The Rolling Baby...Roll Baby Roll

Kellen is going to be good at the game King of the Mountain.
He loves to roll.
Given the choice between crawling and rolling, he will roll every time.
His crawl is funny, a kind of cross between inching and gyrating.
It's pretty entertaining to watch.
Tonight, we were at my friend's house, and he rolled all around her living room while she showed Aidan old stuffed animals from when her kids were small.
Aidan's favorite was the boa constrictor.
It was a life-sized stuffed animal.
Aidan announced, as he wrapped it around his neck, that he wanted to start a stuffed animal collection.
They are so cute, these children of mine.
I feel so entirely lucky to be sharing my life with them...
Sweet, caring, loving boys.
* * *
Speaking of which, I should get to bed.
Aidan has a soccer game in the morning even if we are Not Thrilled with the coach.
I don't usually talk negatively about Aidan's teachers or coaches, but this one is just Plain Mean.
He carps at the kids when they don't live up to his standards, and he makes them do nothing but drills.
He sucks the life and pluck out of soccer and makes it a dull practice.
Aidan is puzzled as he usually loves organized sports.
He said, "Dad, I don't know why, but I am not liking soccer this year."
The comment went straight to my heart. I have half a mind to pull him out of the situation altogether, but Brian insists that we musn't teach Aidan that quitting is all right.
I know this to Be True, but it's hard, watching the joylessness of the coach's approach.
And so, we will run around the house in the morning, gathering soccer jerseys and cleats and socks and head to wherever the game is. Brian called the coach tonight to Get Directions to the field.
And we will try to smile through the game and cheer on our little soccer player.
Kellen likes it, watching all the children running around.
As for the jersey, which the coach wants us to clean "by hand" to save wear and tear, it's Very Ugly: orange and white.
As for the cleaning by hand, well, it seems ridiculous.
Up until now, Aidan's always been able to keep his Team Uniforms, and he wears them proudly.
As for this one, I'll be glad to hand it in as we've been asked to do.
I don't get warm fuzzy feelings when I see Aid wearing it; I just feel a mild sense of disappointment.
Brian says that next season we can request that Aidan not be put on this coach's team.
While that doesn't solve the problem now, I figure we can always just stop going if Aidan really Hates it.
* * *
I told my class today the story of the "No Fun Coach" to warn them about how they can suck the life out of subjects for their students.
My son loved soccer, I told them. Until this year.
Likewise, I want my students to think about how they will teach grammar and to remember that their emotions about it will spill into their students' feelings about the subject.
It was a good analogy, but I wish I wasn't able to make it.
I would rather that Aidan was tearing it up again with the Panthers, last year's undefeated team, a supportive, nurturing and yet challenging environment.