As you might remember, Kylie turned seven a few days ago. Tonight she played in her first soccer game. They've been practicing for weeks, although based on how they played it's hard to see exactly what they've been practicing. But all the girls played with a lot of enthusiasm, none more than our girl herself. Kylie was on the ball from start to finish, and as the team gets better I think she will, too. She had a part in the only goal her team scored in a 3-1 loss (but who's counting?).

They play seven to a side, and most of the game is a kind of free-for-all where twelve girls are chasing the ball and the two goalies are picking the grass. Kylie was first to the ball a lot of the time, and she (unlike some of her teammates) almost always kicked it in the right direction. Most of these kids don't have much of a concept of how to keep the ball in their possession; either that, or they don't care.

They all had fun, though; that was obvious. And Kylie might have had the most fun. She is sometimes in the shadows, sports-wise, but her big brother was there supporting her and cheering her on. She had a big fan section, and she acknowledged as any star athlete would be expected to do. Being the center of attention has never been something she's shied away from. And it suits her.

----------

Kylie's team.
----------
You know how hard it is to get me out of the house, but I couldn't resist the chance to watch Kylie play, and see the rest of the family as well. She plays two or three times a week (a bit too often for a seven-year-old, in my unwanted opinion), so I will get to as many games as I can. Aiden plays football every Sunday, but at such an unearthly early hour that I've only made it to one of his games. He understands (or pretends to).