This post is sponsored by Vocalpoint and DICK’s Sporting Goods ®. All opinions are my own.
The moment I said, “I Do,” on the altar at my wedding I knew I was destined to become a sports mom. Between my husband and his two older brothers, my mother-in-law spent over 25 years in the stands supporting her boys at every wrestling match and football game. Wrestling has always been the sport of choice for The Gifford Brothers.
Between the three of them they’ve got six state championships, they all wrestled division 1 in college, they’ve qualified for the NCAA’s six times, and the oldest brother was a 2X World Team Trials Qualifier. Some might say that it’s a mere coincidence that we just became pregnant with the third Gifford boy of our own, but nobody had a bigger smile on their face than my husband when we learned our fate. Yesterday, The Gifford Family returned to the gym for the first wrestling tournament of this new generation. Both sets of grandparents, all of his uncles, his aunts, and cousins showed up to support our Sieger Bear.
How’d the prodigy do?! He went 0-3. Just about as expected. We’ll get ’em next time.
While I knew this era of wrestling was inevitable, I didn’t realize how drastically our lives would change in just the first month of practices. We’ve had a lot of late nights, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches galore, and a huge learning curve, but I am ridiculously proud of my little guy.
5 Ways Your Life Changes When You Become A Sports Mom
1. Your schedule revolves around practice. Want to go to the park? Want to see a movie? Want to watch your favorite TV show or go out to dinner? Want to meet that mommy friend of yours with the twins for a playdate? Better check the practice schedule. Your kid is five and does wrestling practice for the same amount of time that he goes to preschool. Between school and sports, play dates have been eliminated. Nothing stands in the way of wrestling practice. Priorities!
2. Your kids are starving and you’ve got VERY limited time to prepare anything remotely healthy. Your kids will eat more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches than you’ll care to admit and the crock-pot will become the way of life. If you can’t make it in the morning, it’s usually not ready in time. Three nights a week you’ve got to be On. Your. Game. To make matters worse, now that your kid practices more times per week than you get to shower, he eats just about as much as your husband.
3. You can NEVER skip bath time again. It’s been a late night in the wrestling room, your energy is completely depleted, and there’s nothing you’d like more than to shove your little ones into their bed as soon as they step foot inside the door… BUT there’s this looming fear of fungus. That’s right, RING WORM. If your kid even so much as touches anything in the house before heading straight to the shower you get the heebie jeebies. You must disinfect immediately.
4. You thought you got nervous when YOU played sports. Watching your kid compete is a whole other experience. Your kid might not have a care in the world, but you’re a big ball of nerves. 
You’ve packed everything you can think of the night before the big tournament.
- Singlet
- Headgear
- Wrestling Shoes
- Warm Ups
- Camera
- Coach’s card
- DICK’s Sporting Goods ® Igloo Fusion Cooler filled with water, snacks, and lunch
- DICK’s Sporting Goods ® Bleacher Backs Stadium Seats
While being prepared makes you feel a teeny bit better, you still watch every match behind open fingers. What if he looses every match? What if he gets discouraged? What if he gets hurt?!
5. You LOVE every minute. Watching the progress your kid has made in what seems like such a short time shocks you. You develop massive appreciation for the other coaches and athletes who spend so many hours loving on your kid.
You beam with pride anytime your little one grasps a new skill.
Watching the athletes learn the value of hard work at an early age gives you chills and you know the life lessons that are being learned on the mat (or on the field) make it all worth it.
If your kiddo’s in their first year of sports or you’ve lived the sports mom life at all, I hope this list gave you a little chuckle. With fall sports in full swing, DICK’s Sporting Goods ® is the perfect place to get the gear your kids need to play as well as the gear you need to cheer them on like a pro.
Are you a new sports mom? Do you have any tips or advice for me? Join the conversation on our Facebook page where we love getting personal. You can also follow @stayfitmom_Krista and @stayfitmom_Tracy! on Instagram and subscribe to Stay Fit Mom for healthy recipes, workouts, and most of all inspiration and encouragement!
From one sports mom to another, GOOD LUCK this season!
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