Spring GOTR

Hey!

Yo!

You Go Girl!

You Go Girl, Go!

Another season has come and gone of Girls on the Run. It was a season chalk full of inspiring girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience based curriculum which incorporates a lesson, stretching, warm up (practical application of the lesson) and running. 

It was also a season of seeing the returning girls grow exponentially in their strengths. For some that is encouraging other girls, for others being an amazing team player and yet others interjecting humor into our time together. Each girl grew in their love of running ... or so I like to think they each did :)

{Gabrielle celebrating the completion of our practice 5K} 

Each GOTR teammate was encouraged to invite someone to participate in the practice 5K as their running buddy. Gabi chose no other than her beloved teacher, Mrs. Lindsey. Maci was such a source of encouragement to Gabrielle which I believe strongly factored into her shaving several minutes off her completion time from the Fall season's practice run. 

We had 13 girls participate in the Spring session of GOTR. We will lose two of our participants this coming Fall as they will be moving on to middle school however we are expecting a lot of growth and are already making plans for a 2nd team! 

I spent the better part of an afternoon the week before our season finale 5K race making pinwheel hair bows for the team to wear. The lead coach, Nicole, reverse tie dyed our race tee shirts which turned out great! 

The Friday prior to the season ending 5K run at Corporate Woods we completed a service project. The girls each decorated a dozen paper lunch sacks and stuffed them with canned meat, fruit, chips, granola bar and bottled water to feed the homeless in the KC area. I loved watching some of the girls tap into their artistic side. 

It was a bittersweet ending to our Spring GOTR season. We had an absolutely perfect morning for our race. I am blessed to be a small part of instilling great values and encouragement into these girls. I'm already anticipating the Fall season and new curriculum!

Silver Bullets Soccer

This little dude was so excited for the opportunity to participate in soccer again this Spring. Last year we signed him up with Sporting Tykes through the YMCA and it quickly became apparent that he loved the game. We knew this Spring we wanted him to be involved in a more "competitive" league so we chose Kansas Rush Soccer Club. The teams consist of six same age players. Dawson was fortunate to play with three other Meadow Lane Kindergartners as well as two boys from other area elementary schools. 

The red streaks under his eyes are NOT the latest in soccer accessory/fashion.

They're signs of the poor kid suffering terribly from allergies :( 

Dawson plays a mean game of defense but put the ball near him and he gives it his all! He is a hustler and has a fierce determination to win. He scored multiple goals within the season scoring two in his final game. 

Dawson, Brady, Caleb and Christiano

Missing from photo - Noah and Peyton

Meet team Silver Bullets {Christiano missing}. 

Quite possibly the cutest group of six year old boys in the JoCo area. These boys praticed and played with passion. They became fast friends and had a blast together! The coaches and parents are already in talks of getting them together over the summer for a BBQ and possible participation in a summer soccer camp. We are also in high hopes of playing together as a team again this Fall. 

Sporting Tykes

We finally bit the bullet and signed Dawson up for his 1st organized sports activity - Sporting Tykes Soccer through the Olathe YMCA. Our neighbor facilitated coaching and sent out an inquiry regarding interest in participation from kids within the neighborhood. It was fun for Dawson to team up with Leah Brunner, Madelyn Scott, Cole Burris & AJ Nickel from the n'hood.

I took this picture the night of his first practice. I think it is apparent that he was stoked to say the least! We were hesitant how Dawson would do since his only other exposure to soccer was a two hour clinic he attended last Spring. In short, our fears were very quickly curbed. He owned it! 

He was great at advancing the ball, 

kicking,

playing defense & being goalie. 

When it was game time, Dawson turned it on and went full force until the final whistle was blown. He was action packed and took the game very seriously. 

Where he really shined was running the ball up field and scoring! 

{A shout out to Cecil Carder for the above two images}

A final team shot at the season's close. 

Madelyn and Cole are absent from the photo. 

We're looking forward to future soccer experiences with our little man but for now we've moved on to T-Ball :)