Greetings, Orange Peeps!
My family is entering a rare period of the year where we don’t have any youth sports or activities. It only happens twice a year – In Christmas and late July.
My oldest daughter’s softball team just wrapped up their season by taking third place in their state tournament. Woo hoo! #ProudSoftballMom
My youngest daughter is finishing up her dance intensives this week with hopes to join a competitive dance line next year. Fingers crossed! #ProudDanceMom
Youth sports definitely has its not-so-glamorous moments that almost always resides with adults. Take your pick- Parents screaming at umpires over a call, or seasoned dance moms glaring at the incoming kids who are just hoping to make the team.
Despite this, I find that there are some pretty spectacular lessons that can be learned from kids in sports. For instance, my daughter’s softball team was one of the youngest teams in their class. After winning all of their games last year, they were bumped up as a ‘C’ team in the next class. The girls would get so deflated every time we would lose against a B team.
“We lost because they were a ‘B team’.”
But then one tournament, they beat a B team. From that moment on, they didn’t let the letter matter to them.
You should have seen this team battle through their state tournament. One game went into triple overtime and I had to pinch myself to remember that these little humans are only nine years old.
Similarly, the day before my daughter’s dance intensives, she decided she no longer wanted to go through with it. I was shocked! I said, “What are you talking about? You love dance!”
She explained to me that she was nervous. “I’ve never danced Jazz before, Mom!”
I reminded her to just have fun and show the instructors the things she knew from ballet and tap. And that’s exactly what she did. That little firecracker danced her heart out and her love for dance was practically seeping from her pores. I could not have been more proud.
Reminder you are more than the category people place you in, and you truly love something it will always shine through. ❤️
Our sport-free period will consist of lake time, beach time, boating, golfing, bonfires, and (hopefully) some writing. Can’t wait!
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