Soccer

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far.  We are having some beautiful weather down here so we are trying to make the most of it.  Today both Kaelan and Max had their 1st soccer games.  Kaelan has only had 1 practice before this and for Max, this was his very first organized sporting experience.  I was beyond excited for him.  I knew he would love running around and being outside with other kids his age.  Only problem was, we were also participating in a community yard sale this morning, which was so necessary to clean out our garage (and Nana's attic).  So, I stayed home to man the sale and Mike took both boys to soccer.  They came home between games briefly to eat lunch and to drop off Max.  Mike said he did a great job and was the only one who wasn't whiny or pouty when he fell down.  He ended up playing the whole game because of "injuries" and couldn't have been happier.  You can see that he did a lot of chasing but didn't actually make a lot of contact yet.  However, his attitude and perseverance made up for that.  Plus, he was actually running away from the ball on offense so he could receive a pass.  Even big brother got in on the action, standing on the sidelines to be sure the ball didn't go too far out of bounds.

Happy boy before the game started

You can tell he's really trying hard with that tongue out...haha.  :)

Love this action shot Mike got!!!

Listening to his "soccer teacher".  He's just so cute you guys.  His excitement about everything and the things he says make my cheeks hurt.  As Mike and Kaelan were leaving for K's game, Max goes, "Bye Bubby!  Remember to do what your teacher tells you."  It was adorable!!

 Mike said Kaelan impressed him so much today.  He played as hard as he could despite the fact that he'd only had 1 ever soccer practice, it was pretty warm, and his coach encourages them to run, run, run.  He had them run before the game and, as Mike put it, "is no joke".  It's kind of refreshing to have a little (or a lot perhaps in his case) competitive spirit in a coach.  Understandably before this experience, Kaelan's coaches have been super kind, supportive, and patient, whether to avoid crushing a spirit or to avoid an uncomfortable parent interaction.  Kaelan is not super motivated when it comes to sports or doing a lot of running (especially in the heat).  He likes sports and likes to run while he's playing with his friends, but just doesn't have the best endurance.  However, Mike said he kept going, going, going today and didn't complain or have a bad attitude at all.  I hope this continues and that he can enjoy this season of soccer as much as he thought he would when he decided he wanted to play.

I love the "all business" look he has on his face here.

Playing defense (where Mommy's heart is).  He cleared multiple balls and was very proud of himself.  :)

They stopped at McDonalds to grab a quick lunch between games.  Although he had a chicken nugget happy meal, he preferred sharing my cheeseburger...quite literally.  "You take a bit in the back and I'll take a bite in the front."  Thinking it was cute, I said OK and waited for him to take his bite.  He stood there and looked at me, waiting, with the cheeseburger held up to his mouth.  He repeated himself and I repeated my OK.  And finally I realized, he's waiting for me to take a bite at the same time as he takes his bite.  Sweet boy!!!!