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Yea, it's January! I can breathe again.
December is always a stressful month, and I think I experienced my most stressful day on the 17th of that month. Not a tragic, my-world-is-falling-apart kind of stress but a helpless, mom-
ish, I-want-my-kids-to-win kind of stress. If I was a nail biter, my fingers would have been a bloody mess by the day's end.
Instead of spending the Saturday before Christmas baking goodies, I put in a full day's work (literally 9 am -5 pm) at the soccer and football fields cheering for my kids. It was Shiloh's last game of the season, and I don't think they'd won a game. While Shiloh was a good player, especially when playing goalie, she had yet to actually score a goal. She so desperately wanted to score a goal this game, so I sat on the edge of my seat as she kicked the ball down the field and shot like 8 times just barely missing each time. I sat on my old-timey, metal lawn chair about to BUST! My little trooper wore a smile the entire time, though, even after a kid on the other team said she "sucked." Yeah, nice kid.
Daddy, Grandpa, and her brothers left about 10 minutes before her game ended in order to get to the football field in time. Shiloh's team was winning, but she still hadn't scored that goal. Finally, the moment we'd all been waiting for . . .
she scored!! My mom and I cheered, Shiloh cheered, the whole team cheered. What a great way to end the season. :)
Shiloh, I absoluetly love your joyful spirit on the field win or lose! It was so fun seeing you play sports for the first time and seeing just how much you improved by the end of the season.
Immediately after, we hurried to watch the boys play in their football tournaments. Both of my star quarterbacks played on winning teams, so I have to admit I was a little overconfident that day. Lincoln's team had won last year, and I thought how awesome it would be if they could both win this year. (Of course that was what every parent was thinking, right?)
Well, Lincoln's team (the Assassins) didn't get off to a good start, which honestly was quite shocking. Deep down, I was feeling a little feisty because there were quite a few players that had shown up that I'd never even seen before. I thought to myself,
If I was the coach, I wouldn't be playing those kids! Seriously, why is he playing those kids? So. Not. Fair. Anyway, they won their second game and hope was rekindled but lost their third due to a stinkin' penalty in overtime. :( And so their season came to an end.
Lincoln, you are an amazing football player, and I enjoyed watching your cool moves on the field. Can't wait for next season!
Mullin's team (the Spartans) won every game except one, so they made it to the last and final game, which would determine the tournament winner. They were playing the Sharks again, the team to which they'd lost. The Sharks had been resting while the Spartans had been playing a few games back to back, and I think they thought the trophy would be theirs for the taking. Our team was worn out, and the quarterback (Mullin) was playing slightly sick.
Oh my, the stress was almost too much for this mama to bear--the tension in my shoulders was beginning to give way to a dull headache. To make matters worse, this last game was SO close, and near the end Mullin received a leg injury--not good since he was pretty much the fastest runner on the team. It seemed as if all hope would be lost. I pulled my son aside and gave him some Pan Away (an essential oil blend) to rub all over his leg.
(Usually he is embarrassed by this sort of thing, but he gladly took it and claimed that his leg felt so much better and the pain was numbed!)
Anyway, back to the story. As Mark bit his nails and Grandpa paced the sidelines, we were all surprised when Mullin threw an amazing pass to one of his teammates who scored a touchdown, and then another pass to the same kid which gave them their extra point. Jumping jubilation--we were all so relieved! The other team had a little bit of time left to try and make a comeback to tie the game up, but the Spartans put up a fight and won!
Congratulations Mullin! You deserve it after such a great year. May you continue to persevere next season. And may all three of you (Mullin, Lincoln, and Shiloh) always give the glory to God for your incredible strengths and abilities.