Rec Soccer

Willow was excited to play rec soccer this fall. Unfortunately there weren't many other 18U girls interested....4 girls to be exact with one actually being moved up from 14U. Instead of cancelling the season they gave the option of playing on a co-ed team. Willow was up for it, so she still got to play. They had too many players for one team so they ended up splitting into two small teams that only had one sub if everyone was there, which was usually not the case. So, she got lots of playing time. They didn't have a great record during the season but she got some good experience on defense and was challenged to show others that she deserved her spot on the team. 

Thankfully Bella was the other girl on her team!

 I didn't get a lot of videos because she was often on the opposite side of the field but here are a few:

Soccer

Willow enjoyed being part of the middle school soccer team again this year. She had the option of trying out for the JV high school team and was cut, but there is a bright side to everything, and it worked out for her to be a captain of the middle school team instead and use her leadership skills! 

We're always grateful for her support system!

I loved checking her phone and seeing her encouraging her teammates!

Willow noticed some cliques forming on the team, mostly between "travel" and "not travel" players. We had multiple conversations about what she could do and I was proud of her for speaking up to her coach to try and make things better. I was especially appreciative of how the coach responded!

A sweet mom bought flowers for the 8th graders for their last home game!

 The coach had great things to say about Willow at the banquet and even complimented the captains on their leadership skills this season, directly looking at Willow. It meant a lot!

Check out her highlight video!

Soccer

Willow enjoyed playing rec soccer this fall. It was her year of being one of the oldest on the team and she enjoyed mentoring a few girls who were playing soccer for the first time! She mostly played defense and mid-field but was on offense enough to get a goal!

Check out her goal!!

 Her coach had kind things to say about her at the banquet. She strives to please and even asked her coach what she could improve on, then remembered when he asked her at the banquet! 

Check out her highlight video from her season!

Soccer

Willow enjoyed being part of the school soccer team this year. She'd done conditioning during the winter...even on cold days! She played left midfield most of the season, which was a new position to her. At points she was frustrated with her playing time, but always got to play the 10 extra minutes at the end of the game. They ended the season with a 6W-5T-3L record. Unfortunately Willow took a ball to the forehead in a game and ended up with a concussion and missed the last 4 games. She's excited to try out again next year though!

She had a big fan base at every game!

Check out this girl's toss in flip!!

Her glasses didn't break but made the impact to her face worse. 

Highlight video of her season!

Indoor Soccer

Willow played indoor soccer again this winter. She was in the next league up and they didn't have practice before their games, so she only got in-the-moment feedback from her coaches. I didn't get many videos because the field is so small that it's a different speed of playing. She seemed to enjoy it and it was good experience!

 Her coaches have a couple teams through that league and their two teams played each other. There was a deal they'd made based on the score, so the girls got to put shaving cream on them!

The girls all took turns as goalie (wouldn't have ever been Willow's choice!!) and she did a great job. You could tell she was most comfortable kicking the ball away instead of picking it up. 

Soccer

Willow enjoyed playing rec soccer this fall. We were grateful they were able to play with COVID! There weren't as many teams, it didn't seem. They played 4 teams twice during their season and ended up 7-0-1. Willow played defense to start the games, then they often had a lead at halftime and the coach would give the defense a chance to play offense. She did a few times and really showed that she knew where to position herself and even took some shots on goal. On her last game of the season, she scored her first goal EVER!! (Thanks to Gramma for catching it on video!!) Her games were really late this year...I guess because they're getting older. Most of her games started at 8:15 and were often 30 minutes away. It made for some late nights! 

One field they played on was turf with stadium seats!!

It's hard to get good videos/pictures when she's often this small! The field is definitely bigger than last year when she played 12U!

Goal!!!!

Check out the award Willow got at the banquet! Each girl was supposed to say their favorite part of the season after receiving their award. 

Indoor Soccer

When the family of one of Willow's friends reached out to me about their daughter participating in indoor soccer, I asked Willow if she'd like to try it too. Rec basketball had been cancelled do to COVID so it was nice to have a sport option that she enjoys. It was a 7-week season with a 30-min practice followed by a 45-min game, all between 4 teams that they created. It was run by a man who coaches a local travel team so I was optimistic about any pointers that she'd learn from it. Mid-way through the season when I asked her if she liked it and what she liked about it, she responded that she liked seeing her friends. ;) I think she was just craving time with friends so much. We'll consider it a bonus that she got in a little exercise at the same time! She did "dust off" throughout the season with quite a few goal attempts but, unfortunately, no success. I didn't record very much at the games but did put my clips together in this video. It's not as edited to be just her highlights, so it gives a better feel of what it was like playing (often felt overcrowded!).

Everyone (begrudgingly) took their turn as goalie.

 

January fun

The kids have been working their way through Lego sets from Christmas. If you have a spare 8 minutes, Owen will tell you about his Minecraft sets.

The kids enjoyed a sleepover at Nana and Grandpa's and made a fun craft from Aunt Linda. She also made us awesome holiday banners!!

Willow started getting a monthly cooking box from Radish Kids from the Caldwells. She's enjoyed making quite a few recipes so far. This ravioli was fun to make!

Grading papers has taken over many of my weekends (sigh!!). Their spelling errors make me smile though :)

Willow is playing indoor soccer with a couple friends. It's been nice for her to have a way to stay active and see friends too!

She was invited to go swimming with those same friends :)

 Still practicing...

I'm super thankful to have an opportunity to receive my first COVID vaccine through school. It gave me such a sense of hope as I saw the number of people receiving the vaccine, knowing how many more are arriving daily!