i just realized why i don't sign my kids up for sports.
frickin' frack! i am not thrilled for tomorrow , in advance.
tomorrow the boys have basketball. (i haven't even gotten a call from Paxton's coach yet. but that is another thing on my blitch list)
according to everything i can figure out though , he has a game at 8 am, and one at 9am that means he's playing for 2 hours straight.and getting done at 10 am . NICE. and i have to take him since once again , Lance is working on the house stuff with Tony.
next Peyton has practice at 10:30 for however long, and then his game is at NOON. for an hour. SO that leaves me watching 3 hours of little kids play basketball .not to mention practice for an hour in between Paxton's games and Peyton's game.
while i wrestle the devil child. and probably have to keep 4 other people happy. WTH?
NIGHTMARE LIFE!
this is the exact reason we haven't done T-ball for the last 2 years, the same reason we haven't done soccer recently and never done football. because it ends up being ME and the rest of the kids while one or two kids play a sport. and doing more than a couple in a sport is ultra insane. IF i can have 2 kids on one team and one on another, that is still too much. and the little kids for sure get the shaft since sure a 3 year old can play soccer, i'm totally not going to when i have 4 others wanting to play something. UGH.
starting next week Peyton will have practice on Wednesday, and games on Saturday. and who knows when Paxton's team practices, SINCE WE NEVER GOT A FREAKING PHONE CALL.
yup so whoohoo for me.
Oh and next week it's my job too since Lance has a freaking scout camporee. DAMN IT! that adds up to 3 weeks in a row FOR SURE of basketball mom.
he wanted to sign them up. i assumed he would share in the sport supervision/transportation, and apparently i was incorrect in that assumption.
CAN I JUST TELL YOU! THIS SUPER SUCKS!
and just now Joy came in telling me ,"mama i wanna go to Ballet class, mama i wanna go to ballet class. I WANT TO GO TO BALLET CLASS!" as she is tap tap tapping on my arm, "mommy! mommy! mommy!"
my answer, "not right now, you are doing singing group remember? maybe in the fall."
just another thing i get to chauffeur for. lucky me. lucky lucky me!
realizations going along with this line of thinking. -
i realize there are other moms that are way way nicer than me. and think that having your kids in super fun things/sports all the time is just what being a kid is all about. and that's what mom's do. but i'm not that kind of mom. maybe i should be. and i should try harder but seriously it wears on me. and we just started. having to take the kids here and there , plus do normal stuff, and dragging along extras stresses me out. i dread Thursday's , because the girls have singing group and that is the night my mom comes for dinner usually. and sometimes it's girls night out. or enrichment groups. and it flips me out that i have something scheduled every hour. i need time to gear up for stuff. and time to check my email or go to the bathroom. and on days like that there is no time. in my mind anyway. and i dread those days in advance. and while i'm doing it , and after the season is over. and i think i could be perfectly fine with no sports or activities for anyone FOREVER. sure i should encourage new talents. and have them learn new things but man it makes me cranky. and stressed.
reflection points for you:
- anyone else dread multiple players of multiple sports?
- do you hate going lots of places all day on a busy schedule?
- what sports do your kids play, and who's in charge of taking them?
- any other activities?
- would you rather be a super busy on the go family, or a take it easy together family?
- if you don't have kids, or they aren't old enough, what kind of mom do you THINK you will be? or what kind of mom did you have?
i'm thinking....
fruit snacks,goldfish, bottled waters, gatoraide, small toys , diapers and wipes, the camera, extra batteries, uniforms, adhd meds(they spent the night at a cousins tonight) ,sunglasses, stroller(in van), candy, DR. Pepper and anything else that looks good while i'm packing. it will be a long morning.
oh and i haven't even told Lance about the practice, i figure there is no reason to. it's all me anyway.
21 comments:
Heh heh. Read this:
http://phdwithninekids.blogspot.com/2007/12/gps-for-parents-of-very-busy-children.html
It's spring break next week and the kids don't have school, and everyone keeps asking me where we're going, they can't believe we're staying home. It sounds so wonderful to me to just have a quiet week for a change!
