The De-Benched Mom

About 2 years ago, I got benched.

By my kids.

I used to be the mom who was out there playing at the park.

I helped push the swing.

Caught them when they went down the slide.

Held them up to do the monkey bars, and that handle sliding thingie.

I held their hand as they crossed the bridge,

and stood behind them as they climbed the ladder.

And then I got benched.

Now here I sit, watching, listening, on the edge of the bench waiting to see if they need me.

But they don't.

We are in a new season now.

Another phase of the "letting go" I suppose.

I remember envying those moms who sat and read a book, chit chatted with each other and shared stories, recipies, and the latest People magazine.

Now I am there.

And I don't like it at all as much as I thought I would.

Sure it's nice once in a while.

I like sitting there and watch them chase each other,

climb things they couldn't before, see them play, and hear them laugh.

But these days I find myself not feeling like talking with the other moms, I feel silly reading a book, I have no recipies, and celebrities just aren't as interesting as they used to be.

So today, I got off the bench.

Turns out - best thing I ever did.

I would love to believe I could be a homeschool mom. It's quite an incredible thing.

I would love to be able to afford to put my kids in sports activities. In fact, until recently, I have felt enormous mom guilt that I am not, since "all their friends are doing it".

So here's my new plan.

I am "De-benching"myself.

Lord knows I have a ton of weight to lose, and my best intentions of getting to the gym 12 times a month is costing me more than we can afford right now. ( I will try again next month).

And watching my kids play on organized teams is out of our league for cost, especially with 3 of them. And in the end, it's just another way to put myself back on the bench.

I thought to myself, instead of feeling like I am depriving them of this opportunity and feeling bad about it, I wondered what would happen if I spent 3 hours a week (the time I would have to find for practice times and game time for just one kid) playing with my own kids.

I am blessed enough with both a backyard and a front yard, and even a park within walking distance. What if, instead of out-sourcing it, I played soccer, basketball, baseball, and football with my kids?

For free.

What if after dinner, homework, chores- and before bath and stories - we played. They would learn teamwork, new skills, have fun, and have mom time.

And mom would get exercise-and a little more time with these kids.

It's a win-win.

I could be like a home schooling sports mom.

De-benched.

MMM?

I'll keep you posted.