Back in January, we signed Brooke up for another season of soccer through Walnut Ridge Baptist Church. I love that they have a practice-then-play schedule, which means it's a Saturday only commitment. She seemed really excited, but was a little disappointed when an email from the coach stated that their team color would be kelly green. She informed me that she was hoping for yellow (Team Shine) like last year.
The morning started with the breakfast of champions, haha. I had to take a picture because she has been obsessed with waffles for months now. She loves them with jam or syrup as well, but when we're running late, butter it is!
Her coach's name was Jacob, and although he was a really nice guy, Kevin and I weren't a huge fan of his "coaching." They didn't do many actual drills, and it seemed like he had a hard time getting the kids to work together as a team. Kevin's least favorite part of practice was a game called "hit the coach", where they all tried to hit the ball at him, and when they did, the kid would pick an animal sound. I have no idea what the point of that was, but it seemed like a big waste of time. Maybe we were just expecting a lot, I don't know?
Brooke seemed to have fun at practice, and through some parent scheming, she was on the same team as her friends Avery and Elias from church. An added surprise was when a boy from Brooke's preschool class was also on the team!
After practice, the team would sit together for a snack and devotional. I love that they did this :) On the first day, they also picked their team name. Brooke had the idea of being the green giants, and during their team pow-wow, she turned to me and shouted, "We are going to be the Green Giants, I told you!" I loved that she voiced her suggestion and that she was so confident in herself. She talked a lot to the coach, and was so sweet about encouraging the other kids on her team. One girl in particular would not listen to the coach and didn't run to the other side of the field with the team. On her own accord, Brooke ran back to the other side and tried to get the girl to run with her. Made my Mama heart extremely proud.
Week #2 (It's a good thing I did a different hairstyle each week so I could keep all the pictures straight.)
I absolutely adore this picture of her with those cute rope twists and foot on her soccer ball. Looks like a soccer girl to me.
Colby had a way of getting snacks and drinks from Miss Rachel (E's mom) every week!
Sweet friends: Elias, Brooke and Avery.
Week #3...
Totally candid moment when Brooke put her arm around Avery. Brooke really is such a sweet girl to her friends, and was always the first one to cheer or congratulate her teammates on a job well done.
I just love her!
Team Devotional and our week for snacks...
Funny story I want to remember: After devotional that first week, the Coach said a prayer and used wording that was a bit different than what Brooke is used to hearing. As soon as he finished, Brooke started telling him things like "we start by saying dear heavenly father", and "at the end, we say in the name of Jesus Christ, amen." He was polite, and just thanked her. The next week, as he was about to start, he looked at Brooke and asked how he was supposed to say it. Although I did talk to Brooke about how people are allowed to pray however they want, I was proud of her for sticking up for what she thought was the correct way to pray. In her defense, it does sound weird to just start a prayer with "God", but I think it's because we usually say Heavenly Father rather than God. But either way, I love that they can incorporate religion into soccer.
Colby was eager to play once the actual game was over, and he wanted Sissy to try to steal the ball from him.
Grandma and Papa have been all-star supporters at the games. My favorite was when a little boy asked Jerry if he played soccer as well, haha. I'm guessing he thought the leg brace was some sort of shin guard.
Brooke was on fire during practice, but the game was another story, haha! I think part of it was due to the heat (noon game), but she just wan't into it. She was skipping more than running, and was not actually trying to get to the ball. The competitive side of me was frustrated, but I eventually toned it down and realized that no amount of cheering or shouting to get the ball was gonna do a darn thing.
Week #5: We had a crazy turn in weather and temps were in the 40's! They cancelled practice and just opted for games so the kids didn't get too cold. Brooke was bummed, but had the idea to "practice on our own at the field by our house." We bundled her up, but as we stepped out of the garage and the wind chill hit her, she changed her mind. Then she decided that she actually didn't want to go to soccer. Oh, dear! I had to do lots of pep talks about how she could be the team leader and encourage everyone to be good sports despite the cold. She finally decided that she could do it, and she did awesome at her game. She even scored her first goal, which we were SO thrilled about. When I asked how she did it, she simply replied, "I did little kicks, and then a big kick, and it just went in." I was so happy for my little girl.
She kept her hands in her pockets as she ran to keep them toasty :)
Had to document that first goal!!
Week #7: Kevin and I had been on a weekend adventure, so Grandma and Papa took Brooke to practice and we showed up for the game.
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