Having Fun, Rain or Shine!

Spring is here! Time for baseball, soccer, lacrosse, and many other youth sports. But it's rainy and cold. Do you really want to watch your child participate in sports outside in the rain and cold? Do you dread watching youth sports games when you're freezing and wet?

Use the following tips to help you and your child make the best of nasty weather conditions:

• Encourage your child to have fun in the rain and mud. Children learn from adults. If you let your child know that it's ok to have fun and get wet and dirty, he will be more comfortable and be more likely to enjoy the bad weather conditions.
• Bring a survival bag packed with warm clothes and a blanket.
• Make hot chocolate. Having hot chocolate ready on the sidelines is a little incentive for your child to enjoy the poor weather conditions. Plus, it will help to warm your child up.
• Go out and watch the game from the sidelines, not from your car. If you tell your child that it's ok to get wet and dirty, he will be more likely to believe you if he sees you getting drenched by the rain too.
• Cheer for your child's team. Rain or sun, you can still cheer for your child's team, and your child will enjoy the support.

Do you have any tips for surviving bad weather? We would love to hear from you. Please post comments and share your tips or fun stories of survival!

Sports Parenting Reminder: Cheer for ALL Team Members

Today, I was at a youth soccer game. While sitting next to a couple of enthusiastic parents, I noticed that their cheering and yelling (encouraging words) were genuine. These parents were cheering for ALL team members, not only their daughter.

So many sports parents yell AT their child and forget about the actual support all children need. Isn't it our job to support and encourage our children? Don't we all want to help our children as much as possible? Isn't it best to support all children on a team?

Kids love to hear the following phrases:

• Great pass!
• Nice stop!
• Good team work!
• Way to work hard!
• You can do it!
• Awesome move!

The next time your child or another child on the team is having a bad day during a game, try yelling or cheering some words of encouragement. You might be surprised by the results!

I was thrilled to hear this type of encouragement from parents. Sometimes we can all use a reminder.

Kim