3 Year Old Soccer

Adam loves soccer... when it's practice and he gets his own ball and you get to play games like Sharks and Minnows and Sleeping Bear. When we started, the coach was in need of an assistant and I waited to see if any of the other dads were interested in the job. When no one stepped up, I volunteered. It wasn't so bad... until Adam made it very clear he was uninterested in playing the games. Who could really blame him though? It is pretty pointless for 8 boys to herd after one ball. He wanted to play goalie or defend, and they don't really do that at this age.

But while I definitely didn't have the time to "assistant coach," I don't regret it because he loved it. Even when he watched me on the field with other boys while he sat and played games on someone's grandmother's iPhone. He told me he was proud of me, and that he liked it when I was the coach. I took him to one of my own games, and he was even prouder. So it was not a wasted effort, but after talking to some of the parents, and finding out Adam was the youngest on the team... it seems there is a big gap because 3 and 1/2 and 4 when it comes to having any interest in playing soccer games. However, everyday he asks me if we are going to soccer practice... if the answer is no: "Oh, I almost forgot my swim lessons!" The kid just can't stand to sit still...

The one game we got him to play for a full five minutes. He scored (well, sort of shared a goal) too. He looks happy.