(The Eldest – aka “Sporty”)
One of the perils of living in house full of boys is sports. Lots and lots and lots of sports. My guys are all particularly athletic, and it’s what they live for. Their list of favourites include, but is not limited to - hockey, soccer, golf, volleyball, basketball, track & field, cross country, swimming, football and farting (what? that’s not a real sport? could have fooled me).
If they’re not playing it, they’re watching it. And if they’re not watching it, they’re talking about it. But two sports in particular run most of my life.
Obviously, I live in Hockey Land. Canada. The Great White North. Where we construct an ice rink in our backyard for the winter and make approximately 5 trips a week to cold, stinky arenas. Where nasty smelling hockey equipment can be found either at my front door or drying in the basement from October – March. Where balls of used hockey tape are regular accessories in my Family Room and trips to the skate sharpener or stick store are frequently on the weekly agenda. Where our television is tuned to NHL games approximately 3 times a week and where getting a kid up for a 6:00am practice on a Saturday morning is significantly easier then getting the same kid up for the 8:15 school bell.
But then it ends. And Angels sing.
Then soccer season begins.
Which is a similar schedule to the hockey months – our front yard OR backyard can double as a soccer pitch at any given moment. Nets and pylons. Ball and drills. You never know when Coach Daddy will break out a skill building session, or when an impromptu game will be played. Where we make approximately 5 trips a week to a soccer pitch. Where cleats can be found at my front door and jerseys hang proudly in their closets. Where stinky shin guards are left to dry on bedroom floors and a folding chair takes up permanent residency in my trunk. Where the annual arrival of our seasons tickets to the Toronto FC MLS team is great cause for celebration. Where temporary coloured hairspray is used to accent “faux-hawk” hairstyles to match their uniforms and the sweat of a hard fought game is cleanse by a dip in the pool afterward.
But there’s one big difference . . . the weather!
I’ll gladly take a warm sunny summer’s evening on the soccer sidelines over a cold, snowy, early morning at the rink ANY DAY! And with the World Cup of Soccer set to begin this Friday, you don’t need to guess what my life will be revolving around for the next couples of weeks.
Now if I could only get them as interested in clothes shopping and home decorating . . .
Will you be watching the World Cup? Got any little athletes in your house? Do you feel as sorry for me as I do during hockey season?
21 Responses to “Sometimes I’d Rather Have Couch Potatoes”
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June 7th, 2010 at 12:15 pm
I feel sorry for you. Just reading this post makes me need to go buy something pink and froofy for myself.
June 7th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
After reading this, I definitely feel VERY sorry for you during hockey season. If only for the loads of stinky equipment alone.
All of my younger brothers are athletic. The oldest is a lacrosse goalie, but he is out right now with a broken hand (yet another wonderful thing about having athletic boys…the injuries). The middle one swims, so that’s good because he isn’t stinky. The youngest dabbles in lacrosse, but he also rides BMX (more injuries) and skateboards. My dad drives all over the planet for all of these things, so I am sure he would feel your pain.
Luckily really none of this requires being somewhere cold though.
June 7th, 2010 at 12:21 pm
Oh and no. I won’t be watching World Cup.
June 7th, 2010 at 12:31 pm
No kids for us right now, so we have our weekends blessedly free. I was talking to my best friend yesterday while she was driving from baseball to soccer. After soccer was a karate tournament. I have no idea how my nephew is able to keep going after all that exercise. It makes me sleepy just hearing about it. I expect that this will be my least favorite part of having kids. Hopefully mine will be as lazy as my dogs!
June 7th, 2010 at 12:32 pm
oh. Well, yes. As you already know. We are in ice hockey season right now. Super weird, I know. But the equiptment is so horrendous.
As is football equiptment which is around the corner. Baseball just ended which isn’t as stinky, so that’s sad.
Though now that the water is warming up, Mr. Athletics Anonymous will be surfing. Not stinky but scary for mommy.
I have always loved the athletic boys. Especially the athletic boys that surfed. So, I should be happy about my son, but I think it’s more of a Karma thing at this point.
June 7th, 2010 at 12:54 pm
–>I just told my husband the other day that we need to enjoy our free weekends NOW before our 3 1/2 year old starts playing sports. Our days are coming….
~deb
June 7th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
I don’t envy the hockey smell. We never really had that as an option growing up (I’m surprised Surferwife does in even warmer San Diego), and I don’t think our soccer, dance or baseball gear could even rival the stank of hockey. Obvs you know my answer about WC
June 7th, 2010 at 2:29 pm
1. will i be watching the world cup??!?!? — ummm YESSS. i seriously live for the world cup. as a surprise, quasi was this |–| close to getting me tickets but i can’t go anyways.
2. sports in the family?? — live by them. haven’t you heard my plan to create world class athletes?? haha
3. friday is seriously going to be like christmas!! i can’t waaaaaaaait!!!!
June 7th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
i have already resigned myself to the fact that I am going to be a true soccer mom. I am saving for the mini van right now.
oh and our house will be all about the world cup. Hubs used to be a semi-professional soccer player and he lives, breathes and sleeps (is that right? I always screw up cliches . . .) soccer aka football.
June 7th, 2010 at 11:17 pm
I will not be watching the World Cup, but Pete will. He trying to figure out if he can get away with wearing his England jersey to work. He needs a collar on his shirts for work and has convinced himself that it has one!!!
June 8th, 2010 at 4:52 am
I wanted to be a couch potato but my parents wouldn’t let me.Team sports were important for my fitness and my social skills.
Well I showed them. I played team sports and I’m still an overweight loner. Team sports.. they never did anything for anybody.
June 8th, 2010 at 11:46 am
I raised one little girl. Boys…I’m going to stick around and learn something.
Great blog.
Mary
June 8th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
I hear ya! All boys here too! Just read your comment on my blog.. yikes, I don’t work full time though. That’s why I feel guilty!
June 8th, 2010 at 5:19 pm
No little ones, but my boyfriend has every “important” World Cup game scheduled on his iPad, and every time I turn on any reality TV show he announces that it will be traded for “World Cup time”!!!!
Le sigh.
June 8th, 2010 at 9:49 pm
I hear ya~ 3 boys here . hahah! My youngest was in every sport he could find! ( :
Have a pretty night,
Kristin
June 9th, 2010 at 11:54 am
I fear that this is my future. Ricky and I are both artsy-fartsy types (hell, he used to be a ballet dancer!) and we just know Little Ricky is going to be an athlete and neither of us will know what the hell to do with him!
June 9th, 2010 at 9:19 pm
My kids excel in farting AND burping. That is all.
June 9th, 2010 at 10:39 pm
You know, there’s a special place in heaven for moms as committed as you. I believe it’s called The Really, Really Good Place. I bet it’s rife with those butter tarty thingies.
June 10th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
No kids, so no worries about all that stuff yet. However, JT gives himself a heart attack everytime he watches sports on TV. I think the neighbors thought he was beating me the other night, the way he was yelling at the Celtics/Lakers game. We won’t be watching the World Cup though, it’s mostly basketball and football at our house.
If I ever do have kids, I want boys. I think sports are much more fun than Girl Scouts and princess parties.
Cher
Replied:
June 10th, 2010 at 10:53 pm
Ya – from what I hear, girls are really high maintenance. Boys can be easily entertained for hours with just a ball.
June 10th, 2010 at 11:39 pm
That is a great picture Cher. He’s getting so big!