Raiders and Ravens

It's that time of year again.

While normally we wouldn't be rooting for the Raiders or the Ravens or any other pro football team for that matter (except maybe whichever one Tim Tebow is on at the moment), we will spend the next several weeks cheering on the Raven and the Raiders.  

While we are huge Gators fans and try to plan our Saturdays around Gator game time, flag football is pretty exciting too.  Especially when three of the best boys in my life are playing.

We moved here last year right before the season started so we didn't get to sign our boys up.  They played for a year in Texas and it's the only sport my older two sons want to play at all (besides swim team, which I have been putting off because of the practice hours.)

Last fall they could be found nearly everyday playing some form of football in the front yard...some sort of made up rules to make up for there just being three players (or four when their Daddy would join them).

This fall we get to go to two evening practices a week and games on Saturday mornings.  Considering I'm doing this solo, with two little girls in tow, I hope they are very thankful for this opportunity!  I know that I am thankful that they all practice on the same evenings, at the same times, and that their games on Saturdays are an hour apart at the most.

But it is fun to watch, and the weather has cooled off so it's been nice out by the evenings.  There is a playground nearby that I take the girls to while the boys are practicing, so it's working out well.

And it's always nice to see my children doing what they enjoy, and working hard at it.

Although my third son, the same one that says writing makes him itchy, has been having issues with the working hard at it part.  He's the one who always jumps at the chance to play a sport.  I'm not sure what took away his excitement with flag football, but he's been acting goofy and making excuses more than playing.  

That's him in the center, standing with his head down while the play is happening around him.

While I don't expect more than he's capable of, we did have a talk later in the day about being a team player and doing his best.

He asked for a break after every play he was in, and then after about three plays he participated in (and I use that term loosely), he hopped off the field on one foot and declared himself injured.  If it didn't look so comical, and if I didn't know him well enough to know how dramatic and strong-willed (aka stubborn) he is, I might have been upset that we sat there for most of the rest of the game watching him sit on the bench.  Towards the end, his coach finally talked him into trying to play again and he did a little better...running down the field when his team did, but not necessarily trying to do anything.

These sweet little girls played and ran around until they got bored and hot and then asked several times when we would go home.  While evening practices are nice and cool, our Florida mornings are still humid and hot.

First game...win for the Raiders, loss for the Ravens.