Soccer!

Recently I've been feeling guilty that I can't get out and do much with Ethan because I feel like I'm as big as a house! I'd do anything to take him on a walk or something but between feeling big and uncomfortable and being restricted with exercise because of the twins, we have few options. So, I decided to enroll him in Kiddie Soccer to give him a chance to get some energy out and have something fun to look forward to each week.

Well, class #1 was quite interesting. Ethan clung to the backs of my legs for the first 5 minutes but I gradually walked him out to the field. He finally started getting involved in the drills if I stayed within a few feet of him. But, by the end of class, he was running around on his own just fine. It was a little tough at first for him because he is the only 3 year old in the class and most of the other kids had taken the class before. The whole concept of soccer was completely new to him. At one point the ball came rolling to him and I yelled, "Get it Ethan! Kick it in the net!" He obviously heard the urgency in my voice and threw himself on top of the ball and held it so the others couldn't kick it. Luckily coach Dave prevented the other kids from trying to kick it away from him and gave Ethan a chance to try to make a goal. It was pretty hilarious!

During yesterday's class, coach Dave had set up small cones all over the field and the kids were supposed to kick them over with their soccer balls. So, Ethan would pick up his ball, walk it over to his cone of choice, sit it down right in front of the cone and kick. Many times however, it wasn't a hard enough kick to knock down the cone so Ethan would just whack the cone over with his hand. I was crying with laughter! Anyway, he's enjoying it and I'm having a blast watching. It will be interesting to see how he's doing by the end of the season!

Coach Dave gives instructions to the kids (this happens to be a day where Ethan was the only boy who showed up).
Ethan takes a moment to catch his breath and figure out which way to run!
During each class, the coach has a huge pile of soccer balls for the kids to use. For each exercise, coach Dave would tell them to get their soccer ball and do a certain drill. Ethan kept looking at the pile of balls and yelling over to me, "Mommy, is this my ball?" It was hilarious!
Kicking the ball! (It was the wrong direction but I was just happy he was getting the concept of using his feet rather than his hands!)