Another large family question-sports

[venus_flower]

How many of us do organized sports? If you do, what kinds and how to you manage? If you don't, why? Don't like them, too much to juggle, too much $?



I just signed 4 of mine up for soccer! I have to admit it was hard to shell out that $153, and I'm really not looking forward to juggling 4 practices and 4 games a week. My boys are playing basketball right now, and it's pretty hectice just those 2 teams, plus scouts and 4-H. Luckily scouts and basketball will be about over by the time soccer starts. I guess the reason I'm doing it is because I want them to be able to experience all sorts of things to really find out where their hearts lie, if that makes any sense. I don't want them to grow up thinking, "I think I could have gone far in xxxxxxx, but because there were so many of us mom and dad couldn't let us do it." KWIM? But I sure wouldn't be sad if a few of them decided that sports weren't for them, lol.

[miche]

I just signed 4 of mine up for soccer! I have to admit it was hard to shell out that $153

Wow that's cheap! Soccer and baseball here are both $55 each and there is no sibling discounts. :(

I don't have the numbers you have (yet), but there were 4 of us growing up and mom survived with carpools and practices that were walking distance. Both these things seem to be something of the past and I have been wondering the same myself. Already last fall with just two their soccer practices and games were on different days so I never had to be in two places at once for soccer, but it was a pain having something every day. Plus Tommy has dance and he's not stopping that. He had to miss two months of ballet and go into a beginner class on Sat to play soccer because they conflicted. Baseball is going to be a problem again when it starts. My husband signed up to coach Sean in his first year of t-ball (plus being coach he gets to set practice days! :)) and he also is asst coaching Tommy. They warned him there WOULD be conflicts on game times which is ok for coaching since our friend is the head coach of Tommy and there is another asst too. On days when Tom is with Sean the other team will be ok. What going to kill me is who to watch? I was the youngest (and the most active in sports and activities) and mom didn't miss a single game in high school and I doubt she missed anything before.

I have unreasonable expection guilt already I guess. :(

[venus_flower]

I have 5. The youngest is two, so nothing for him yet (thnk goodness, lol). Luckily with soccer all the practices are in the same place, so other years if we had 2 practices at the same time it worked out well. I could get the older child to their field and then stay with the younger and I could always see the older one from where I was. We've had to switch teams before because of other conflicts, but so fat everyone has been really good about that. No carpools or walking because we live out away from everyone. But so far it's been doable, if chaotic. And for games, my parents and aunt always come to watch, too, so if games are at the same time there is always someone there to cheer them on. Very helpful!! We've had 3 games at a time before. :doh:

No sibling discounts here, either. But the younger kids are only $30.

[MamaJAM]

DD#1 started the soccer-thing in our family....she had wanted to play for years - then we FINALLY found a Sunday-league....and signed her up. So far - the oldest 3 have all played at least one season. DD#1 aged-out after fall-2005 (she coached this past fall)...and DS#1 will age in for this fall (2007). The cost is awesome -- $20 per child with a $50 cap for a family (can include as many kids as you have). The whole thing is volunteers -- they use 'team shirts' that families alternate washing each week -- and there is NO SELLING of junk involved. :thumbsup:

DD#1 is required to play a sport at school this year (all freshman MUST play something) -- she's planning to do Softball this spring (she was going to do soccer this spring...but a lot of her friends love softball and she'd rather be on a team with them).

DD#3 takes ballet/jazz/tap classes each week.

The 2 older girls both take guitar lessons....DD#1 has been doing it sinc Dec 2005 and loves it. DD#2 just started this month and isn't sure if she'll be continuing on. :(

[MardiGrasGirl]

E will be playing softball and M will be playing tball. They are the only 2 who are old enough so far. It was $95 to register them both... I dread the cost of having 4 in sports. :eek:

For soccer David coached both teams so he chose to have practice on my early class night. I'd pick M up from her practice when I got out of class and he'd move on to E's practice. Since he's not coaching and we don't know what the practice nights are we're going to have to see how it will work. Since M is registered on post and E off post their practices will be in 2 entirely different places. We've already got it worked out if they practice at the same time and I'm in class or dh's working, though. Whichever one of us is available will take E and M will go with our friend who we requested to be teamed with. And if we're both available we'll just be in two different places... *shrug* Oh, and all of E's games are played on weeknights and most, if not all, of M's should be Saturdays.