Join a Team for More Family Time
I’m a huge fan of kids participating in team sports. Not only is it a great excuse to get your kids outside and active, but teams are a great opportunity for kids to learn new skills, build self-esteem and so much more. Unfortunately, after signing our own kids up for team sports, we realized just how time-consuming they can also be. With several practices and games a week and multiple children participating, playing team sports was draining the little «family time» we had. So, we quit. Yep! Just like that. We stopped worrying about balancing swim team, soccer teams and little league. While it was probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make as a parent (Seriously?! What six-year-old doesn’t play soccer?). However, I immediately felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
But don’t worry, just because my kids aren’t currently playing on a typical team doesn’t mean they aren’t participating in team sports anymore. As I said before I’m a big fan of team sports and the lessons they teach kids, but I knew I didn’t want to sacrifice our limited family time. So…we formed our own team. Our family, along with several other friends and families, has created our very own multi-sports team – Team Poseidon. What started as a rinky-dink team has grown to over 100 strong. We bike together, run races together and play together. We get all the perks of joining a team, but we do it as a family. It’s the best of both worlds and to be perfectly honest, I don’t think our family has ever been happier. I guess it’s true what they say…the family that plays together, stays together.
How do you balance your kids’ activities with family time? Share your tips in the comments below!
Kelly Lewis is a crushed ice loving, world-traveling, bike riding, apron wearing, snowboarding, fabric obsessed, marathon training, Disneyland loving, sparkle skirt wearing, surprisingly shy triathlete, REAL Orange County housewife and mama of three, with ADD crafting tendencies and an MBA degree.