Who IS that handsome boy in the red socks on the Tiger soccer team? Did they get a new player? A secret weapon? That's right folks...Aidan Stuart decided to grace the YMCA soccer world with his presence. No longer a spectator from the sidelines. No longer a cheerleader. He BROUGHT IT on Saturday. He decided, after 1 1/2 seasons, to show off his soccer skills in public at an actually game! As parents of this timid child, we received some grief from others (and secretly felt it as well) about why we were forcing our child to do something he OBVIOUSLY did NOT want to do. But I knew that with Aidan, everything takes time...Aidan's timing. He has to test the water before jumping in. But once he's in, he can't help but splash around and have a blast. He was not only out on the soccer field, but he was basking in the moment. He was playing around with his buddies, running after the ball, and--best of all--he was SMILING and LAUGHING and having a great time. I wanted Aidan to try soccer again this season because I knew that if he tried it, JUST ONCE, that he would have fun. I just wanted him to have a good time!!! Quite frequently, the boys and I go to the gym and Ethan & Aidan get to play with some of his Tiger soccer teammates pretty consistently. He gets excited to go to the gym to play with them. I KNOW without a doubt that this has made him realize how fun it is to play on a team with his friends from the gym. Sam and Ben ran up to him at the beginning of the game on Saturday and asked him if he would go out on the field with them. At first he said "No, not yet." Then as soon as they ran out onto the field, he said, "I wanna play soccer." At first, I was thinking, "No, they already have 4 on the field." then I thought, "What the heck am I thinking, GRETCHEN! Aidan wants to play!!!" Out he went! He threw the ball in from the sidelines, he ran after the ball, and...he SCORED A GOAL!! His first official game and he SCORED!!! My little secret weapon. I am so proud of him. He overcame one of his fears! What a great accomplishment at 3. Thanks to our fair coaches and the whole team for supporting Aidan in being a time hog the entire game.
My sweet lil' PIRATE! What a handsome guy! He LOVED being a pirate. He would NOT let go of the sword for the life of him. He wouldn't let go of the treat bag either. If I tried to take the bag away, he would throw a massive tantrum.
He likes to be one of the big boys. When they played games at Storybook Forest, he was standing in line with them. He loved the bean bag toss. He actually threw the bean bag through the hole! Mom is so proud!
Brooks' leg was hurting too bad to walk through the forest, so him and Ethan got a free ride in the stroller. It didn't last too long because they wanted to run around with the big boys.
Look at that face!!!!
Now, aren't pirates supposed to be cranky? There's no way Ethan would pass for a gnarly, disgusting, treasure-stealing, angry pirate (though missing a front tooth does give him an advantage).
