Spring Soccer

This was our first soccer season with all three kids playing, and on three different times. It made for some busy Saturdays! We had a bunch of icky weather weekends this spring, so several games were cancelled, rescheduled, cancelled again, and eventually made up. All in all, it was fun, with a few hiccups along the way.

Ryker was part of Lollipops, a program for 3-5 year olds, which consisted more of soccer drills and fun games, and less actual soccer competition. After watching Sydney and Myles for two years, he was really excited at the idea of playing, but only a little excited when it actually came time to participate. Ryker is not really shy, but rather he lets his opinion known, and his opinion is often that he doesn't want to participate. I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing that we've already had experience with a kiddo who refused to participate in most activities at 2 and 3 years old (Sydney), but the silver lining is that I know this too shall pass. Thankfully, Sydney is a willing participant in almost anything now, and does it with a smile on her face. Ryker's soccer skills are pretty good, and a lot of the time he had a good attitude and gave his best effort, but other times he needed a bit of encouragement (or needed to be ignored when he was just looking for attention). He refused to wear the Lollipops issued t-shirt (no big deal to us), but my favorite was the week we were in a hurry, and I didn't notice what shirt he had put on. We got to soccer (late) and Ryker was wearing a bright green t-shirt with the letters MVP in bold black lettering across the front. I can only imagine what the other parents were thinking!

Myles had probably his best season of soccer yet. He again played with the TOPS soccer program, specifically for kids with disabilities. A high school soccer team joins each week as volunteers to assist the coaching staff. Myles was focused, played hard, was excited, and had a good attitude. He has matured a lot in the past year, and took his soccer playing seriously. He was a lot of fun to watch!

Sydney continues to play 3-on-3, and was on the same team as in the past, with a few of the same teammates. She enjoys soccer, and is coming into her own as an athlete and competitor. She is pretty fast with her long legs, scored in (I think) every game, and is starting to understand the nuances of the game. And although 5 and 6-year-olds on a soccer field can mostly look disorganized and a bit clueless, it is fun to watch her, her big smiles, and good attitude on the field.

It looks like we have more soccer Saturdays in our future!