Today seems unreal. 

As Kenny Chesney sang it best

"don't blink ...
Just like that you're six years old and take a nap and you wake up and your 25". 

It's the truth. I can't believe that Ashley will be graduating next year. Somewhere in the crazy day to day life she went from pigtails and catching butterflies to trying to navigate where her life is gong to take her next beyond high school.

It's scary, exciting, and overwhelming at the same time. As a parent you want the best for your kid. Maybe not to make the same crappy decisions you made. But in the end it's their decision not yours.  Ugh. Something that is hard to remember and to follow at times.

Today we are visiting the first on Ashley's list of college choices. She gets a chance to meet the coaches from UWF and train with them and other coaches from colleges all over the US. What she is looking for in a college program I have no idea. I know she isn't interested in come of the larger universities such as FSU or UCF (although I think it would be pretty awesome to play for a big Div I school).  She wants a campus where she isn't going to be a number in a huge  crowd. A smaller soccer program where there aren't 10 goalies on the team all fighting for #1.  She already knows enough about that and knows how every minute in the goal is time earned.

So how did we get here?? I am still trying to figure this out. As I watched her today get direction and feedback on her skills I can only think about all those soccer coaches she has had and silently thank the ones that encouraged her when she didn't think she could. Those that told her she was good enough,  strong enough and talented enough to play on the level she wants. It's those that believed in her that has brought her though all these past 13 years.

I thank the soccer clubs in this area that gave up on girls her age because they are too difficult or cause too much drama - because of them Ashley has fought to find a team to play on. The result -  driving up to 2 hours to play for teams that want girls her age,  that need Ashley's skill as a goalie and her want & desire to play the game. 

But....

I also thank the coach that didn't believe in her - because her lack of faith in Ashley as a goalie has made her stronger and more determined to prove her wrong. When she could have taken her lack of faith and quit, Ashley has turned it into motivation to learn more, try harder and be better then she ever thought she could be.  It's because of her that Ashley practices 4 days a week. It's because of that coach we drive 1.5 hrs to practice with a team two to three times a week. It is because of that coach that Ashley walked away from today's camp with her head held high knowing 100% - that one coach in her life is wrong!! Because that I am thankful. She has made my daughter into a fighter and I know that on the soccer field and in life she will fight for what she believes in and be successful in wherever her life leads her. It's been a long road to get here but today I finally see that she isn't my little girl any longer but is growing up to be a headstrong, beautiful young lady.

I think I am OK with her almost being a senior in high school. It doesn't mean I won't cry a few tears along the way, but at least I know that she might be ready for this huge and wonderful journey she is about to begin.

More to come from the sidelines 

Life of a soccer player

New soccer cleats .  . . new soccer team . . .  new season . . . 

Ashley never seems to amaze me . . . She is so brave and has so much heart.  I have never met anyone who loves her team as much as she does.  The High School soccer jamboree is scheduled and the Varsity team does not have a goalie that can play that weekend. . .  so what does Ashley do, she steps up and volunteers to play goalie.  Now mind you, the last time she played goalie, she broke her arm back in middle school doing the same thing - stepping in because their goalie couldn't play.  She has never had any formal goalie training, has never really worked at it except in fun and she volunteers to step in against some of the best players in Bay County.  

This is Ashley back in Middle school after her short time in goal 

We were so extremely proud of her.  She did awesome.  She is a natural in goal and did an incredible job.  The fist few minutes she was a little timid, but after the fist shot on goal that she trapped, she was jumping on the balls, being so aggressive and doing an incredible job.  

Ashley said it wasn't so bad playing goal.  She kind of enjoyed it - but she would rather be out on the field running and scoring goals.  I wish she could see her potential. .  . even her BCYSA coach was a bit surprised - but above all, even though they lost both games, she gave it 120% and she overcame a few things and I think because of it she became a better soccer player.  

Proud of this girl . . .

                                                           I wish I could be more like her!  

Awesome weekend of soccer!!!

