A day to remember...

P in his Goalie shirt with his coach before the final set of 3 games....yes, his coach has green hair and he did try to persuade P to paint his as well to no avail!
P in action!! This was our view from the stage!
~ The big boys after the award ceremonies~
Just chilling in the bleachers before our move to the stage area.
How to make 8 hours fly by....try a plaiting party...
Or eating nutritious (and some not so nutritious) snacks!
Or how about taking a little snooze.....just make yourselves at home, girls!
Daddy's lap is always best!!
For the past 8 weeks, the big boys have been participating in an indoor soccer league called Salao soccer. It has been a fun family time watching both boys play ...often watching a game with C playing, then running errands for 1 hour and returning to watch P play.
Well, today was the ultimate soccer day...tournament Saturday....we were in the gym from 8am until 12pm...came home for 1 hour to replenish the water bottles, the snack stash and to pack something to keep the littles occupied!! Then we remained from 1pm until 5pm....yep 8 hours watching soccer.
These were intense 20 minute games played on a basketball court. What did the littles do to pass the 8 hours? Well, they ate, they drank, they took multiple potty breaks (trodding up and down jam packed bleachers with no center aisle is quite a feat...thank goodness there were many kindhearted spectators who did not mind Mercy and Odesco leaning on them for balance as they tried their best to avoid stepping on coats, knocking over coffeee mugs and other belongings ,while remaining upright!!) They also talked, played with a few friends, cheered, plaited hair, and did I mention they ate?! oh, and occasionally they actually watched the game :) For our 2nd stretch we moved from the bleachers to a stage where the kiddos could stretch out, color, and play quietly.The stage was directly behind the goal and I tried to position the kiddos so that they were protected from stray balls....well, after Mercy awoke from her little nap, she was quietly coloring with her back to the goal. Yes, you can guess what I'm gong to say next...what a shock when she was nailed hard in the back of the head with a ball intended to score -- the bright side is that this ball aimed for the goal did not make it in but bounced off Mercy's bead and snap covered head instead! This was good news because P was the goalie!!! I must say that even in the midst of the noisy, crowded gymnasium, our little girl managed to make her cries heard. Thankfully, she settled down with some cuddling and gentle head rubbing. She seems just fine now~
It was quite the exciting day of games...C's team made it to the finals but finished 2nd...he played defense and kept his head in the game. P's team also made it to the finals ...he played goalie and oh, how nerve wracking it was sitting directly behind him watching those balls headed his way...he did a great job defending his goal but in the end they also came in 2nd. This was after 2 back to back 20 minute games and a very exciting tie breaker where every minute, a player from each team was removed until it was 3 on 3...yikes!!! There was lots of screaming and cheering and the pressure was really on....I am proud of our firstborn for how he kept his cool and handled the eventual loss...graciously...he did his best and seemed to have a really fun time . At the awards ceremony we were all surprised when P was given the Christian Character award for his team. The coach mentioned that after every game P would use his snack tickets given to get a treat for not only himself but also for all his siblings at the makeshift snack bar. It is a blessing to see these evidences of God's grace in his life :)

Well, L is asleep on Daddy's shoulder...he seems to have picked up what Mercy had earlier in the week....he was feeling pretty lousy throughout the day...very mellow, sleepy and complaining that his throat was bothering him. Now he sounds like a barking dog when he coughs...could be an eventful night!!
Thanks for checking in and sharing our adventures :)!!
Blessings, MamaB.
PS spending 8 hours in a public setting gave me ample opportunity to instruct on a variety of issues....for instance how to scratch your belly discreetly without exposing your entire body to those around you, how to belch quietly into a cupped hand and the importance of waiting until you actually get into the bathroom stall before removing pertinent articles of clothing...