From Last Place to Top 3

Soccer is done and I really should post about Mote's achievement this season. When he first started competing it was so cute to watch them play. After a couple games we noticed a pattern - we were losing lol. And frankly we were no match for any team! They were all a lot bigger than the kids on our team and we went the entire first season without even scoring one single goal. The next season we started out with the same pattern, but all the sudden one game Mote scored and our team went crazy. The other team was looking at us like we were nuts because of course we still lost, but the team mates and all the parents were cheering and screaming like we had won a championship. It was a huge step for us. Each season we enrolled him again without much expectation of winning any games. I thought it would still be good for him to learn the game and gain coordination. Each year the team showed improvement. We actually started scoring more, and eventually were able to pull out a victory. The kids have been practicing super hard and this year we won enough games to actually compete in the end-of-the-season tournament. I never even knew there was a tournament at the end of the season because we've never qualified to play in it. Mote was absolutely stoked! He was so focused and determined. Out of my 3 kids he is the most competitive. My parents got to watch the first game in the tournament and we ended up losing which was tough for Mote, but everyone said he did great. He scored our only 2 goals. The next week we played for 3rd and 4th place and we won! I thought he might be bummed because we didn't win a trophy, but he was sooooo excited that he won a medal for 3rd place. He wore it all day Saturday and when I was getting ready to drop them off at Mote & Toa's that night he tried to wear it in the car and I had to tell him to take it off and leave it in his room because I didn't want it to get lost. We called Ti Tonga (who was in Colorado) and my Dad so that Mote could tell them about his win. And when Monday came Mote was all dressed for school with his medal around his neck. I let him wear it because I didn't want to burst his bubble a second time but made him promise that he would be extra careful with it while at school. Nic has been super jealous and has even stolen it a couple times, so I had to tell Nic that if he plays really hard then one day he'll earn one too. I'm so proud of Mote's team and how much they've improved. I told Mote that next year maybe, just maybe, we'll bring home a trophy =)