Dreaming…

As I sit here and recount the days events, I wonder, “Am I dreaming?”

Ethan attended soccer for the first time last Sunday. Today he gets to go again…and he’s so looking forward to it. His goal last game made his week, and instilled a love for soccer from the get go. Today is supposed to be HOT…high 90’s. We know we’ll take it slow, keep hydrated, make the most of it.

We head to soccer at 12:00pm. It’s hot, but Ethan’s ready. They practice for a half hour, and then play a game for a half hour. He’s SO into it. While it’s hard for him to hear on the field, he stays tuned in to where the ball is, where he should be, and what’s going on. He remembers the secret I told him from last week, “Ethan, the secret is that you can’t do anything in that clump of kids around the ball…but if you wait outside the clump of kids, the ball will come out, and then it’s all yours!” Ethan manages three goals in the game today. He’s not the fastest kid out there. Speed has never been his thing. But, at the age of 6, he already “gets” the game, and waits for his chance with the ball. So, there’s Ethan today, in the 95 degree heat, scoring goals on the field! GO ETHAN!

more soccer photos @ www.lentfamily.org

We then proceed on to the Pan Mass Challenge Kids bike ride at Bradley Palmer State Park in Ipswich. Emma, Ethan and Eliot registered to ride today, and raised money for The Jimmy Fund. It was a wonderful event, and the day was BEAUTIFUL. Yes, slightly warmer than ideal weather, but BEAUTIFUL. The beauty though was enhanced by the fact that Ethan was riding PMC Kids. We’ve HOPED and DREAMED we’d be here, together, riding…and our DREAM came true. The three hours are filled with fun…face painting, crafts, Ethan being photographed with the other five SURVIVORS…children…SUPERHEROES…all sporting pins that say “I’M LIVING PROOF”, and then Yancy and I ride with Em, Ethan and Eliot, as they head out the trail for the 3.2 mile ride. They all ride as if they have endless energy. And once again, Yancy and I feel as though we’re dreaming. The event is touching, to say the least.

We hang out with another Rowley family, with three children. Their dad has rode the PMC for four years now and will ride again in August for his 5th time, and they have done PMC Kids many years now too. Yancy chats with him, getting some PMC tips…gearing up for the big ride in August.

We head home…El’s sleeping by the time we pull in the driveway. Yancy heads out for a long 50 mile bike ride. El sleeps cozily in bed, at only 5:00 pm. Em watches a movie upstairs. Ethan watches a movie downstairs. And, as Mommy writes, she concludes she is dreaming, and wants the dream to be ever-lasting.