My inspiration for this record of my days:

“The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less” -Anna Quindlen

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Eye on the ball

I never expected to fall in love with sports.  In my home growing up we had lots of dance, gymnastics, and oodles of music lessons.  But my exposure to “ball sports” was limited to church teams.  Well, that, and watching my dad yell at the TV whenever U of A basketball was on.

My first inkling that balls were going to be a big part of my life came when Caleb was about a year and a half.  He could throw a ball with amazing speed and accuracy.  I should know, because his target was usually my face.

Over the years we’ve done a little bit of soccer, some basketball, a season of T-ball, and most recently volleyball.  Recently, though, things have changed.

Josh and Savannah have both picked the sports that they love.  Josh is now a basketball player.  When I asked him if he wanted to try football next season with some of his friends, he looked at me like I was crazy. 

“Why would I want to waste my time playing football when I could be spending that time getting better at basketball?”

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For Savannah it’s volleyball.  She had just barely discovered that she liked volleyball before Jr High started.  She didn’t have enough experience to make the 7th grade team, but she was not discouraged.  She’s played in a league for 3 seasons in a row, and is planning on trying out for the 8th grade team.

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I love going to watch their games!  It is an amazing feeling to watch my kids work really hard, and succeed at something they love.  They have both improved so much, and are quite the star players!  Just ask their mom! :)

I get nervous for them.  When the game gets intense, my stomach is in knots. I can’t stop smiling when things are going well. How  will I ever be able to endure the stress if one of my kids plays on a high school team?

So I guess I love sports.  At least I love what it does for my kids.  And every Saturday during basketball or volleyball season, you can find me sitting on the sidelines.  I’m the crazy lady nursing a baby,  trying to hide the fact that I’m crying tears of joy.

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2 comments:

  1. JillianJune 26, 2012 at 1:04 PM

    My honey and I aren't really into sports either. Our experience was similar when we discovered our baby's aim was not a fluke! He's also glued to the TV whenever sports of any kind are one (which isn't often)--and that started when he was less than a year old! It's fun to watch him be a soccer star and we're looking forward to watching him play more and more. You're not a crazy lady for enjoying it as much as you do! ;)

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  2. KathyJune 29, 2012 at 9:43 PM

    I just hope that when your children make mistakes you don't yell "Ah, piddle and poop!", then falling backwards onto your back. That would be tragic.

    Excited to see you guys on the 4th!

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