Oh yeah. Unless they can do it at after-school sports, my poor kids don't get to participate. I tried spending every evening watching stinking little league for a year or two. It sucks! I hate sports and I'm not going to be the sports Mom - DH is certainly not the sports Dad. So, no sports kids. Tough.
Dance and music lessons? Maybe, but they'd better tow the line 'cause I'm not paying, and spending the time, to hear a bunch of whining about practices and performances. Yeah, Mom must have trained us well :)
♥ Luckily I only have one child who is old enough for stuff like this. Last summer Emma had 3 sessions of swimming and I thought that was bad. Only for the fact that I had to take the younger 3 with me. I had Lane trying to throw stuff in the pool and kids wanting out of the stroller. SO NOT HAPPENING! Cause then LIFE is definately OVER! :)
I get tired of carting kids around all day and them getting crabby because they haven't napped.
Hubby is never around to help with activities so it's me.
The only thing Emma is doing right now is 2 plays for school. I'm actually loving this right now because she just stays after school longer and I can stay home while kids sleep longer.
I'd rather be the inbetween family. I want my kids to have fun activities but I don't want to go crazy with running around and tearign my hair out!
My mom had 6 kids in 8 years and so we were all really close and she's let us be in 1 activity at a time. So usually she group up together. My sister and I were on the same team always and my younger 2 sisters were always on the same 2. My older 2 siblings did their own thing and were old enough that I htink she'd drop them off and then stay with the younger kids. i don't know how she did it and I'm not sure if I could do it... I go crazy with the 4 that I have! :)
Good luck with tomorrow! I hope you're pleasantly surprised and have a great day. And kids are really extra good for you!!! And maybe just maybe hubby & Tony will get a TON done! :)
Maybe that's why I was only given two kids? I don't like too much stress or running around either. Connor is the only one playing sports and Taylor is in 11 year old scouts, so it's not too crazy here. We do have a game at 8:30 this morning though, and I'm in charge of the snacks after. And we have an all a.m. super enrichment thing at the church, with a ward picnic after, and then song practice for me at 3:30. So yean, not quite as hectic a day as yours, but still busy! And I really like watching the Connor play T-ball, but I don't have to wrestle little ones. And you're right, your hubby should be helping you out on this one. I would bring it up.
I totally understand..I was against baseball this year and my husband insisted upon it. And guess who gets to take the boys to their games..yup you guessed it. I guess I don't have it that bad, only two boys...one in t ball and the other in minors...only half the games overlap and my husband is working evenings. Needless to say...I refuse to do it next year...at least both of them.
Yipes!! Sorry. I never participated in ANYTHING as a child! And I don't feel like I missed out, and I turned out just fine.... I think. Good luck!
O.K. I stumbled upon your blog from another blog. I am probably older than you - Mom of 5.
I have been doing the sports thing for years, along with the scout thing, the school trips thing, the church thing, the PTA thing, etc...
I know when you are in the thick of it it seems like there are 15 other things you'd rather be doing and sometimes it's tedious, and sometimes it's boring and sometimes it's cold or loud, or irritating or you feel tired. It's true. I have been there, I am still there and I sympathize.
My oldest is 21 my youngest is 7. I am much more patient now. I endure it all alot better now and I even love it sometimes too.
The reason is because it's true what they say - They grow up so dang fast! I love my oldest son, he is awesome and if I could go back in time and never gripe about one of his t-ball games and sign up to go to every scout camp as a helper I would because it is all over too fast.
The sleep will come, the time for you will come. I just encourage you to enjoy your kids - let them be on teams it helps them to learn to deal with people. Volunteer, you won't regret it. And at night when you fall into bed and wished you had time to do something else just think that someday you will but they won't be little forever.
Now I am off to a baseball game! Go Team!
We have 2 in little league, as the 8 yr old decided after we paid $30 and he practiced once, that he didn't like baseball. One of these 2 is also in girl scouts. The only other things my kids do are school or church related.
