confidence

I was a competitive swimmer for
8 years.

From age 8 till I was 16 yrs old.

Year round, every day

2 hours a day,

swim meets all weekend long...

Summers every morning-

in the pool at the crack of dawn (6:15 A.M)

I loved it. It was hard work,

long hours of practice,

Not a lot of down time,

(well never)

BUT in the end it gave me something so important:

C O N F I D E N C E.

I believe every kid needs something that creates confidence. It doesn't have to be anything that cost a ton of money or that takes all of their time. It can be something as simple as painting, singing, soccer, dancing, hoola hooping! Anything that makes a child feel a little worth while.



My parents made sure all of us kids had at least one thing we were good at. I started with dancing, (not my thing..giraffe legs), then singing and dancing (yikes), drama, (noooo way) and then my mom took me to one of the best swim clubs (Go Firewater!) in the state and the coach said jump in. I remember jumping in the deep end and swimming my little heart out..I was eight. I never stopped from there. I L O V E D IT. Loved to swim. Loved Coach Pavlish and owe him so much. I owe my mom a huge thanks for not stopping until I found something I loved...(and with 10 kids, my mom sacrificed her time and energy(and money) to get me there every day. love her) , I did well at swimming and moved up quickly. We won State many times and I performed best in the long distance freestyles (200 free/ 500 free and the 200 I.M's)



I somewhat sadly look back and wished I didn't quit to play high school bball, track, and cross-country. But I was ready to move on...

Well Austin is ready to move on....

Austin just quit Inter F.C.

He decided he was done.

He started soccer when he was 3 and now he is 10.

He played year round for 7 years. He put in a lot of time and dedication to soccer. I had no idea he would love it and do so well. I loved loved watching his games. Ry and I tried to never missed. I respect the game of soccer and the sport.




But he came to Ry and I the other day and said, " I'm done. I've learned all I can with soccer and I am ready to go on to hoops. It's time for basketball." He wants to play competitive bball. He has already played hoops for two seasons so he knows he loves it...he will be tall (like 6 "7 tall!)) and he has great ability; he is really perfect for hoops. We are excited for the next phase of sports for Aus...

I do have to say that we have loved Inter. They were and still are an amazing team, one of the top in State. He always did well and the team worked hard to achieve their goals.

But in the end, as parents,

we knew we had to take a step back and let Austin decide.

(with our influence)

He knew in his heart what he wanted to do and we can't force him

or any of our kids to do anything.

But we knew it was coming. At the end of last season,

I knew his heart had fallen out of it.

SO

Thanks to Inter Futbol Club for giving Austin a chance to be a part of a great team.

Part of a team that worked hard and achieved it's goals. Great coaches (Dennis, Johnny and Matt) that lead them to winning tournaments and

being one of the best in State.

Aus will always have great memories of such a great team....

Here are a few pics:

They got to play at the half-time of Salt Lake REAL playoff game.

What an honor for his team.... Aus will never forget.
Really a kid's dream to be a part of something so great.

In the end,

it gave him what I feel is so important for any child growing up in this crazy world full of peer pressure:

CONFIDENCE

and self-esteem

and a hard work ethic

also knowing he can reach any goal

with hard work and determination.

You will be missed Inter FC.

But we will move on to the next team, the next challenge

and try our hardest!

Good Job Austin-love ya!