need to gain weight before camp in August has made the job even harder for myself, though, because I stuff myself every time I eat. Living alone in my house has made me appreciate the little things, and made me realize how hard being a mom would be. I have to water plants, do laundry, do dishes, go to the post office, take out the recycling, mow the lawn, buy groceries, all things I do when my mom is here, but it’s hard to balance all of these things without a mom around to remind me of what I have to do and focus on playing hockey too. I guess it’s a warm up for what I will go through next year.

I definitely am exaggerating a little because I’ve been able to focus on hockey pretty easily living alone. I’ve been skating a lot, as much as I can with the limited times that Dobson has to offer, and I’ve been working out a lot, doing little things every day and working out at Dogma twice a week. My workouts will definitely get harder as I build up to main camp on August 6th. It’s hard to believe main camp is only a month away, and soon after that the season starts. But I will be ready.

In the time that I haven’t been playing hockey I’ve been thinking about being up in Minocqua, but not a lot because that just distracts me a little too much. I’ve been enjoying the outdoors in Vail, though, climbing up to waterfalls in East Vail and tubing down the Gore Creek when my hockey for the day is over. Summer’s only just started, but part of me really wishes it was hockey season already. I want to get up there and prove myself already! Good news is I only have to wait another month. And I can make myself much better in one month.