If I had kept up with some level of recreational involvement from my childhood, it would have been in soccer. I was never pro-bound or anything, but I remember liking the way it made me feel and it was a sport that I could get lost in once I got going. Whenever I watch a soccer match, I am re-inspired to find a physical fitness that would allow me to get involved with some sort of adult hobby-team. Plus, it is one of the only sports that I can watch and follow without having to ask someone a zillion questions about the rules of play.
So, I was pretty excited when we decided to take the kids on a Sounder's field trip this year. My car consisted of Brendon and Jayden, and snacks galore. We were on the road bright and early but the boys were awake enough to jam out to music and get a lengthy game of "I-SPY" going. I didn't realize that we'd scheduled our departure to get us into town early so we had time to go grab some pizza and they ate in the cafe at the grocery store while I got some more urgent groceries taken care of. Even so, we still made it to the stadium early, which was a delight to them since they'd never been inside one and since people hadn't crowded into their seats, we got to wander the rows closer to the field.
Our seats were at the very top floor and we headed up there shortly before the rest of the kids met up with us. I didn't hear any complaints about the view, though. Personally, I almost think the bird's eye view is better in terms of being able to follow the play by play. It does make for a kind of interesting perception of speed, distance and direction though.
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Even with a preference towards soccer, I still don't know diddly about state teams, so I was on a learning curve for learning the cheers and best practice in the Sounder Fan Family. And I've gotta say, they have the coolest call I've ever heard at a sport's game. For those who don't know, Sounder's fans rev up at the beginning of a game by beginning series of steady claps in long intervals, filled with an echo that recreates an uncanny resemblance to that of a whale call. Then gradually, the space between the claps gets shorter until the stadium has erupted in a full-on cheer. That was the first time I made the connection to the Sounders and what their mascot might possibly be.
We couldn't have asked for a better game, in terms of the entertainment factor. The first half kept us on our toes until the New York Red Bulls scored in the little bit. It was like the slump moment in the movie. One of the Morton kiddos that was sitting with Jeremy became increasingly pessimistic and criticizing of the team and Jeremy used each comment as a graceful opportunity for insightful remarks about empathizing and teamwork. Then, maybe about half way into the second half, our team made their first goal. You could feel this huge shift in energy as the fan's optimism was restored. The cheering that led up to the goal almost seemed to put everything into slow motion; it was a cheer that said "You're gonna make it! You've gotta make it!" 
Our guy did a pretty snazzy back flip, also.
Then, with perhaps only three minutes left in the play, we got our second goal in. The tension, the slump, the climax and the turnaround, making for one great show.
Brendan, Jaydin and I snuck out pretty quickly so that Brendon could go buy a shirt before the crowds hit. Before we left town, I drove them to a Baskin Robins since I'd promised them ice cream when I thought I'd have to go to the store after the game. Adding onto a pretty substantial sugar high of pop tarts, juice boxes, candy and coca cola, the car ride home consisted of wild chants out the windows, weird hand-slapping games, ice cream spoon catapults, and wildly out-of-tune singing scenarios before an abrupt crash during the last half hour of the ride.
The next day at Open Gym, we broke out our soccer ball and had a game going for the majority of the night. I even jumped in there for a good portion of it and didn't do half bad. Who knows, maybe a team is in my future yet = P
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