I don't have the time, with a full time job and 8 kids still at home, to do more than this. In a few years, when one of my older kids has a driver's license and can help with the driving, maybe they can do more.
It does not matter which parent agrees to an extra curricular activity, I usually do the driving...
I will never complain about my lonely little one child existence again!
Go MOM! you are doing a great job! I didn't do a million classes as a kid--mostly just summer stuff anyway and I am fine. Well, I think so.........
I remember looking forward to having my oldest driving his siblings to and fro...
He had other plans.
I'm going to try and condense this as much as possible, here goes:
Monday - Benjy has choir and bells practice from 5:45 - 7:15; Jessie and Katie have Irish Dance from 6:00 - 7:00; Jessie also has softball practice from 5:30 - 7:00. We though we would alternate days, you know one week softball, the next dance.
The dance instructor is evil, and doesn't like it. So no softball for Jessie on Monday.
Tuesday - Little Flowers for one of the three each week. Supposed to start at 7:00, but never does until at least 7:30. True story, I got to a house at 7:22 thinking I was way late, and coming up with excuses, etc... First one there.
Wednesday - Religious Ed for Benjy, easy night since his catechist is our neighbor, so aside from the occasional substituting by yours truly, we get a break. Oh and Jessie has softball practice from 5:30 - 7:00.
Thursday - Jessie and Katie have choir and Bells 6:00- 7:30, Benjy has a class on The Acts of the Apostles - same time.
Friday - A whole lot of everything from sleep overs to movies.
Saturday - Soccer games, softball games, housework.
Actually, now that I re-read this it isn't so bad. No complaints, except for the lack of help from my teenager driver.
What was the question again? :)
You asked for it, a long comment, from a rookie poster no less. :)
Have a great day!
Hi, Julie. You know I had to comment since sports are my boys life and Scott is Usually coaching, too. But I finally decided that I was not going to interrupt my little kids lives and my sanity and be at every single game and keep my little kids out late past bedtime or interrupt nap time. So, they know that sometimes I won't be at a game. They need to play just for the fun of playing not to have me watch every single time. Scott or I try to be there, but more times than not, it's just one of us. And occassionally neither of us can make it. We do our best, but not to the interruption of the rest of the family and the house. I do like that sports keeps them entertained and gets out all that boy engergy. Oh, and I definitely don't watch practices. You are still at a hard stage though because you don't have anyone big at home to babysit and not have to drag little ones everywhere. It will get better as they get older.
We've spent every spring down at Hawthorne for the past 15 years. It does get to be a lot. I feel for ya. When Lance can, let him take the kids to the game and you stay home for some peace and quiet.
And don't feel guilty!
When my twins are older and need to go places I'm in trouble. Right now I only have my son to drive around and he's only in 2 activities...greek school and tennis, so its manageable.
WOW! We just started T-Ball and it really wouldn't be too bad because I only have one in it, but we have to go to another town (30 miles away) because that is the only time my boys can do it....so that makes it a little harder. I can't even imagine all my kids wanting to do stuff....and am getting sooo scared about 5 kids all wanting to go oppisite ways every night of the week....and then when you add the church stuff, scouts, and school related activities.....AH, it gives the a headache to even think of it!!!! I think I'll hire a coach service that will run your kids for you! :) Good luck!
Yup, each of my kids gets to do ONE thing. Right now each of them (except the baby) is enrolled in ONE music class. And the middles go together (I scored on that) so really, it's just two times a week. But seriously??! I am NOT a fan of sports. I know that it's in my future, but really not looking forward to it....I feel your pain! Good luck!!
Holy crap you have enough of your own kids to make a minor league soccer team, just do that. Then everyone has the same practice time, game time etc... See where I'm goin? You gotta make lemonade! When they get real good you make a fortune, until then :-)
Well you know I am the OCD mom, so my kids do WAYYYY too much. Last week when we were eating McD's for our 4th night in a row for dinner, I figured it was time to slow down. When your 1 yr old can say Donnie's (for McD's) you KNOW you HAVE to slow down!!
