Family Soccer Kick Around

Welcome to the August Carnival of Natural Parenting: Creating With Kids

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared how they make messes and masterpieces with children. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.

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Photo by Elvert Barnes

As a mom, I want my children to have opportunities – opportunities to learn, to laugh, to explore, and to grow. To that end, I often find myself organizing events and activities in order to give them the opportunities they desire, whether in order for the activity to exist, to make it fit our family better, or to work around a limited budget. I organize the majority of field trips we go on. I’ve helped organize nonconventional coops for several years now.  The most recent request was soccer.

My children are interested in playing soccer, but playing in leagues wasn’t the best fit for us. Registration alone costs anywhere from $55-$90 per child. Add in equipment, and you are well over $100 per child. Then you have weekly practices in addition to games. You have no idea when those practices or games will be when you sign up, and with four children, chances are that my husband and I would be playing soccer shuffle rather than enjoying watching our children. Most leagues are competitive, and even those that aren’t have to write out parental behavior expectations in order to curb the competitive nature of the parents. Overall, this was not the situation we wanted for our family.
We just wanted to meet up with other families to have some family soccer fun. So, I organized it. I sent the following information out to several lists, including a link for families to sign up:
Family Soccer Kick Around is intended for families of all ages to get together and have fun with soccer. This is a no cost, relaxed atmosphere for families looking for an affordable, non-competitive soccer experience. While there will be no formal instruction or games planned, it is our hope that we can have a community atmosphere with more experienced players helping out those with less or no experience in the form of helpful tips and techniques. Whether you choose to practice, set up an impromptu game, or just pass the ball around, meet up with other families looking to kick around a soccer ball. This is not a drop off activity, and adults are expected to participate as part of this all age family activity. We ask that all participants treat each other with respect.
Dates for Fall 2011 will include August 21 and 28 and September 4, 11, 18, and 25. We will meet at 6:30 PM at the soccer fields at [insert location]. Use of equipment is at your discretion.

Bring a ball. Bring your family. Have some fun.

Our first meet up will be this Sunday and we are all looking forward to having some fun family soccer. We’ve found that our family can find a way to do just about anything we want. Sometimes we just have to get a little creative.

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Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: MamaVisit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

  • Family Draw Time Art ShowKate Wicker shares art (and inspiration!) from her family’s cherished tradition of family draw time.
  • The Rules of Creativity: Learning to Create with the “Non-Creative” — Zoe at Give an Earthly shares how she learned to accept her “non-creative” child and claims that anyone, child or adult, can be creative given the right handling and environment.
  • Creating With Kids: 4 Ways That Work For Us — See how Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings nurtures creativity with her kids through craft projects, outdoor creative play, celebrating the creative process, and setting up “little spaces of beauty.”
  • Creating memories, not things — Mrs. Green from Little Green Blog reflects on life with a ten year old and how ‘creating together’ has evolved from ‘things’ to memories.
  • The Gift of Creation — It may be hot, but Kellie at Our Mindful Life is already thinking about winter.
  • Hidden Talents — Sylvia at MaMammalia describes how providing the opportunity for creativity sometimes means learning to look for hidden talents in unusual places.
  • Creating Joy — CatholicMommy at Working to be Worthy shares how she and her one year-old son create joy for their community.
  • How to do Crafts with Kids — Gaby from Tmuffin guest posts at Natural Parents Network and describes how to keep things simple when doing crafts with kids for magical (easy-to-clean, and tantrum-free) results.
  • Sugar & Spice & Baking on the Kitchen Floor — Carrie at Love Notes Mama enjoys making a mess in the kitchen with her daughter.
  • Young Scientist Makes Purple Potion — Hannah at Wild Parenting loves being a lab assistant for the young scientist in her life.
  • Making a butterfly house — Lauren at Hobo Mama demonstrates the proper way to build a wooden butterfly house with a preschooler.
  • Nurturing Creativity — Amyables at Toddler In Tow shares the enjoyment she feels in nurturing the creativity of her children.
  • Home School Music – Sparking A New Generation Of Musicians — Based on her musical background, Chante at My Natural Motherhood Journey talks about how she creates with and teaches music to her children.
  • Creating (im)perfectly TogetherMudpiemama shares some of the highlights of a summer spent building everything from ships to hoops but most of a lesson on letting go of perfection.
  • Family Soccer Kick Around — When her children wanted to play soccer, Mandy at Living Peacefully with Children helped organize something that would work for her family.
  • Creating Memories Together on Skype — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now tells how you can create memories online with adult children or anyone who lives in another city or country.

17 thoughts on “Family Soccer Kick Around

Add yours

  1. This is why I am offering an “outdoor gross motor games/activities” for the co-op, because Kieran has been so interested in these types of games, but there’s only so many ways we can do them together (and with me pregnant). We are SO looking forward to soccer – Kieran’s been talking about it every day!!

  2. What a wonderful idea! I have one very active child (we call her “Hopping Cricket,” and she would love the idea of a Family Kick Around and so would her sisters – even though she’d surely out play all of us!).

    Thanks for sharing.

  3. I really like it that it includes all ages and would have a sort of natural mentoring built in. I often wish there were more of these opportunities available, but perhapse I’ll have to organize one! A great way to meet your neighbours too.

  4. That is so cool! I can’t wait to hear how it goes. I wish for this on two counts: I was never very good at sports, so finding a place to learn soccer without a lot of shame attached would be wonderful. And my son is so far hesitant to take any classes that don’t involve our participation, but it’s surprisingly and discouragingly hard to find parent-child classes/activities for preschoolers on up. I love this idea! Thanks for the spark. Maybe instead of feeling sad I can’t find what I want, I could organize something myself!

  5. Great way to let your family experience soccer! We have a lot of wonderful memories of homeschool co-op activities when my kids were preschoolers and early elementary age. Later, they were so busy with figure skating that we weren’t able to continue with co-op events. But we always thought co-op activities were a fantastic way to experience some non-competitive learning and fun! 🙂

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