I love sports. I’ve always loved sports and that played a very great contributing factor when choosing my profession. However, I never had any clue how much fun sports could REALLY be until my children started playing them. At three years old, Ginger and Parker were both signed up for soccer. Their little legs and funny mood swings brought us tears of laughter and excitement. Ginger soon decided that her main sport would be gymnastics leaving soccer as a rec-league weekend hobby. She’s nine years old, now and we love rooting for her flips, tricks and goals. Parker on the other hand, decided EVERY sport would be his. Since the age of four, he has consistently played soccer, football, and basketball with a side of hip-hop dance and gymnastics to boot. I know he loves playing, so we pay, taxi and support because athletics make him so happy. But selfishly, with each touchdown, goal, basket and other smooth move, I am left with the grand thrills of jumping for joy on the sidelines screaming like a lunatic – “Go Parker!” (See video).
The one thing that truly makes my heart grow bigger and tears fall each day is something which has nothing to do with points. Parker has grown a deep and passionate love for running. He has found his true calling with the Morning Mile, which allows him to run laps before school. It’s a program in 100+ schools around the nation which simply allows 100% of each school’s student body to show up early each day, to walk or run as many laps as they choose. With music to entertain and reward necklaces and charms to be earned, Parker has found his “thing”. He ran 80 miles as a kindergartner. He ran 209.5 miles as a first grader. This year, as a second grader, Parker has already run 60 miles in the first 7 weeks of school. He also is a regular at 5K races and triathlons. Amazing!
My kids are so silly, happy and easy-going. I’ve often worried that I’ve made them too easy-going, so much so that they wouldn’t ever learn determination. I was wrong. Last year, while celebrating Parker’s enormous mileage and the fact that he had run over 50 miles MORE than any other child in the school (5th graders included), I received a scrapbook from his 1st grade teacher. On the cover was a self-portrait Parker had drawn on the first day of first grade. On the second page was his three point list of goals he had for that year.
- Learn to read.
- Earn 15 Hoot Loot (treasure box dollars).
- Be the top runner in the whole school!
And with that … my tears fell. My baby boy had learned to set goals and fight to accomplish them. He made it to the Morning Mile with his arm in a cast. He made it to the Morning Mile when is asthma was acting up. He worked on his endurance so he could double his output from day one until the end. He started the year running 1.25 miles in 20 minutes. He ended the year averaging 2.5 miles each morning. Parker still runs the Morning Mile every day. He runs with big long strides, his head held high and a giant smile on his face. I love how he loves running and sometimes I see a future Olympian. I feel like bursting with pride and honestly, I’d be quite a mess without my Kleenex.
Sports have always made my life better. They kept me healthy and “out of trouble” (as my Mom would say) when I was a kid. They made every minute of college ten thousand times more fun – Go Gators! They’ve kept me fit and passionate as an adult – full contact kickboxing and running races are my sports of choice. And now as a parent, I feel that sports have combined all the goodness in the world to keep Ginger and Parker happy and healthy, and me … bursting with tears with joy.
To customize your own Kleenex oval, please check out the Kleenex site. I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
