9 Essentials in My Sports Mom Bag!
It’s that time of the year……Football season! This will be the first year that both my two oldest boy's won’t be playing. My oldest son started college mid September, but chose not to play football this year. My middle son is a Senior in High School and will be carrying the torch by himself. We are so excited for him and are enjoying watching him ball out. My daughter cheers for the Peewee football team, so we have games on Friday and Saturday! My boy’s have been playing football since they were 5 and 6. Needless to say I am not new to this. I keep a bag packed in the car because the days are long and I refuse to be unprepared. I also add snacks on game days. Yes, I’m that Sports mom! I am not new to this at all.
Let’s get into the Essentials list so you too can be prepared.
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A blanket-I always always keep a blanket in my football bag. Often times even if the day starts off nice, it’s cool at night and the blanket comes in handy. When travelling to different stadiums the seating is questionable. In the case of iffy seating, I pack a picnic blanket which is perfect for sitting on the grass. You can also use either blanket to cover up wet stadium seats or to add extra cushion for less than comfortable seating. Trust, I have experienced it all. This sports momma doesn’t leave without her blanket at least in the bag.
50” X 71” Picnic Blanket
77” X 79” Picnic Blanket
80” X 90” Picnic Blanket
An umbrella-I live in the Pacific Northwest, an hour away from Seattle, need I say more? You never know when the weather might flip. The umbrella has to be on deck and has come in clutch so many times.
68 Inch, Large Windproof Umbrella
58 inch Golf Umbrella
2 pack Regular size Umbrellas
Sanitizer-Even before the pandemic this was a must have. We like to eat snacks and washing your hands at the stadium can be a chore due to long lines. So, sanitizer is the way to go before and after you eat.
PURELL Advanced Hand Sanitizer 8 pack
Dove Sanitizer 4 pack
Snacks and beverages-Everybody's favorite essential item on this list! When you have multiple kids playing sports it can be a long day. I learned years ago that the concession stand was not it. Food is always over priced, the selection varies, and the food may not be good. Easy things to pack are granola bars, fruit, pretzels, chips, and cookies. I also pack sandwiches or tortilla wraps when I know it's going to be a long day. We do often eat out for dinner on these days, but I make sure we have enough snacks with us to hold us until lunch or dinner depending on the time of the games. For drinks, because trust me a child is always thirsty, I usually try to steer clear of water for small kids. I know that sounds crazy, but for just a few hours because water always leads to multiple bathroom trips. Instead I pack Kool-Aid Jammers or Capri Suns. For myself I bring a stainless steel water bottle which does an amazing job keeping your water cool.
Mountain Trail Mix, we take out the raisins
Beef Jerky
Variety Pack of Snacks
My Kindle or a book-Listen the kids always have to be an hour early. Then of course the games rarely start on time. Then there is halftime and just a lot of waiting. During those times I read. Sometimes I will chat with the other families, but these days give me 50 feet please and thanks. I am an avid reader, so this is just natural for me. Make sure to have your books downloaded since you most likely won’t be connected to Wi-fi, if you are reading from your Kindle. The other easy option is to download the Kindle App (Android or Iphone) read your books from your phone. For any mom’s trying to read more, this is the cheat code, use the wait time to read.
Fire HD 8
Kindle Paperwhite
Kleenex-You just never know when you might need them. If one of the kids gets the sniffles the last thing you want to be without is Kleenex.
Wet Wipes-Kids spill things. It happens and you want to have something to wipe them or their clothes with when it does happen. When my kids were younger these were a life saver. Now that my kids are teenagers, I keep them just in case. I also use the wet ones to wipe our hands after eating chips or whatever snack they choose.
Entertainment-Bring something to entertain your kids that aren’t playing sports. If you are at the field that doesn't have seating, it can actually be a good time. You can set up a little picnic with your kiddos. There is often room for them to run around, which is what we all hope for. A perfect option is a few crayons and a coloring book. This little travel activity pack is great as well. Of course we all have cell phones where the littles can play educational games, watch a movie, or YouTube. If they are using your phone, this is where your kindle or tablet comes in handy so that you have something for yourself. Now that I have teenagers they have their own phones and usually find friends to associate with.
Extra Masks-Last but definitely not least. This is a new addition to my essentials list. We are still wearing masks because in these settings there isn’t much room for social distancing. Also at the high school they usually have hundreds of people and the Governor has mandated masks for crowds over 200, thank goodness. With us still being in a pandemic, I will have my extra masks on deck in case one of us forgets one.
Bonus mentions: Portable chair, multiple portable chairs and stadium seating. They can’t fit in the bag, but you can leave them in the trunk of your car during sports season.
Let me know if there any items I should add to the list in the comments below.
