Allen Family Fun: Spring Soccer Academy

The boys both participated in the Spring Soccer Academy this year. It was for kids ages 3+...Asher turned 3 a week into the program, and I figured I'd be fighting to keep him off the field anyways while we watched Carter, so we decided to go ahead and enroll Asher as well.

Well, things don't always go quite as we plan, especially when Asher is involved. He was SO EXCITED to start soccer. He could not wait to get all his gear on, carry his water bottle and get out on the field, just like his big brother! What I thought was going to be a move to save me some hassle, ended up causing more of a hassle. Asher didn't really care too much about soccer, ya' see. He much preferred to sit on the ball or run over to ask me "how many more minutes--let me see your watch?" I probably averaged about 15 trips out on the field the first two weeks to firmly "encourage" him to get his butt in gear. He did get a little more motivated the last half of the program (thanks to some serious bribery), but we didn't have any easy days. He was always excited to go to soccer, and he always assured me he was gonna play the whole time, but no dice.

Now, now, let's not focus on the negatives. A lot of good things came out of this experience...let's review. First, he got some great goal time...he liked to hide INSIDE of the goal.

Next, he got lots of rest time. On more than one occasion, (even in the middle of a game!) he would find a nice, comfy patch of field and just rest his eyes. Here, his buddies are coaxing him to get up and join in the fun.

He got very good at carrying the balls...even more than one at once!

He loved to tackle his coaches...

He was a PRO at the water breaks!

He learned some new games, like Tanks & Airplanes and Centipedes, Millipedes.

He (as well as the coaches and mommy) got LOTS of practice at putting shin guards, soccer socks and cleats on a wiggly little boy. He took them all off about 3 times per evening...because they were "itchy," of course.

He also got to work on his tan...

...and practice twirling Grandma's umbrella!

It was a frustrating 5 weeks, but we made it. I do understand that he is very young, but that little stinker goes full throttle when we're at home--he jumps right in against Carter when we play in the backyard. Oh well, he did have fun and it was a good starting point. We'll see if he wants to try again in the fall. I do need to commend the Mac College kids who served as their coaches. These guys were incredibly patient with our little monster and stuck with the most stubborn kids throughout the program.

Now our big guy, he's a different story. He LOVES soccer, much to his daddy's dismay. The big kids played on a different field, and since Asher was needing nearly constant mommy supervision, I didn't get to spend much time at Carter's field. Turns out, he was just fine without me. Totally focused on the game, that kid. Several of his friends were on his team and they had so much fun together. I love watching him play...he's so intense, and having a blast the whole time.