Thursday Toddler Blogging 120910

SteelyKid is off spending a weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's, so this week's picture was actually taken early Wednesday morning:

The early hour accounts for both the pacifier (she wasn't willing to give it up yet) and the frizzy hair (bed-head toddler!). I'm pretty sure she hasn't grown measurably since yesterday, though.

This photo is in honor of SteelyKid's sporting activities, as part of the SoccerTots program. Several weeks ago, before the time change, I was lamenting the fact that cold weather and early sunsets were going to make it harder to tire SteelyKid out by letting her run around outside, and another parent suggested this. So, much to our chagrin, Kate and I began ferrying SteelyKid to and from soccer at the age of two-and-a-quarter.

She took a little while to warm up to it, but really likes running and playing. We've played a little with a full-size ball, when I took her to some of Union's games, but I figured it was worth getting her a small ball like the ones they play with at SoccerTots. Now we regularly "play soccer" in the living room, kicking the ball back and forth. She's very good at the kicking part, but still tends to bend down and catch balls rolling toward her, then carefully position the ball in the optimum spot for her return kick. But, hey, she's only two-and-a-third.

This picture is what they refer to as "Soccer Stance," as distinct from "Captain Morgan Stance." She can do this with either foot, and roll the ball back and forth under her foot. Which is a little pointless, but cute. She prefers to set the ball in place, loudly count to some number between one and ten, then kick it as hard as she can (sometimes yelling "kick!"). Which shows that she has already matched her father's grasp of the finer points of soccer mechanics...