ScrumpyDaddy

Yesterday Abby had her first soccer game. She was so excited before going that she could hardly contain herself. She was jumping all around and kept asking if it was time to get Zach up from his nap and go. In some ways I can’t wait until she can tell time so maybe she will stop asking if it is time yet. Anyways…Abby got into her soccer stuff (cleats and shin guards), we got her team shirt when we arrived at the game, and we were off.

When we arrived a little signage or guidance would have been nice. We had no idea were to go as there were several ages and teams. We just looked for the smallest looking people figuring they would be the 5 year old kids and started asking people if they knew where to go. We found Abby’s team, which was the black team and got her shirt.

The way they do it for her age is they have practice before the game and then play the game, instead of a separate night of practice during the week. The coach did several games with the kids to get them dribbling the ball and learning how to stop the ball with their feet instead of hands. Most of the kids looked confused and weren’t really sure what to do. The other team we were playing against were on the other half of the field and they looked as though they had practiced together before. Their coach had them going through drills of passing the ball and dribbling. They seemed to do quite well. We will see how it goes next week.

The game started and at first Abby went in to play. They have 4 kids from each team play at a time until a goal is scored, though they don’t keep actual score. Depending on how fast that is done determines how long you are in the game. Several times there was a goal immediately upon restart, so kids weren’t always swapped out. There is one particular boy on Abby’s team that is a natural born soccer player. You could tell he had an older sibling that played and possibly his parents. I think he scored the most out of the all the kids on Abby’s team. Abby on the other hand ran down to the far side of the field after the ball, stopped, and began to cry. She ran back over to me and said she didn’t want to play and that she just wanted to be with me. The coach kept trying, but Abby refused to play.

During half time the kids get a snack. We were selected to bring fruit and water for the half time snack for the first game. We brought grapes and little water bottles. All the kids loved the grapes and some even asked for 2nds. After the half the game restarted. At first Abby didn’t want to go in again. We tried everything to get her to go in including bribes. I thought if she would just try it she would love it. Nothing worked. Then her coach came over again and said he would run with her. She took his hand and actually went in. She played for the rest of the game since she didn’t play at all the first half.

Played is a relative term. She barely touched the ball and spent most of the time just running back and forth waving to us or giving us the thumbs up. The only time she got the ball was when it came to her by chance. Hopefully next week it will be different and that by the end it will be something she wants to continue, but if not we can always try something else.

Today was a very momentous day for Abby. Not only did she turn 5 today, but it was also her first day of Kindergarten. I can’t believe my little girl isn’t so little any more. I know everyone says it and I know it is true, but time really does fly. I remember at her birthday party last year she kept talking about how next year she was going to turn 5 and go to Kindergarten. Not it is true.

Today was a great day. It started off very well. Dave went into work late this morning so he could see Abby off to school as well. We all ate breakfast together. A nice hearty meal of steel cut oats. Yummy! Then Abby and I got her lunch ready and got her dressed for school. She was so excited to go off to school, though at one point she did ask if Zach was staying home with me and said she wanted to stay home with me too. It was short lived and didn’t seem to hinder her excitement for going to Kindergarten.

When it was time we all walked down together to her bus stop. Abby’s backpack was so full of her stuff I couldn’t even get it to zipper. She had her lunch box, pencil box, and a container of rice crispy treats for her new classmates. We had asked her teacher last week at the meet the teacher night what she thought was best for if we should send something in for Abby’s birthday since it was the first day of school. The teacher was fine with it and encouraged us to send something on Abby’s actual birthday. For other summer birthdays the teacher assigns out unbirthday days to each of those kids so they can celebrate with their classmates as well. At the bus stop we met up with 2 of our other neighbors whose daughters also started Kindergarten today. They all fed off each others’ excitement for their first day. No one seemed nervous or scared. It was great!

The bus came down the street and Abby barely gave each of us a hug and a kiss. She was so excited to go get on the bus and get to school.


Bye Abby. Have a great day at school!

We all headed back to our houses wondering how the day was going to be without one of our kids. I found myself looking at the clock often when playing with Zach and thinking in my head about what Abby might be doing. I wonder if she thought of Zach and I during the day as well. It was a very different day for me. Instead of barbies, Zach and I played with trucks and trains. We spent a good 20 minutes filling his dump truck with mega blocks and dumping them out. Also, Zach still naps so I had free time from about 12:30 – 3pm. Hopefully when baby #3 comes I can get him to take a nap during that time too so I have time to get stuff done. I was able to make Ariel signs for Abby for her birthday during that time along with cleaning up the kitchen and playroom.

Soon enough after Zach got up from his nap it was time to get ready to pick Abby up from the bus stop.



In Abby’s words her first day of Kindergarten was awesome. When I asked her what she did today she told me all about lunch and how the lunch room at really long benches and lots of them. She also told me about recess and playing on the playground. When I asked what she did in her class she didn’t really say anything and only wanted to talk about the play ground and the lunch room. I guess those were the 2 things that left the most impact on her the first day.

Abby also celebrated her 5th birthday at home with Mommy, Daddy, and Zach. She had requested that her dinner be chicken with mac ‘n’ cheese, watermelon, and pickles. After she ate her dinner we sang to her. We didn’t make the cake now, but will have cake on Saturday at her birthday party with everyone else. Instead we used the rice crispy treats we had left to put her candles in and sing to her. She loved it.

Then Abby opened her gifts including the cards we received from Aunt Gerry and Uncle Lew and Grandma Byerly. Abby’s favorite gift from us was of course the American Girl Doll. She had been asking for one for months on end. When she started to open it she stopped and turned to me and asked if this was from me. I told her Mommy and Daddy picked it out together and it was from both of us. She was so happy to get the doll. She immediately wanted it out of the package to begin playing with.

For the rest of the night Abby’s Julie doll followed her everywhere she went.

Happy Birthday Abby and congrats on your first day of Kindergarten.

Here are just a couple more fun things that happened while we were in the Outer Banks to wrap up our trip.

Abby saw jet skis on the bay side and got very excited. She called them water scooters. I thought it was a perfect name that Abby came up with. I told her when she gets older we can take a ride on one. I personally love riding them. Not sure if I will be able to get Dave on one. Maybe if he has his own to drive and doesn’t ride with me. I can get kind of crazy on them.

At the beach there were planes flying by all the time with banners advertising things. Every time one would fly by Zach would stop what he was doing and point to them and say airplane. He loved doing that almost as much as he loved watching the ocean and saying wawa.

We also found out at the beach that Zach loves M&Ms. We had made GORP for the trip. One day we took the GORP down to the beach with us in the cooler. Zach went over to the cooler, unzipped it, and took the GORP out for himself. He then proceeded to just eat the M&Ms. He loves raisins normally and would choose them or dried cranberries over most things, but as soon as he tasted one of the M&Ms that was the end to the dried fruit. All he wanted was the M&Ms.

The kids loved seeing the animals at the Outer Banks. On the first day as Abby and I were moving the deck chairs into place a frog jumped out and landed on Abby’s shirt. I was able to catch it for Abby to see up close. She was so excited. It was a bright green frog. She wanted to hold the frog. She held it for a little bit, but then it jumped away and off the deck. We saw many more frogs and toads through the week around the beach house.

Down at the shore line we saw pelicans and various kinds of gulls.

We also got to see ghost crabs at night and during the day. Zach loved watching the crabs and kept trying to touch them. Abby liked going out at night with us to chase the ghost crabs with the flash lights. There were so many of them at night. You shine your flashlight out across the shoreline and the entire shoreline would move.