The Soccer Chronicles, Week 2

I think it was the bindi that did it.  Sunshine received several sheets of bindis for her birthday, and she's been wearing them ever since.  So when I suggested she might like to wear a bindi to play soccer today, she jumped at the chance.  She put on her soccer uniform without even having to be asked.  She ran out onto the field with her Daddy.  She practiced with her team.  She played, excitedly running onto the field when her coach called her.  It was such a dramatic transformation that I think I have to attribute it to the bindi.  

The way 3 and 4-year olds play soccer is to essentially take turn scoring goals.  One kid from one team runs up the field with the ball and scores a goal.  The opposing team then repeats the process.  We kept telling the kids to try to take the ball away from the kid running with it.  At one point, after calling to Sunshine to take the ball, she stopped running and looked at us as if we were crazy.  And I came to a startling realization.  I've been teaching my kid for the last four years that you don't take things away from other people.  At least not without asking first.  And now I expect her to take a ball from someone who is obviously playing with it and play with it herself.  It seriously goes against everything I've been teaching her.  I'm so proud of my kiddo for looking at me like I was crazy!