Sunday, April 27, 2008

As a Parent, Can You Think of Anything More Nerve-Wracking?

Than this:



You want your child to try new things, and hopefully do spectacular. If not do spectacular, at least do well. If not do well, at least have fun. If not have fun, at least not have the child's fear that "I will let all the balls get past me and we will lose the game and all my new team-mates will hate me and why oh why did our regular goalie have to go out of town this weekend????"

So can you think of anything more nerve-wracking than seeing your little girl standing alone, waiting, watching, tense in front of the goal??

No? How about this:


{shit}

Luckily for us, she got the hang of it pretty quickly and that was the only goal the other team scored the entire game.


{whew}

In fact, I would say by the time half-time rolled around, she was able to relax a bit.


{yay!}

And to be honest, by the time the end of the game was drawing near, she might have even been enjoying herself.



And by the end of the game, I was relaxing as well. And even enjoying *myself*, until I noticed that the other team's goalie was crying, and asked a parent what the score was, and discovered we were ahead 8 - 1. Then I started feeling crummy again, but for different reasons.

This is why I never played sports .... my over-developed sense of sympathy and compassion for the losing team. Well, that, and the fact I am chubby and uncoordinated.

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is pressure. Glad Kendrie did well. She looks so big! Love the pictures of Kellen in his overalls. Very cute!

Why is it more nerve-wracking as a parent to watch than to play?

Alisa said...

Nearing baseball play-offs and your under-coordinated son decides that now he wants to pitch.
That is also nerve-wracking!

Glad she did so well.

M said...

GO KENDRIE!!

In AYSO here we have a 4 rule...once you get 4 goals ahead you need to pass and not score....it is nice for the losing team but not so fun when you can't shoot on goal.

As for playing goalie- in last year's tournament our goalie got his jaw broken in a freak accident in the first game of a tournament...our back up goalie was in a car accident the week before so....BIG Foot stepped up. Needless to say I was a wreck...I just saw our goalie take a knee to his face and leave by ambulance and now my kid was in the goal...talk about ulcer time! every game I woud close my eyes when the opposing team came down field.

Keep up the great pics!

Anonymous said...

She probably likes the goalie jersey a lot better

René S said...

I agree with Alisa. Baseball provides a LOT of opportunities for nerves. Now that we are in kid pitch, it's tough! I'm a wreck EVERYTIME the ball comes to B. I was even a wreck for his friend (or really his friend's mom) when he was pitching the final inning of a tight game and we lost with a run that was walked in! Then, there is the whole hitting a HARD tiny ball being flung at you with a stick! How the heck they stay in there after having been HIT with said ball, I will NEVER know. Who knew this would be so tough?

I'm glad Kendrie did well. Honestly, I would have been more surprised if she didn't do well. She seems like she'd be a great soccer player!

Thanks for continuing with the surrogacy story. I've really enjoyed hearing about it.

Caroline said...

I played goalie through most of my soccer "career" growing up and my Mom has HORROR stories from watching me. I was actually pretty good, but I didn't like the pressure of being goalie, so I think those games were torture for her. Looking back on it, I played goalie for, like, 6 years. I don't really know how she survived it. Here's to hoping the goalie on Kendrie's team is back next week!

Naomi said...

AMAZING PICTURE OF ALL THE ACTION!! DOES ONE EVEN GET OVER THE OVER-PROPECTIVENESS OF ONES KIDS??

Stefunkc said...

Kennedy played goalie, once, indoor. I was physically ill.

Anonymous said...

and now the vacationing goalie will be left to ask, "why oh why did I have to go away and lose my position?" She looks great..and confident!

Unknown said...

Kendrie is an amazing girl.

Anonymous said...

AT TIP FROM A VETERAN MOM OF 5 KIDS WHO HAVE ALL PLAYED SOCCER......TELL KENDRIE TO PUT HER HAIR IN A PONY TAIL....IT'S HARD TO SEE THE BALL WITH ALL THE HAIR IN THE EYES!!!!!

Stephanie D. said...

WOO HOO! Go Kendrie! My son is a keeper and has been for 6 years! I love being a GK parent. LOL! Yes, it's nerve-wracking, but what fun to play such a great position. I'm glad she did well and even more importantly, I'm gald she enjoyed it! :) My son is actually headed to college in 6 weeks and is going on a full soccer scholarship.....mmmm
...maybe there's something to this soccer stuff.... huh? ROFL!

GO KENDRIE!!! WTG GF! Oh and hang in there mom! :)

Kelly said...

GREAT PICTURES!!!

Anonymous said...

Wow, what an amazing young lady! That first picture is such a commentary on the greatness of your daughter. Standing there alone, determined to fight her hardest, ready to go. She's got some real guts that one. I know you are so proud of her.
Way to go Kendrie! Looks like your team has a new goalie! :)

Stephanie in Portland, Oregon

The Traveling Yogi said...

I can totally relate to that. We have a great goalie on my son's team, but every now and then the coach will switch things up. I HATE when Dalton plays goalie. I get so nervous for him. The last time he was goalie, the other team got a PK (which pretty much always goes in). Well, our team did a pretty good job of blocking it, but then one of our team put the ball in. Uggghhh.

Looks like Kendrie did a great job back there.

Tammy said...

Wow! Way to go Kendrie, I just love these pictures, just assures us all that you darn sure did kick cancer butt! Thanks Kristie, you have a way of making me feel like I was right there in the stands rooting her on! LOVE THE PICTURES!! Hugs from Fort Worth!

URBAN BLONDE said...

No I can't.

My son used to play goal in Soccer back in the day. He loved it, thrived on the pressure.

I however remember those times as me being a tense, seething, nervous wreck.

Listening to some of the poor sport parents on OUR team belittle him from the sideline when he couldn't stop a goal raised my blood pressure, increased my potential for violence and ended in me not attending most games.

Thankfully his much cooler headed dad was always there to watch.

Blondie
PS Your pics really showcase Kendrie's amazing moves!

Anonymous said...

OMIGOD Kristie--- AWESOME Pics, just AWESOME. Kendrie is such a STAR!!!!! She's so, so doggone cute!

Lisa L said...

When mine did the Goalie play I would start feeling almost sick in anticipation for them. I would pray that they'd handle it ok....they did...(they didn't do as will as Miss K though:)

Anonymous said...

I feel your pain - my youngest daughter played goalie for eight of the 12 years that she played soccer. She loved it, but yes it made me nervous, and sometimes frustrated at small-minded parents. In their eyes, the loss was the goalie's fault, but the goalie was the hero (usually) if the team won. Thankfully we didn't meet up with too many of those type people on her different teams. To add to my (self-imposed)pressure, my son was a pitcher and also played first base all through his baseball career. Again - the hero if the won, but the loss was all his fault. You do have to develop a thick skin towards stupid people. But I would suffer through all of this again just to watch them play their sports again. They have finished high school, and my daughter is still in college, and I miss it.

Anonymous said...

Good for Kendrie! She looks like she sure did get the hang of it. At least... we'd better hope she did, so that she gets to keep the GREEN jersey!

Anonymous said...

Wow, Kendrie looks like such a great soccer player, she's a natural! Congrats on winning the game, Kendrie and helping your team :) Kristie, I know exactly what you mean, it always breaks my heart to see the losing team in hockey, it sucks but someone always has to lose :( Builds character, I guess? lol