Makenna started soccer last night. There was a lot of hype leading up to it, on Jeff's and my part. We weren't sure how she'd do, as in new social situations she can be quite shy.
As I'm getting her ready, I convince her she needs a "pretty" in her hair (her hair needs to be in a ponytail). We get her hair up, for the first time in months, and automatically she looks 2 years older. She tells me she looks like her cousin Lauren, and that I should call her Lauren now. So I do. Then she tells me her "talk" (voice) doesn't sound like Lauren, so she'll go back to being Makenna. Okay. We get the bright yellow jersey on her and she is just the cutest thing. CUTEST.
On the way to the field she says quietly from the back seat "if i need to talk to someone I say "excuse me right?" My little girl is nervous. I get teary. I'm such a mom.
All of this is forgotten when we reach the field. There is a sea of preschoolers and their parents. All 6 teams play at once. No one knew where they were going as it was the first night. Clear across the field Makenna spies some other yellow shirts and takes off running. She ran all the way across the field, without me, without Jeff, yelling the whole time, so excited to join her team. Her coach passes by me and grins.
Makenna doesn't know any of the kids on her team. But she doesn't care, she's just so excited to be there. She has this big open space that she's finally allowed to run in and won't get into trouble for doing it. Her and Jeff "practice" for a few minutes. Another little boy is clinging to his mom, which is what I was sure Makenna would do, but she's not.
She likes her coach right away. She listened and tried her best to do what he said. Yes, it was hard for me to sit back and keep quiet and let her do it herself, her way. But I did. And so it begins.
The best part for me, was when her little team was huddled into a circle and she had everyone's attention, telling them she was going to "kick the ball as high as the clouds". She was so happy, so excited, and so confident. She's so infectious, you can't help but get excited too.
She ran around the field, then she'd stop, turn around and wave at us. She'd run in the wrong direction, she paid no attention to the game at times, never got anywhere near the ball and didn't care, but she never lost the smile on her face, and she giggled constantly, for the entire hour and 15 mins (why are soccer games for that age so LONG???)
Something JUST for her. With other kids her age, where she's allowed to run and get dirty. No Mom, no Dad, no Jack.
She surprised me - no tears, no real caring about Mom and Dad at all, quite content to run around and be silly, and all with a bunch of people she'd never seen before.
And so it begins. My little girl begins the process of seperating from me. Of doing her own thing, of not needing me. Sure she's been in daycare and is quite independant and doesn't need me all the time, but this was different. This was big kid stuff. Now her circle includes more than just home, family and Jodi's. This is a big deal for me. She's becoming a real big kid, and such a cute one!
But don't tell her that.
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