I am now officially a soccer mom!

[It's A Happy Day]

DS6 has been wanting to sign up for soccer and we finally granted his wish and signed him up for the fall season. Now I only played baseball growing up so I am not familiar with what equipment he will need etc. so I made sure to ask (the guy probably thought OBoy, here's another crackpot mom ) They said he will need cleats, shorts, and shin pads. He will have 2 practices a week and a game on Saturday.

What else will he need and what else should I prepare myself for?

 

[Sherri]

DS6 has been wanting to sign up for soccer and we finally granted his wish and signed him up for the fall season. Now I only played baseball growing up so I am not familiar with what equipment he will need etc. so I made sure to ask (the guy probably thought OBoy, here's another crackpot mom ) They said he will need cleats, shorts, and shin pads. He will have 2 practices a week and a game on Saturday.

What else will he need and what else should I prepare myself for?

If he loves it, he may want to do travel soccer when he has played for a couple of years. Thats when you will live and breath soccer. The other travel parents will become your extended family because you will be spending more time with them then anyone.
I loved the three years that dd did travel soccer, I thought it was a lot of fun.

 

[ColoradoBuffaloMom]

Welcome to the Soccer Mom world. My 16 DS has been playing soccer since 1st grade and it is our life. Actually it is a lot of fun for him and us.

Besides the equipment you mentioned you will need oranges for snack and gatorade or water. When the kids are little it looks like they play in a clump running from area to area. Most importantly your son should have fun.

If he gets to the travel soccer level in a few years, be ready to shell out the big bucks for tournaments, coaching, and equipment. It can get expensive but for us it has been all worth it. My DS has found his passion in soccer, made some wonderful friends, and had some great (and not so great) coaches.

Also as Happy Day said, the other soccer parents have become my family. After spending so many practices and games together roaming the sidelines, we know more about each other than our actual families do

Enjoy! It is a great experience

 

[Southern4sure]

I love soccer as much as my youngest ds. Some leagues give each player a soccerball but if this is not the case, I'd buy a soccerball (maybe a size 3/4 for his age) so he could kick it around at home. You can also buy a cheap goal at most sports stores and also some plastic orange cones to practice shuffling the ball.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Welcome to the club!

DD started last year and played both the fall and spring seasons. She had great fun and loved it! I was asked to be the team Mom so that was interesting. We are all signed up to play next season too.

 

[Uuaww]

My parents were, both of my sisters and I played club, and one of my sisters played in college. I had the best ending though, in my final game I was red carded... in the 4th minute... yah competition haha.

 

[MsDisney23]

Do you have a van?

 

[momof2minnies]

We have been doing state soccer since my daughter was 10- she played up because it starts at 11. She is now 15 and they are in the state semi finals on 6/16 and 6/17. We are a soccer family. We don't know what we will do with ourselves when this ends.We have a few more years but have loved every minute of it. If your son shows interest and skill don't hold him back because you don't want to travel, it has been an awesome experience for us all. Have fun! I just saw that you are from Ma. too. We have been in your neck of the woods on any given Sunday for a MAPLE game!!!!!!!

 

[KelNottAt]

Welcome to the club.

I highly recommend getting your DS his own ball. At the age of 6, IIRC, size 3 is appropriate...maybe size 4.

Also, I find it helpful to have a pair of these chairs: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=5223213. Keep them in the trunk of your car. You'll need them for every practice (assuming you stay) and every game.

Enjoy!

 

[momof2minnies]

Here's another tip- never take chairs, umbrellas and blankets out of your car. Eventually he will play in all weather!

 

[LBAK]

Welcome to our world! My DD, 12 plays travel for our town and she's also on the state team. We only breathe soccer now, no time to live.! Life is spent driving to the next county for state practice and we go there twice a week. Twice a week for our travel clubs practice and one game a week makes for busy days. 4 away tournaments in July and I wouldn't trade it for anything. My DD loves it.

Size 4 is too big, that's what DD plays with now at 12. I'd go for a size 2 for that age but ask your commissioners. They would have a list. Don't forget extra socks. Somehow we can never find these on practice days!

You'll love it and you'll meet some interesting people to say the least!

 

[Sherri]

Oh yea, leave enough time to stop for coffee before the early games, especially in the fall when the mornings start off really chilly. Keep a blanket in the car (incase the games are a little cold) and don't forget the folding chairs that they sell at Dicks, or kmart.

