What Every Mom Really Needs for Sports Season (Besides a Folding Chair and a Prayer)
Sports season is here — which means your weekends just turned into a never-ending shuttle service of practices, games, and tournaments. If you thought you were just signing your kid up for a sport, surprise! You also signed up for hours of bleacher sitting, snack duty, and being your child’s unpaid Uber driver.
Here’s what every mom actually needs to survive sports season without losing her mind (or her car keys).
1. The Bag of All Bags
Forget your everyday purse — sports season calls for a Mary Poppins-level tote. Think sunscreen, bug spray, a mini first-aid kit, snacks that don’t melt, and at least three water bottles. Oh, and don’t forget the “good” snacks for your kid (because heaven forbid you hand them the wrong granola bar in front of their teammates).
2. A Sideline Survival Kit
Let’s be honest — half the season is played in weather that feels like the Arctic and the other half in conditions hotter than the surface of the sun. You’ll need:
A bleacher seat. TRUST ME
A blanket that doubles as a shield against wind or an impromptu picnic spot.
A portable fan (trust me, worth every penny).
3. The Sanity Saver: Change Up Kids Pod
Every mom knows the horror of the “field bathroom.” (If you know, you know.) Enter: the Change Up Kids Pod — a portable, private pop-up space that can be used for potty time, diaper changes, or just giving your kid a clean spot to regroup. It folds up, zips easily, and saves you from having to balance a toddler on your knee in a questionable porta-potty. Honestly, it’s a sports season MVP.
4. The Snack Mom Starter Pack
Even if it’s not your official week, you’ll inevitably end up sharing snacks. Keep extras in the car: goldfish, pretzels, fruit pouches. Bonus points if you stash them in a cute cooler bag so you look like you have it all together (even if you just tossed it in on your way out the door).
5. A Sense of Humor (and Maybe a Flask… Just Kidding. Sort Of.)
Things will get muddy, someone will forget their cleats, and yes, you’ll spend way too much money at the snack bar. The best survival tool is rolling with it — and remembering you’re building memories (even if those memories smell like wet grass and nacho cheese). Mmmmm…cheese.
