October 13, 2009
Five life lessons I’ve learned from football
Autumn affords us many heart warming things like
crunchy leaves, the feel of your favorite sweater, and apple cider simmering on the stove.
Oh… and those pumped-up packs of sweaty, jersey-clad jocks smashing into each other on TV for three hours every Sunday.
Instead of rolling your eyes at this male centered game of controlled chaos, let’s look at a few parental lessons hidden under all that padding.
Lesson 1. Never out-punt your coverage.
It’s swell to be known for prize-winning birthday cakes, un-stained, uber-polite kids, and a stellar volunteer record. But life is… life. So, survey your field carefully, get some good blockers, know your limits, keep an eye on what really matters and “punt” appropriately. Remember: Over-punting often leads to getting scored upon.
Lesson 2. Good Defense beats a great Offense
Beef up your defensive line by packing that first aid kit, a second pair of mittens, and a few extra water bottles. That way when the offender: a scratched, frostbitten or dehydrated kid comes at ya, you’ll remain standing.
Lesson 3. Don’t be afraid to call an audible.
It’s a good skill to have. The ability to switch things up and be flexible enough to change plays at a moments notice. If you plan on going apple picking and a classic Mid-western storm blows through, don’t be defeated. Shout out a new play like: fireplace “smores” or “the Spit-Ball Super Bowl of‘09!”
Lesson 4. When you reach the “End Zone,” look like you’ve been there before.
Or as I tell my husband after he unloads the dishwasher and boasts about his domestic skills…“act like you’ve done this before.” Save the gloating and showboating for the really big accomplishments in life…. like childbirth.
Lesson 5. Spandex is NOT the miracle, ultra-slimming material we wish it was. Look at any offensive linemen for examples. Black is the only color worth considering and white should be against the law. Save spandex for the 20-something tight ends.
Lesson 5 ½ It’s now very clear why my husband thinks smacking my booty will make me feel appreciated and honored. It’s like a kicked-up high five in football-ese. Now I just smile and smack his boo-ya back…harder.
Sadly this is unfamiliar talk in the Lockard house. I am familiar with the booty slap of appreciation or greeting — personally not professionally speaking. However, with the handshake teetering on extension due to H1N1, it could go mainstream?!
Hello moms, Since we principals seem to be on the forefront of medical alerts these days and in keeping with number 2 “A good defense beats a great offense” we just received this from the CDC:
Vaccination against the H1N1 virus is one of the best prevention tools against this new virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has defined target populations to receive vaccine first. Persons age 6 months to 24 years are in this high risk group.
The first H1N1 vaccination clinics will be held on Saturday, October 24, and Sunday, October 25, at Fairfax County schools. Persons older than 25 years of age will not be vaccinated at these weekend clinics.
We encourage you to discuss immunization with your health care provider and address any questions or concerns you have so that you can make an informed decision. You should begin these discussions now so that you are better prepared to respond when you receive more information about the vaccination clinics in your area later this month.
This was of course for my school district and I encourage you all to get in touch with your own to find out their plan of attack since most of your reading this BLOG have children in the high risk zone.
It is also a worthwhile question to ask your schools if children that are flu symptomatic have a place to rest AWAY from the routine scraped knees, asthma, loose tooth kiddos until parent pick up.
Take care and keep em safe.
Great information! Thank you.
Always great food for thought here! I think the audible was the hardest thing for me to ….get. Believe it or not my husband has really helped me with this process. I used to plan plan plan and when it wouldn’t happen I didn’t know how to cope. Now I am a total mellow go with the flow mom and our household is much better for it!!!