Baseball Weekend

On Saturday morning we watched our buddy Michael play in his tee ball game. Abby did a great job cheering for him and listening as we talked about the game with her.

It sparked a conversation with Marcus and I about what sport would we be okay spending every weekend watching. Softball is my vote and basketball is his. So, Saturday afternoon he stopped in Wal-Mart and bought Abby a glove and a tee ball.

This evening we played a little throw and catch. She is much better than I thought she would be. We have always known she could throw- she throws hard, high and overhanded. She is quick and has decent aim. This was her first attempt at catch and with a glove and she did well. She caught it a few times and even played catched and stopped a bouncing ball a few times. We would count to 5 and she most times had it picked up, thrown and back in Marcus' glove in 5 seconds.

It was fun and I think softball would be a good sport for her. She is tall and strong and can throw. She isn't one to run much and we both aren't interested in volleyball.

Youth league this summer? Hmm....

Baller

 The only real sport that interested Marcus growing up was basketball. He likes football and golf now, but basketball was his first love. So, you can imagine how excited he is that Abby loves to throw, bounce, and play basketball with him.

He even bought her a pink Nike basketball. No joke, she can throw. She is strong and you fear her not knowing that a full force throw toward your face from 2 feet away is wrong.

They play at the YMCA when the court is open, in the backyard, or at the neighborhood park. She has fun throwing the ball and is getting much better about timing her hands to catch it!

She Scores!

Abby had her last soccer game of the season on Saturday! I was working, but Daddy and Nana cheered her on. At the final quarter of the game they gave every kid a chance to make a goal. I love that!

We are not planning to do Spring or Summer soccer so that we can focus on swimming. Maybe we will do it again in the fall. Through the 8 weeks, she got better at listening and watching the game, but never really participated. It was a great experience for her and I'm glad we did it regardless of her "skills".

Soccer Update- Week 3

We had a great Saturday! Abby's soccer game was at noon today, so we were able to have a normal morning. We had doughnuts, Marcus and Abby went to storytime at the library and then we had lunch with our friend Madeline, who also attended story time.

This week was our thrid week and soccer and our third game. So much improvement in her attention to the game! When she was in the game she was running with the kids! Major improvement. She even kicked the ball a few times! There are 2x as many kids as can play at once, so Marcus sat on the floor with her when she was out and they talked about the game. The biggest thing we are teaching her is NO HANDS! We also have noticed that she kicks more with her left foot, rarely her right. 

The little team and Coach Mark! We taught Abby that Coach Mark is a teacher just like Ms. Nicci (her MDO teacher) and that she needs to listen to him. This week she seemed to listen to him better! Hooray!

We are playing soccer through our local YMCA which I really love! It has been a good investment for our family. We signed up for our first Free Family Friday. They offer free childcare for members on Friday nights, but they sell out quickly. I booked our February spot this morning. Yea for date nights!

Abby's Busy Schedule...

We have Abby involved in both dance and soccer this Winter/Spring and it is fun to see her make friends and develop skills in both areas. Skills meaning learning to listen, follow directions, work with others, etc. The skills are this point don't include kicking the ball or tumbling much :)

Tuesday after school we had to pick up a few things and Abby had her first icee. She looks so sad here, but she loved it. She loved having a blue tongue!

Wednesday after dance class, most all of us did lunch together at the Smokey Mo's in the parking lot. Michael Gumpl, Abby's little friend, was visiting and got to have lunch with the 6 girls! I love spending an hour a week with these Moms. We bounce ideas off each other, talk about elementary schools in the area, and support each other's kids as they accomplish new things. It is fun!

Thursday, Abby had her second soccer game. Like her new soccer bow? Once I knew her uniform color, I had to help her accessorize. It didn't stay in long enough to go in the game :) Next week!

 Have a great weekend everyone!

First Soccer Game

We had our first soccer game this morning and as expected it was comical. 

Ten 3 year olds on the court makes for good entertainment. Some kids got the point, some wanted the ball no matter who had it, some forgot the point of making a goal in their net, and some could care less that a game was trying to occur. Abby fell into the last category.

If 3 year old soccer needed or required a goalie, she would have been ready! She loved standing in the net and even got her hair bow caught in there at one point.

At one point the "zebra" was talking to her about getting into the game. She just waved at him, smiled, and kept on playing solo. She did say she had fun and loves soccer which is good.

We don't keep score and everyone is a winner- which I appreciate at this age. I think our team scored more goals, but the majority of them were in the wrong net :)

Our next game is on Thursday. It can only get better!

Let the Games Begin

Thursday was Abby's first soccer practice! We enrolled her in soccer at our local YMCA. It was a minimal investment and we thought a good time to let her try something new. She loves balls and running and after our difficult transition into dance class, we felt like she needed more exposure to group activities.

Since this was her first athletic activity, she wore her first pair of Nikes. They look tiny on her (size 9)- I swear they are as wide as they are long!

Practice is 45 minutes every Thursday for the next 8 weeks and then we have games on Saturday mornings. She wasn't always on the same page as the other kids- not standing in line listening fully; but, she did 10 times better than her first dance class!

 It was nice to have Marcus attend and see just how difficult it is not to try and force her to participate. You want to talk in your serious voice, pop her, take her arm and put her in place, but it all will not work. You just have to keep calm, praise her when she does well and consistently enforce the message, in this case, "stand on the white line and listen to Coach Mark". 

This only happened once which makes me happy- A major improvement!

I honestly think she could be good at this. She has the right build :) But, she can kick the ball. She can stop it with her foot. She made 2 of 3 goals. She was a toot during practice when it wasn't her turn and she had nothing else to do. I'm excited to see if she does have talent for soccer, if she will focus and apply herself, and if she keeps up the interest.

Until then, Marcus is "that" Dad and I'm a soccer Mom and we love it!