What an incredible weekend of soccer. I was really unsure if we would like being out in the heat, dragging coolers, tents, chairs, gear to soccer fields all over the Southern US. Man was I wrong. I love the sport. I am in awe of the sport. I can't believe my 13 year old lives for this sport. Growing up being a Band Geek I never understood the sports jocks. Now I get it. Its the love of the sport, the thrill of victory, the fight to win, the grace to loose, and above all the be part of a team.

I have never seen a group of girls fight to win a game like I did today. After winning the early game that put them in first place and a spot in the finals to play the team they beat Sat night. That game was a rough game. There was plenty of emotion in the first match. Plently of tripping, pushing - a rough game. So we knew if we played them in the finals it was going to be rough at best.

After a two hour break in between games and a nice thunderstorm, the girls took to the field and played their hearts out. Ashley has always played coed soccer, and for the most part the boys were not rough on her. So playing with girls who are rough is a new thing for her. At one point one of the girls was trying to keep up with Ash and grabed her shirt. Ash turned and looked at us like "did you see that". But she really suprised us and her coach I think as she got out there for this final game and mixed it up and played her position well. I think she is totally hooked now.

So how did the game end???? After a nail bitter, down to the last minute, Ref please blow the whistle, we won 3-1. They played 4 perfect games!! Ash is in the big leagues now and I can't be happier for her. I am proud that she tried out for a team she didn't think she was good enough for and making. I am proud that she is learning new skills and coming one step closer to reaching her dreams. I am proud Soccer Mom!!!

Soccer Season is upon us!

We were waiting on confirmation of what the schedule will be for the new soccer season. Sat/Sun are our first games!!!! The U-14 Sharks will be playing Sat/Sun this weekend in Navarre in the Pensacola Classic Soccer Tournament. We are pretty excited! The U-13 girls are also playing in the same tournament. We are scheduled to play a team from Mobile, Navarre and the third team I am unsure at where they are from.

Labor Day weekend we are hosting a huge soccer tournament here at the beach. We have teams traveling from Texas, Georgia, all over Florida and Alabama. It is 3 fun filled days of soccer!!

You can tell its fall . . .

The summer is definitely over for the kids. Cailin has been working hard all summer long on her tumbling and constantly continues to amaze me. To say that she lives for cheerleading it a bit of a understatement. I am so glad she found something that she loves.

Ashley's summer ended this week upon the beginning of a new level of soccer for her. Earlier in the summer she tried out for Bay United's Travel Soccer club. She was trilled to make it on a U-14 travel team. They started "boot camp" this week. And I say boot-camp because it is definitely the correct term for her 2hr practices every night this week. This isn't recreational soccer - it is competitive, work your butt off, skills, drills and learning the things she will need to succeed as she gets older. It will be a new experience for us as we haven't had the pleasure of playing travel ball before. Ashley's schedule takes her to Navarre the weekend before school starts, New Orleans, Pensacola, Destin and here at the beach. The schedule also depends on how well they play and if they get invited to play in other tournaments. She will be in the middle of her season when tryouts for JV soccer at school occur. She is going to be very busy. Cailin's cheerleading season kicks off at the end of the year, with trips planned to Mobile, Orlando and more.

Tommy will be playing soccer with Bay United in the Academy, which doesn't travel (thank heavens). It will give him a season to work on his skills and for him to figure out if he wants to play soccer on a competitive level or if he wants to play for fun. He is excited to be playing with boys older than him. I think the exercise will be good for him and I am proud of him for going out there and giving it a try.

With the end of the summer also brings the first semester down for me at UWF. It was a demanding semester with 15 credits but I managed two A's and three B's. Not too bad. This is the hard part - to figure out where to go once I get my degree. I am thinking of a few different things - MSN/NP at UAB, a few other schools with a MSN/NP or PA program (not sure where yet). So in the meantime, I have to make sure that no matter what program I go into I have to make sure I have 8-16 credits of Chemistry and I am still missing my damn foreign language. The fall semester beginning the 22nd and I will be taking 21 credit hours. Crazy, yes! But I don't want to be in school forever.

All for now . . .