Extreme Toddler Sledding

Over the Christmas Holiday, we visited my dear friend Lisa at her parents house in New Hampshire. Unlike NYC, where there was 24 inches of snow, NH only had about a foot or so, which was the perfect amount for snow play with the three year olds. Her son Finn and my daughter Alexandra played in the backyard until they were near frozen. They sledded, hiked, used the swing, made a snow fort....It was all idyllic until (insert horror movie music here): extreme toddler sledding happened.

Our second day of snow bliss, Lisa and I took Finn and Alexandra out into the backyard alone. Actually, Lisa might have been wearing Zeo, their 12 week old baby in the Ergo carrier. The day before, we had found through extended experimentation the perfect sledding conditions. First, it was quickly noted that when our fat adult assess were in the sleds with the 3 year olds, they didn't go too fast (shocker). Then we found that two wiggly three year olds in one sled usually resulted in one tipping over and derailing the whole ride about 1/3 of the way down the small hill. We decided that each of them sledding separate was best for performance, but when they went downhill sitting up they usually tipped over. Lastly, we concluded that on the tummy was the best way to go. See above picture.

Until they sled head first into a running stream. Which is what Alexandra did.

Also note, the first day of sledding had SIX adults outside, and day two of sledding--during which extreme toddler sledding occurred--had two adults only, one at the top of the small hill & one at the bottom. I was at the bottom.

Both Finn & Alexandra left the top of the hill together & then went in opposite directions. Finn headed right first, towards the patio drop off of about 3 or so feet, then Alexandra veered left, towards the stream. Finn was a bit ahead, so I went to move towards him, envisioning his neck breaking as he launched off the patio ledge, but then I saw Alexandra heading towards the water. I couldn't get to her. I started screaming. It was probably one of the more helpless moments of my life.

She went over the bank of the stream, a rocky 4 foot drop that was covered with snow, slid less than an inch next to a tree, and her sled stopped with its tip dangling over the now running stream that had just unfrozen. I couldn't see her as I raced after her b/c the embankment was well below the yard level. I envisioned her skull split open and bloody, her face mangled, her body limp....but as I reached the lip of the bank I saw her on the sled, dangling over the stream, her hands gripping the sides of the sled tightly and heard her crying. It was a tiny stream, she would have just gotten freezing wet, but I yelled, "Don't move!" and tumbled down the slope to get her. She was crying, and a tad hysterical, but completely unharmed (minus the therapy bills that will probably emerge in 10+ years).

Due to my screaming, Adam and Ross (Lisa's brother) and Uros (Lisa's husband) ran outside and across the yard to the stream where Lisa was pointing, somewhat hysterical, too. I passed Alexandra up to Adam and the sled up to Ross and climbed back up to the yard. I was practically crying but I felt in shock, my heart was racing a million miles per hour, and I felt like the worst parent on earth. Seriously. She could have easily been badly hurt or worse. I was traumatized for at least a week after. I'd look at her and get teary, or just give her a squeeze out of nowhere. I felt like we had escaped some sort of horror.

After she stopped crying, the first words she said were, " I want to tell my teachers!" and she did. In fact, she told anyone who would listen for about a week that she went sledding so so so fast and "my face went over the water." Of course, that makes sense to nobody except those of us who were there.

Extreme toddler sledding--not recommended.