Ok, you are a parent with a kid that wants to play soccer for the very first time. Maybe you grew up playing soccer and you are feeling EXCITED because YES our kid will follow in my shoes this is AMAZING!!! Maybe you are a parent that dabbled a little bit in sports and are thinking to yourself, OK, this is cool, my kid will get some exercise, make new friends and not stuck on devices all day. Or… maybe you are that parent that never played a sport in their life and this new world just TERRIFIES YOU and you need help figuring this sports life out. Either way, we are here to provide help from our personal experiences.
I’m sorry, silly me I should probably introduce myself and our family. My name is Nicole and my husband is Jim. We were born up north but moved to Florida as kids with our family and have lived here ever since. Both of us grew up playing sports from youth up through college and just love what sports provided in our growth in life. Blessed with two daughters and a dog we are living the dream where we run around and time escapes us. Olivia (14) and Sydnie (11) definitely keep us busy. They have dabbled in dance, softball, track, basketball but the sport they fell in love with is soccer. So much that they both committed themselves to the world of competitive soccer. Yes, the level where they have 3 practices a week, travel local and far just to play one game and the season last all year long.
Now, Jim and I figured, why not? They are both talented, focused and committed kids and heck, we played competitive sports growing up. HA! We neglected to remember that we PLAYED competitive sports as kids but we never knew what our parents went through to provide that amazing experience. It is a very different perspective comparing the experience as a young competitor verses the parent paving the way.
In our short time navigating this competitive soccer landscape we have learned a lot. There are many ups and downs, pros and cons, ins and outs and it certainly takes a village to manage it all. Bottom line the only thing that matters is your child’s experience. What do they want out of playing soccer? How happy are they? Is the focus on them or you? Time flies by fast and it is later than you think. So just kick back, relax and embrace every moment.
