evolution of a soccer mom

Can you believe we've already been in America for more than two months? I find that hard to believe! I feel a lot more settled - and a lot less out of place - than when we first arrived, that's for sure. Our kids' memories of our china-home are already becoming a little fuzzy, and they feel awkward speaking Chinese now, even in our home. It's crazy how accustomed they have become to life here.

I find myself feeling very thankful, for so many things.

I am thankful that our family - now all six of us - feels settled into a routine. We've enjoyed so many great times together and have gotten into some great habits of family devotion, bible reading, and prayer. I feel that we are stronger, both individually and as a family unit, than ever before.

I worried that my girls wouldn't have friends, or would be weird. But actually, they've made so many new friends and have connected so well with lots of young children - all of whom have great parents! It's such a relief to me that they have friends who they love and who love them.

I worried that I wouldn't have friends - and God has been so faithful to provide people to love us and hang out with us. Since I grew up here, I knew I'd have at least one friend to lean on, but we've also been blessed by making new friends, in places and situations I never would have dreamed of. I still miss my China-friends, but I don't feel alone like I thought I might.

Ok, yeah....so what does all of this have to do with becoming a soccer mom? If you'll forgive the above tangent, the point of this post originally was going to center around the list of things we wanted to try while we were in America (and then I got sidetracked talking about being thankful). Josh had wanted the girls to try a sport while we were here and we were wanting to find some ways that our whole family could be involved in relational ministry. So he signed them up for a local soccer team.

He got a call a few days later from the soccer club asking if he'd like to be a coach.

Do you know how much we know about soccer?

Zero.

(And that's combining our soccer knowledge together!)

They told him that usually the teams of kids six-and-under are coached by a parent, and I think that since our last name starts with "C", we were one of the first ones on the list.

Get this - he agreed to do it!

I think he was a little overwhelmed, but he was excited to learn something new (the man loves learning new things) and he spent lots of his free time watching youtube videos and reading articles online about how to coach soccer to young kids.

He was also in charge of procuring uniforms. Oh, fun. [Seriously. I'm not being sarcastic.] He did let me help in this area, and we decided on raspberry colored uniforms. With their black rings around the neckline and names and numbers on the back, they are just TOO cute.

And we also got to decide the team name: The Ladybugs.

You better believe it. The ladybugs are going to rock the field. Or something like that.

Fortunately for me, my plan-ahead husband made sure that everything was lined up and ready to go before the baby was born, so he was totally prepared for practice, had already gotten the uniforms, etc, and was generally just on top of things. That way, when Silas decided to come on the day of the first soccer practice, Josh wasn't stressed out. He just rescheduled. =)

In the weeks leading up to the first practice, Josh gave them a general idea of what soccer was. They were as excited as can be expected, having no idea what the sport looked like. They liked kicking the ball around, especially after we bought a metallic pink one. Even I liked kicking it around after we bought the metallic pink one!

Abby, of course, is at the age where she wants to be doing whatever her sisters are doing. Even if it drives everyone crazy. It stinks being the younger sister!
(...but she sure is cute!)
Josh rescheduled the first practice, but I felt good enough to make it to the second practice and I REALLY wanted to go. My mom saved the day and agreed to come to practice to take care of Abby so I could manage Silas and be also watch the practice.

Before Abby and my mom went to play on the toys, Abby was happy to help out being the "water-girl":
My husband? He's so awesome. If you looked at this practice, you'd never know we know nothing about soccer. He researched and planned to the point that it looks like he's been coaching kids' soccer his whole life. He found all the funnest and most effective games to play, he learned what is too much to expect of a five year old, he found all the best ways to engage them in soccer skills while not making them bored. He's so thorough and hard-working like that. Josh, you rock.



And finally...last Saturday was the day of the big game. The Eggrolls were nicely represented by lots of family. It was Ladybugs vs. Yellowjackets. Samantha is Number 4 and Emma is Number 10, but I probably didn't need to mention that since their names also happen to be printed on the back...
Again - lots of people to help occupy Abby:
A little pep talk before the game:
Ok, we totally got creamed in the first half of the game. This picture shows it all - doesn't the YellowJackets girl seem like she really knows what she's doing? And then there's the two Ladybugs that seem a little...like they don't know what they're doing? It totally felt that way. But none of our girls had ever played before, and it was neat to see that as the game progressed, things started clicking for the girls. They really got a better handle on what "soccer" was all about.
After the first half, Josh gave them a quick reminder about which goal we were heading for:
Yay, Emma! She's really starting to toughen up a bit. She fell down several times during the game, but there were no tears and she got right up and jumped back in!

Samantha is a bit more timid, and isn't as concerned about jumping into the fray as the other girls. Josh is doing a great job helping Samantha feel involved in the team while still giving her the freedom to play a smaller role.
Apparently, teams this young don't keep score so we'll finish the season undefeated! Woo hoo! The undefeated 2010 Ladybugs! =) But seriously, I think this game (not that we're keeping score or anything) ended up tied 5-5. For a team of newbies, they did a great job. The handshakes at the end feel so sportsmanlike! I've never given the handshake because I've never played sports. I'm living through them, for sure!
One of the girls on the team brought some snacks for after the game. It was a much needed snack - those girls were tired!
Pops and Nonna provided the shade, and Nonna held Silas the whole time so I could stand on the sidelines and cheer:
It was a great day and we can't wait for the next game! (You can see josh in the background of this picture heading out immediately to make it to the OU game - Boomer Sooner!)
...and Abby, at it again, bringing water to her big sisters!
So there you have it. I never thought I'd drive an SUV (much less, one that's full of kids!). I never thought I'd be a Soccer Mom.

And yet, here I am...and enjoying it all!