From Soccer Star to Soccer Star

Soccer: J.'s first attempt at competitive sports!

Jeremiah and I are not so heavy into sports. Everyone who knows us knows that that's a generous understatement. He likes to climb things and then hang from them. I like to hike, swim, and dance. The kids like playing outside, riding bikes, and having yoga classes. So we're not an inactive family. But we do not play sports, as such. I thought we should expose them to sports and organized play and see how we do with a team sport. So we made a team of J.'s best local friends (including the big BFFs: Aden, Nathan, and Cole) and then sat back and laughed. J. was happy to try and loves the soccer uniform (especially the cute pink cleats). And she LOVES her team. They all giggle and talk and play together. But do they play soccer? Not so much.

This is J. during her first game. Notice that the ball is over somewhere around a bunch of kids and she's walking way back with her hand in her mouth. She didn't want to go after the ball bc "the other kids were all kicking it". I'm not sure if it's an issue of not wanting to be aggressive, or not wanting to get hurt, or being willing to wait until she has a turn with the ball. I don't blame her any way bc I'm exactly like that too. And I was getting hot under the collar at seeing the other team (that was older and much more aggressive) getting all the time with the ball and out-running our little guys and using their arms to hold the other kids away from the ball. It seemed "not nice" and a bit rough. Our kids kept asking when they would have a turn and we had to explain that in soccer you have to take the ball, you don't just get a turn with it. Come to think of it, I don't think I like soccer.

This is J. at their second soccer game. Notice that the coach is trying to get them all lined up but J. is playing with her hands and the boys are running around like airplanes. Yup, that's our team. But at least she got out on the field. They need 4 players on the field at all times during the game and our team only has 8. At four years old, someone's always crying, someone's always too tired, and someone's always at the potty. So they need her to be out there, even if she doesn't want to run. So that's our standard of success. I give her big encouragement and ice cream if she just goes out on the field when Coach asks. That's all we ask of her- to support her team. And she shows us. She goes out there and just stands there.

Until, finally, she started playing soccer! The last half of the second game she actually started running for the ball! I admit I bribed her with a treat if she would try to kick the ball. So she'd run for the ball, kick it, and then look over and wave at me, thus losing control of the ball. But whatever, she was finally playing like she loves to do in practice, when it's non-competitive with her friends! When the game was over, she was so happy with herself that we stayed on the field kicking the ball around for another half hour with a few of her friends. Jeremiah was playing with them and he totally scored on them. It takes a big man to beat little kids at soccer!

So in the end, we're learning a lot from soccer. I'm learning that I am crazy competitive on behalf of my kids even when I KNOW it shouldn't matter. And that I've taught my kids how to do teamwork but not to be competitive, for good or for bad. They'll have to work that one out by themselves, I guess, bc genetically they should have it in them! And that at the end of the day, I really just want them to be happy. So in the spring, I doubt we'll be doing soccer. I think I'll heed her requests to do gymnastics instead bc maybe team sports are just not who we are!