Hockey Mom

In my worst nightmares I was a hockey mom.  Up early to get to practices, giving up every weekend of the winter for games or tournaments.  Taking out second mortgages on my house to pay for equipment and hotels during tournaments.  Having to deal with the politics that hockey inevitable has; who makes what team sometimes regardless of ability and skill.  Seeing nepotism that I could do nothing to help avoid because I don't know the sport so I'd never be out coaching, assistant coaching or anything like that.  So being a hockey mom was never something I was going to do, but I realized having boys I might fall into this label.

I enrolled my kids in soccer, soccer I understood.  I didn't play it growing up, but I played in University and I enjoyed it.  Chandler started playing soccer when we moved to Red Deer, he really enjoyed it. It was a youth rec league so it wasn't highly competitive but they still played games, they still won medals, and most importantly Chandler found an activity he enjoyed doing that wasn't sitting at home not being active. When Lil Man was old enough to join soccer I put him into Timbits Soccer, I even coached him the first year and assisted the second year.

He had fun, he enjoyed it, but he had a desire for another sport, and because I love my children, he is now playing hockey. And I am now a hockey mom!!

We are starting out small, we are playing Pond Hockey, which is a recreational no contact league. It's also less expensive than minor hockey, and less demanding on our schedule.  He doesn't have two or three tournaments in and around Alberta, he has one tournament in Red Deer and games and practices every week.
The games and practices so far seem to be on the same day, this may change I'm not sure, but we practice for the first 20 minutes then play a game for the last 40 minutes. It works out and Lil Man is so happy.


Lil Man's not really a morning person, I am, so I thought we'd be fighting with him in the morning to get ready, but I've not had a fight with him yet. We put him to bed super early, like 6:30-7, and he's up at 5:30 or 6 and saunters downstairs like this has been a routine all his life.  ( I wish school days were this easy)

The smile and the laughter Lil Man shows from playing hockey is enough to make me get up every morning we have hockey practice. (even those mornings when Prince T hasn't slept all night and I'm essentially a walking zombie, please no one shoot me like I am, I just move like one on these mornings) He goes out every practice and every game and gives a 110%, he never stops trying, sometimes he gets confused and needs extra explanation, but he keeps trying, trying, trying!!! I love his spirit for it, I love his attitude (again let's transfer this attitude to other areas of his life). He never says he doesn't know how or he can't, he just tries and tries and tries!!

Maybe he's not a hockey prodigy, maybe he's not a future Sidney Crosby (I put him in here because Lil Man has decided the Penguins are his favourite team), but he's got heart! He'd be that player that has skills, but his ability to connect with other players, to believe in his team, to get people to believe in his team would outshine any deficit and any team will be lucky to have him on it!!


So though it was never in my life plan to become a hockey mom, I am the happiest hockey mom around, not because my child is going to go on to the NHL (who knows maybe he will, it's really too soon to tell) but, because my son loves the sport, he loves the game with all his being and that's enough for me to set my alarm clock for 5 am on a Saturday morning!!

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