I feel like these days the word “busy” has lost its meaning entirely. We all say it at least once a day. We also say it in so many different contexts to a variety of people. We say it to coworkers, friends, bosses, and even our own children. And busy is most definitely a constant state for a mother with children in extracurricular activities or organized team sports. Being a sports mom ain’t easy.
I have 3 boys, and each of them plays at least 2 sports, so I feel your pain. It has taken us a very long time to find the grove and figure out a system that works, so I wanted to share our tricks with you, along with some advice that works for us.
There a few family calendar apps. I used Cozi, and I loved it! It has an excellent option for shopping, list keeping, and organizing each family member. I know Google has a family organizational tool as well that I have heard great things about. But I have defaulted to screenshots and old-fashioned paper (for now).
Here is how I tackle our crazy schedule:
As soon as I get ANY schedule, I print them, or screenshot them and make it in my own list (Shown below). This way also makes it easy to share with family and friends who may want to show up in support.
Pennington – Monday 10/5 5:30 Packer Park Field B (address: 125 Green Bay Way)
Peyton – Monday 10/5 6:30 High School – Varsity Field
Piercen – Monday 10/5 5 – 6:30 Ball Control Clinic – Sports Performance
I know game time length, but if it’s a practice, specialized clinic, or camp, I ALWAYS include an end time. I only add the address to a place I have never been or aren’t familiar with.
Then I put them on my calendar. Every sport gets its own color, mom & dad stuff has its own color, and EVERY event where someone is NOT at home gets documented.
A key point is to make sure you SHARE every event and the responsibilities that go with it with your husband. It is easy to get overwhelmed but DON’T. There is no need.
When our kids go to bed, we talk, tomorrow you do this, and I will do this. Of course, it doesn’t stop the daily texts, emails, and/or calls, but at least expectations are laid out. I may be a sports mom, but he is a sports dad and we work as a team!
One more thing I would love to share…we have three children, so we are outnumbered. We can’t run a “man on man;” we have to run a “zone.”
And I have had to let go of feeling guilty for not being there. But I do strongly believe that someone should ALWAYS be at your child’s game who loves them. So, we reach out to Grandma & Grandpa, Aunts and Uncles often.
My rule of thumb is that up to this point, I was ALWAYS there for my eldest’s games so generally those are the first ones I will be absent from. Not to mention that he understands why we can’t be there.
Know your limits, set boundaries, expectations even radiuses. Don’t set yourself up for failure. They are children, so what do they really need? They don’t need cello, mandarin, soccer, and Pilates.
I have a lot to say about youth sports! Read more here.
All my love,
Nichole Garcia
