And So It Begins...Soccer

Soccer is back in full force - So sit back and get comfortable...well at least that's what I tell Mike and Jake.
Tyler is in his second year of playing AYSO. He is so much fun to watch and a little too competitive (we're working on that). He has 2 of his good friends on his team which will make for a very fun season. His first game last week was on his 6th birthday so before the game started he said he wanted to score 6 goals. I kinda of laughed and said go for it. So in the first half of his game he had gotten all 6 of the goals he wanted. He was all over the field trying to do everything. So the second half of the game I told him he had to work on his passing to get his team involved. He was so obedient...he would be a couple inches away from the goal and then turn around to find one of his players to pass it to.
Spencer is now in his 4th year of playing soccer. He is by far my most aggressive kid on the field. He is not afraid of anything or anyone. He plays sweeper which is basically the last defender back. Of course he can't handle not being in some of the action. This last game he got the ball and dribbled from end of the field through all of the other team to the other side of the field and scored. Now defenders rarely if ever score so he was beyond excited. Spencer has great timing on defense and usually frustrates the other team when he keeps taking the ball away from them.
As far as Brooke I think shes been playing soccer as long as shes been walking, but officially this is her 8th year playing and her 4th year playing club. Brooke also plays defense usually left back however her coach has also been having her play in the middle. She really enjoys playing halfback its just a ton more running. Basically you help with the offense and still are expected to go back and help with the defense. Running the field is not a problem for her she is in such good shape and hardly even breaks a sweat. Her club team was undefeated last year so they moved up a division and are now a silver team. This should be a fun and challenging year of soccer for her and her team. Brooke is amazing at reading the field and has great anticipation to completely frustrate the other team.
(We had a little talk about elbows)
Now if only Brooke could take after her brothers and get a little more pushy she would be unstoppable. Mike is always yelling from the sideline at her "chicken wing" which is his code word for put your arms out and hold your own. She is small and petite and because of that she gets pushed around a lot on the field and Mike just wants her to protect her space. Now as you can see Spencer and Tyler have no problem holding onto their space on the field. At times they can be a little pushy. I am trying to tell the boys to mellow out a little and Brooke to be more pushy this is crazy...wheres the middle ground.

I love watching all my kids playing all their different sports. At times we are crazy with so many practices and games, but it's worth it. I have been thinking a lot lately about the benefits of playing team sports. Here's what I have seen with my kids, their coaches, and teammates: Good sportsmanship, leadership, positive attitude, being gracious, great physical shape, healthy, strong, friendships, being an example, discipline, encouragement, hard work, and accomplishment. I could think of many more, but my point is I think what they get out of playing sports is priceless and well worth the sacrifice.