Soccer

As I have alluded to and mentioned in a few other posts, Lilly played soccer this summer.  She was incredibly excited to play and talked about it for months.  When it came time to actually play the game, well, she did run on the field and she had a great time.  Overall it was a great experience and Greta did great tagging along - and only a few times tried to join in on the game.

Tuesdays and Thursdays were soccer nights, which made for some crazy evenings some days.  My running group met on Tuesdays, usually at the same time.  That meant Nick had to juggle getting both girls out the door, to the soccer field (a hike from the parking lot), and then keep Greta entertained while Lilly had soccer.    Tuesdays were supposed to be more "practice" and Thursdays were "games."

Lilly had to miss the game where they got their team shirts due to her strep throat (and falling asleep at the table during evening snack).  Her coach wasn't there at her next game, so she went quite awhile without a team shirt.

Each game had three players from each team out on the field at a time.  Coaches were also on the field, trying to keep the kids on the field and to keep them from using their hands.  Basically, it was mob ball, with some of the five year olds who played soccer the summer before understanding the game a bit more than their four year old teammates.

The photos are not totally in order, but they are all essentially the same - Lilly far away from the ball and Greta looking cute while trying to stay entertained.

Lilly was usually quite a distance from the ball, claiming she couldn't keep up with the rest of the team.  My guess, she wasn't all too keen on the "aggressive" nature of the game.  During many games she would spin in circles on the field, or when she was on the sidelines, put her hands over her eyes like binoculars and birdwatching.

Many of Lilly's friends from daycare also played soccer, including her friend Alma.  Lots of hugging and handholding when they would play against one another. It seemed like every game was on a super hot night - 85-90 degrees, so keeping the kids hydrated became an important part of the game.

Lilly's team seemed to be the Bad News Bears of the Chequamegon Bay Soccer Club.  There was one young man on the team who was quite talented and took the game very seriously.  The rest of them were, well, like Lilly.  There for the fun and not super worried about winning - or even which direction to run or which goal to shoot into.

Spinning!

While none of Lilly's friends from daycare were on her team, my principal's son and one of the social studies teacher's son were on her team.  

Lilly's foot touches the ball!  And, the three AHS kids.

Overall, it was a great experience but we were glad when the six weeks or so were over.  It was stressful having to get to the field each night on time, figuring out how best to feed her before the game so she'd have energy but not an overly stuffed belly, juggling my running schedule and keeping Greta happy was getting to be a bit too much.  And it ended right at the busy time for us - the start of the school year.