Slammed by Spring Sports
Can anyone say SPORTS?! Yes, that time of year had come for us … spring sports.
I have three boys ages 7, 5, and 3 and we have hit the ground running with soccer and t-ball.
This past fall I was really looking forward to getting the boys involved in the community athletics program in our town, so off I went to sign our 7- and 5-year-old up. Stood in line, made small talk, paid the fees and the boys were registered. HOORAY!
Well, we are four weeks into the season so far and to be honest, I am exhausted. We have two practices a week and about three-four games a weekend. It is insane.
The boys are loving it and I have enjoyed watching them flourish in their sports, but our time as a family is being sucked dry and this is only with two boys involved. I can’t imagine adding our youngest into the mix. UGH!
At what point do we say enough is enough? And with three boys in sports, where do we draw the line? My husband and I are all for extra-curricular activities but not at the expense of our time together as a family.
We have agreed that each boy may be involved in one sport per season and at this age they only do spring sports. Even this seems to be too much.
I don’t have the answers on this one just yet but I do know that I value family time.
I don’t want to look back in 10-15 years and have the boys’ memories be of the back seat of the SUV driving to another game. Instead, I want them to remember the times we were home playing air hockey or ping pong in the playroom or just hanging in the front yard riding bikes and playing ball.
Well I better run — I have another game to get to!
I don't know if these comments get read or not…especially since I am commenting on an entry now over a month old but I had to reply. We have five sons…perhaps a sixth on the way. We had to opt out of sports almost entirely. Our first two sons played soccer. At the point we bowed out we were at three practices a week and at least two games on the weekend, if not more. That was just two boys. How were we ever to keep up with three more boys and more to follow? Our answer…we couldn't. Our boys understood. THey were not devastated. We decided to do things like swim team which our boys can walk across the street to the neighborhood pool to do and which has one meet a week that all three of our older boys can be at together. Plus it has the added bonus of making our boys good swimmers which we felt had a higher priority than making them better athletes. Sports is NOT a non negotiable. Families DO NOT have to participate in sports. Do not be afraid to swim against the tids and say NO to sports. I promise…God will bless the choice to choose family over the god of sport.