Four Square, Year Four

Crowds descended on the small town of Bridgton, Maine again this past weekend for the annual crowning of the World Champion of Four Square. I am sad to report that Ben narrowly escaped that title once again, placing third in this year's heated competition, just one point behind second. Reflecting on his third-place finish, he said "I guess if I want to win this thing, I need to play more than once a year." If he did actually practice between annual appearances, this quiet stranger would be a force to be reckoned with. Sitting in the spectator stands, I overhear lots of "Who's that tall skinny guy in the navy shorts? I've never seen him before. He's good." I think Ben is an anomaly among the four square crowd, many of whom appear to take this sport very, very seriously and would never think of not practicing several times a week. The good news: Ben's nemesis Tiger Claw was dethroned and didn't even make the finals! It's hard to believe this was my (and Ethan's!) fourth year witnessing this spectacular event. A funny aside - when I pulled up this post from four years ago, I realized I wore the very same sweater to Saturday's event as I did back then. I thought Ben was the only Stockwell to don a "uniform", but apparently his recycling of clothing has worn off on me.

The boys really enjoyed watching their Daddy play, and had many questions about the rules of the game, the crazy costumes, and why Daddy "messed up". Adam really wanted in on the action - it won't be long before this kid is out there competing with his Dad.

Not unlike another father-son competitive duo I know...

2011 Mens' semi-finalists

2021 Mens' finalists and Seniors' champion

But Bridgton ain't just famous for four square! When we arrived there Saturday morning, we headed over to the town rink to meet the famous Salty Pete, mascot of the Portland Pirates hockey team. We had a nearly private audience with Pete, allowing lots of time for the boys to overcome their initial fear of the giant, silent pirate. I can't blame the boys - mascots always scare me a little too. Why are they silent, anyway? We did manage to get a picture of Ethan posing with Pete,

and a very fuzzy shot of Adam giving him a high-five.

And we couldn't pay a visit to the rink without lacing up our own skates! Ethan did great, and continues to progress (and LOVES it) - Adam did a lot of this:

We rounded out the weekend with a lot of sledding (Ethan and Grandpa), shoveling (mostly Ethan), cross-country skiing (Mommy), ping ponging (Daddy), cooking (Grandma), and eating (Adam). It was all a fun and much-needed break from the serious cabin fever that has set in at our house. Spring is just three weeks away....right??