Go Strikers!

It's that time of year again folks.  No, not back to school, not football.... SOCCER season.  Not my favorite sport, but its totally a rite of passage growing up, I think, to play.  And Blake is in love with it.  Now that Blake is a big four year old, he's old enough to play in the organized city league.  We got an e-mail asking for more parents to volunteer as coaches and Brad decided his knee was well enough to handle coaching a group of four year olds and signed up for the job.  Little did we know this league does NOT mess around.  Brad has had to undergo extensive coaching training.  And I'm not even exaggerating. 
Blake played last year in a private league and it is hard to say he was really playing soccer out there.  It was really and truly like herding cats.  The kids had no idea what they were doing or what rules to follow.  This season, our team, The Strikers, has had two practices and we didn't really know what to expect at the game.  Oh my goodness, the difference a year can make.  The kids really are starting to get the game much better and their team played so well.  (In large part to the best coach ever!)
 
 

 
 
 
Blake is having the time of his life getting to run around with other boys his age.  He is always eagerly anticipating the next practice and now the next game.  Love it.  And, happy to report all the hard work Brad has put into being a coach is totally worth it.  Brad loved coaching the game Saturday and I know its going to be so incredibly rewarding for him.
Brad is so good with kids.  He's fun and patient, which goes a long way with little ones.  After the first practice as Brad was sitting around talking to the kids, somehow the question came up, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"  Every.single.kid. answered, "A COACH!"  And one of the mom's told me, the morning after practice, her son excitedly said, "I LOVE soccer!  Coach Brad is so much fun! I want to be a coach just like him."  
Heart melting material right there.