What I let each child do is ONE activity at a time. Yeah, it is hard on me with so many kids and bringing the twinadoes everywhere, but I just do it anyways. I have to plan really well ahead of time. (sually I have dinner done, but April just SUCKS because we have the Twin Club Community Rummage Sale which I will be at for 3 days, and the March of Dimes walk.)
Joseph has Cub Scouts on Tuesday and Church Scouts on Wed. And he has Therapy once a week right now. He just got done taking a robotics class (which about KILLED ME!! I had 5 activities on Thursdays!!!)
Emma has Girl Scouts and is currently taking an art class at the Family Museum (so the other 4 kids play while we wait- and the library is in the same bldg so we go there once a week as usual- we are a HUGE library going family!)
Olivia has preschool 2 times a week. She also takes a class at the museum with her best friend. That girls mom picks the girls up from school, feeds them lunch, takes them to the class, picks them up and then takes Olivia to their house until after dinner. Then I pick her up.
The twins - nothing really yet since I am JUST able to take them out in public. We start church nursery tomorrow. YIKES! They used to have therapy once a week, but they do not have anymore delays. Thursdays they go to a sitters house now. WHICH I LOVE! In the fall they will go to Mothers Morning Out once a week. Then we will start library Storytime for Toddlers. Maybe add a music class. They need the socialization because they are behind in language.
Me: I am the Co-Pres of the local Twin CLub and I go to a crop once or twice a month. I am also getting my training to be a Brownie leader next year for Emma's troop and the School Organizer over all the troops at her school. Plus I am involved in the March of Dimes.
Michael: He is the Asst Cubmaster in the school Pack. He also is involved in American legion.
We are super busy, but I would not have it any other way. I do not necessarily like being so busy, and we make sure we have a day or two here and there where we will plan nothing. I remember all the things I did growing up. I was in tball, Girl Scouts, gymnastics, etc... My mom had 5 kids too, so maybe I am just used to this. I want my kids to experience different things and this is the way to do it, for us anyways. If they do not like something I make them finish the season or class and then we move onto to something else. Scouts does not count in their 1 thing at a time.
Something that has helped me is to make sure I offer classes that are on two days a week. It has worked for us so far. This last set of classes, we only had activities on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They were KILLER days, but MWF I was always home. So I could recoup and get the house in order.
Can you carpool with anyone for the practices?
Your kids will look back on this time and have great memories. I still do - so it is why I keep going when I SOOO don't want to at times!!
You are doing great!!!!
I have two words for you.
"Individual sports"
As in "Not on a team"
Our kids are only involved in non-team sports, and it has been the way to go. We are able to schedule lessons when it's convenient for us.
Don't get me wrong, things are still pretty hectic getting from one activity to another, but we also have the option of cancelling if we need to.
Our daughter also takes ballet, and piano, and our older son plays the trumpet, so we have music lessons also. (our piano teacher lives across the street, so I don't need to drive anywhere:0)
I take the two middle kids to their activities, and DH takes our oldest to his.
I am part of a carpool for ballet that involves 3 other moms, so I only end up driving twice a month.
YES, I hate going lots of places all day on a busy schedule! Check this out.....
http://andimeanit.blogspot.com/2008/02/clone-meplease.html
YUP ! Isn't it FUN !!!! We had football last year and 2 hr practice everyday and games on Sat. two different parks and some games were 45 miles away at different times. YAY ! AS the hubby is working a LONG work day and school at night so it was me and school for my kids started in July. Plus church callings and scouts,scout camp,school actives, homework etc...Life is CRAZY. I'd probably whine if we were not doing anything thing too. You can't win.
I'm not a fan of the super-busy life, with a million activities. But how can you avoid it, with 6 kiddos? You're not "crazymama" for nothing! ;) Just breathe, sister. I'd be bonkers, too, with all that basketball in 1 day. Ouch! Just remember Elder Oakes' talk last fall...
Oh my gosh I am so glad only D is doing anything right now. Good luck. Drink plenty of water while out and about--- and about... and about!
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