Stella's Soccer Obsession is Natural & I'm Learning!

Stella is obsessed with soccer and I'm learning! I'm in awe of her passion and obsession with the sport at 5 years old! Thanks to our St. Thecla friend, Mikey we did winter indoor soccer together in Niles and Stella fell in love with the sport. She would carefully place her soccer jersey on the chair next to her bed so she could look at it while she fell asleep. She had to have cleats even though they wore regular gym shoes for indoor soccer. We had to get a special water bottle so she could look like the bigger kids. And, we had to practice all the time. It was so sweet. I quickly realized I was clueless about soccer and could offer little knowledge on the sport.

Luckily, Coach Dan was awesome and taught the young players some solid, basic skills. Stella was so excited when her cousin Eleanora, Uncle Matt and Aunt Holly came to watch her last game of the winter season. We were all chatting as Stella went to pick up her post-game snack. We were surprised when she came running back with a huge trophy! It was awesome and Stella was over the moon! She was hooked and could not wait for the Spring outdoor season to begin. 

Over the past month Stella has asked constantly when soccer would begin and thankfully today was the day! She could not wait to play with Mikey again and was so excited when she found out that she will be on the Orange Crush team! Last night we talked and talked and talked about the upcoming games. It is so awesome to see her obsession at such a young age and I couldn't help but think how some things are just hard wired in kids. Sophia has no interest in playing soccer which is just fine and yet Stella is so passionate about the game. The obsession is natural and I know she gets her passion and talents from Tony's family. For those of you that know us, the Tortorello's are awesome athletes. Tony's siblings - Sam, Katie, and Liz were superstar volleyball players and my nieces and nephews are carrying on the sports obsession. We had a blast watching Chase's Wheaton Warrenville South Team have an amazing basketball run. Macker is incredible at every sport she plays and Ava and Lola are already incredible volleyball players. Dom is obsessed with basketball. And at 5, Stella is charging ahead with sports. I just marvel at the natural talent and enthusiastic obsession with the various sports. The Murer side of the family is not quite as gifted but we do love to run and give great effort! 

Since I was such a poor athlete growing up (no comments from my childhood friends please!) I have a lot to learn about being an athlete's mom! I'm trying to bring it as the best I can. I ordered soccer goals from Amazon for Stella so we could practice in the backyard. But, after assembling I quickly realized it pays to invest a little more in the gear! I did a pretty good job with snacks for winter soccer and am excited about our new sports drink for outdoor soccer. As you may have read on our blog, I was obsessed with the Jewel-Osco monopoly game and came across the new BodyArmor sports drink. We tried it and loved it! This natural sports drink is now our favorite and Stella has informed me she wants the Lemonade BodyArmor drink for her soccer games! I really like the strawberry banana BodyArmor drink. This morning Stella asked her dad to take her to get a soccer backpack. We had her favorite green soccer ball and cleats ready to go.  

Once we arrived at the field Stella bounced out of the car and raced over to our pal, Mikey. She was so excited and had a blast practicing with our new team, Orange Crush. As I sat on the sidelines and watched her play, I was just so proud of her. Her obsession for the game was obvious and she was having a blast. She has an awesome coach who played soccer at ISU. As the team practiced I realized I really need to learn more about the sport. Barry Baldwin, my awesome pal and soccer coach from Naperville Central High School I'll be calling you! 

Once back in the car we called my niece Eleanora to find out how her soccer game turned out and to tell her about Stella's practice. Stella wants everyone to know about her soccer games and how much she loves the sport. Stella and I have so much to learn and we cannot wait! Bring it soccer! We can't wait for this season!