Last Last Words

 Greetings everyone. Plenty to right about today so let's get right at it. Virtual school has been nothing short of difficult to handle at times for Jill and I. Mostly emotionally with our child. Most of the work load isn't too bad but balancing helping Mia with both our jobs can be overwhelming.  This week we misread something which caused some issues, but we're back on it and things should be okay the rest of this week. The hardest most difficult part, is dealing with a kid who hasn't seen a friend since school starts. In the last 4 years of school at OL, she's built some amazing friendships but because we decided to keep her safe during the first semester, she feels isolated from everyone. She misses them all. Misses hanging out at recess, lunch and all the fun of being in a school setting. It's been getting more and more difficult for her every day not talking to any friends both online, text or in person. Not sure what's going on tech wise, why she hasn't heard from anyone but it's been definitely affecting her lately.  I'd give almost anything for Mia to have a day to just hang with a friend or two. She needs it so badly right now. More than anyone could imagine.

Luckily, she still has soccer. It's not the same thing, but it's something. She's been getting along with her teammates and bonding lately which is great. They had their first game which happened to be a road match for the mighty Jaguars in Franklin against the dreaded Polonia. They beat us in indoor when I was coaching the Dragons so I was pretty glad with the results of a 5-0 win! We had a ref-less first match which was weird, but we made it work. They were pretty even in the first half till Loxley (aka GoldiLox as I call her) got a pair of goals before half time. She's a tough kid who's very competitive. 2nd half, we kept on the pressure and Liv net the 3rd goal of the game. Jessica finished them off with the 5th one after an awesome clearance from Autumn in net. Everyone played really well and all were smiling after the game. Mia certainly enjoyed playing up front even when she was supposed to play defense. She almost got a goal 3 different times and ran over the goalie in the 2nd half. Oops! All in all, great match and great start to the season. 

We had a great practice last night and the kids really are taking a shine to me. I'm finding more kids that want to work with me on goalie drills which is great. Love watching kids grow in the sport the enjoy and seeing them take the advice I give and apply it in a scrimmage we had to close out the practice. We've got two games this weekend. One on the road and one finally at home. 

Still working on art like always. The doggo sketch is really taking form finally. Plenty of detail to drop in still, but hopefully it'll turn out. That's all for now, thanks for reading! 

Quiet Storm

 
Well it's been a while but honestly, there hasn't been much to write about. Mia's outdoor soccer team has been working hard at their home field. We're definitely seeing a vast improvement and I'm even seeing some potential goalies! We're supposed to have a scrimmage/friendly Wed evening so I'm hoping the rain ends and we can get in the match. I'm anxious to see how these girls work together as a group but with my luck, the fields will be a mess and we won't get to play. 

Throughout the last few weeks, we've been preparing for today's first day of virtual school for Mia. Mia picked up her iPod recently and we set up her schedule and she was ready to roll. Is she excited to be home all school year? Meh. Is she thrilled to be in a class with zero friends? Not really, but what can you do. Will she miss all her friends? For sure. Does she know her parents are keeping her home so she stays safe if/when this all blows up again? Definitely. Luckily, our 9 1/2 year old is mature enough to understand  our reasons to keep her home and is embracing this new life for 4th grade. Hopefully, it'll be an overall positive experience and who knows, maybe things will return to "normal" one day. She still has soccer with BFF Scarlett and her teammates so she's got at least something. 

It's weird not to be making her cold lunch or drawing up her lunch notes every day, but my art abilities won't go to waste. I'm still currently working on a dog commission sketch. It's taking a lot of time but I'm really layering in the browns. I may be doing some art lessons for the other fellow virtual school kiddos. I've got a variety of kids that may be be interested so that could be a fun project. I always love working with kids so this could be a great and positive experience. I'm curious on what Mia's virtual art life will be for school, but hopefully we'll learn soon what that and other other specials will be like. I think the most important thing parents need to be with this whether you've got a kid thats going hybrid or virtual is just be patient. I've seen a lot of upset parents getting flustered and mad at IT, the school or anyone they could vent to. Just chill and relax, people. 

Lastly, over the last few weeks, Mia's been doing a lot of skateboarding and rollerskating. It's been pretty cute actually watching her skateboard around, then when her roller-skates came in, she would act as a waitress from Ratatouille and bring out food while we'd visit her grandparents. She's going to need these to keep her active for virtual gym class. If you ask Mia the highlights of her Summer, she'll gladly respond with "swimming with my friends at the beach, or in the pool with Noelle". She had a few sleepovers here and there, but this Summer girl certainly loves the beach and being in the water with friends.  This weekend, Mia's got a very special Zoom call with a Red Panda and zoo keeper where she can ask any questions with her and see the little cutie as close as she can. One day, she'll get to hold one..

That's all for now, keep posted for more updates through the school year and the soccer season. Thanks for reading!