 

[golfgal]

Walmart sells umbrellas for those folding chairs that are REALLY nice for the fields that don't have shade. They aren't good for rain but they do provide shade.

We are DONE with summer soccer . The soccer program here is kind of a joke and after last summer where we discovered that parents HAD to stay at EVERY practice and EVERY game for middle school and high school aged kids we said we are done. DD has to golf this summer anyway so it was a good break. They can play soccer in the fall at school next year.

 

[PrincessNancy96]

Welcome to the world of soccer... We have had all our kids play soccer..
Currently 2 have decided to go football or work... 2 are trying out for the travel soccer teams as we speak... and our youngest is now in U8 (under 8 yo) soccer.
As the others have said.. the soccer parents become part of the family.. You will always be together...
You will need cleats, shinguards, a ball (check your clubs soccer website if they have one, hopefully they will have a list of the size soccer ball that is need for his/her age level),an few pairs of extra soccer socks (you will find that your eventually start collecting them when or if they change uniforms every season), a good water bottle with his/her name on it... We fill it w/ water or gatorade...and than have a spare one because they will run out of drink! A good chair, umbrella or blanket.. I find that in tight games I tend to stand and put my hands on the back of my chair...
Don't forget your camera.. you can get some great pictures!!!
Good luck to you and your DS..

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Here's another tip- never take chairs, umbrellas and blankets out of your car. Eventually he will play in all weather!

Notice the sky in this picture? That is minutes before it opened up and POURED! The kids loved it and kept right on playing (no lightening).

 

[koopa]

DD6 just got done with her first year. Hey soccer mom, get a soccer ball for your DS6. Our league recommends a size 3 ball for 6 year olds. Check with your league though, you can get size 3,4 or 5 soccer balls easily.

Small backpack for the water bottle, sweatpants for cold games etc....

For the shoes, they make a thick rubber band that wraps around your cleats to keep the shoelaces from getting untied. I found them to be very handy. Around here they're called "sweet spots."

http://www.soccerplanetstore.com/20swe0001.html

 

[It's A Happy Day]

DD6 just got done with her first year. Hey soccer mom, get a soccer ball for your DS6. Our league recommends a size 3 ball for 6 year olds. Check with your league though, you can get size 3,4 or 5 soccer balls easily.

Small backpack for the water bottle, sweatpants for cold games etc....

For the shoes, they make a thick rubber band that wraps around your cleats to keep the shoelaces from getting untied. I found them to be very handy. Around here they're called "sweet spots."

http://www.soccerplanetstore.com/20swe0001.html

Although this is his 1st year of official soccer he has shown an interest for the last 2 - we already have several (at least 3) soccer balls and for this past birthday in March we bought him the 3-in-1 goal for the backyard that has the bounce back, goal, and aim thingie. We are outdorsey (SP?) people so I have those chairs and they already don't leave the trunk as well as we usually have at least a case of bottled water in there too - they have come in handy more than once I scoped out the sports store in my local mall last night (I work there) and looked at pricing for cleats, shin guards, and saw the soccer socks - thought those would come in handy even though they didn't say I needed them. With the shorts, do some work better than others for sports? I will pick up some of those for him.

 

[disneynutcase]

Loved being a soccer mom with DS. Now in college he plays rugby. So now I'm a rugby mom. Alot rougher than soccer. But he loves it.

Jean

 

[5Slays]

Welcome to the wonderful world of soccer! My DH played from the time he was little right through high school and now my oldest DS is playing.

Like others have said, chairs, blankets and umbrellas are a must. If you have other children, make sure you have something for them to do otherwise, you will be pulling them off of the field the whole game.

He will also need a size 3 ball. Around here, they don't go to size 4 until U-10. If he wants to play in the yard to practice, then a goal would be good so he doesn't have to chase the ball around. You can get a goal just about anywhere and pay just about anything for one.

 

[debster812]

FIRST AID KIT. Just a small one is fine. I keep one in the car all the time. Band-Aids, Ice Packs, etc.

Like others have mentioned, chairs, blankets, umbrellas. Although with the little ones, they won't play much in the rain, but as they get older.....

We're just now wrapping up DS's Spring Travel season, one last tournament this weekend, and then he's taking the summer off.

You'll need the tall socks to cover the shin guards. You may want to start looking for a long sleeve tshirt to wear under the soccer jersey for when it gets cool.