Happy Tuesday Girls!
Today I am linking up with Andrea for Show and Tell Tuesday. Be sure to grab the graphic and link up too!
So today we are telling about our most embarrassing moment, and well let me tell you guys, I have embarrassed myself a lot in my life!
When I was going through all my embarrassing moments, the one that sticks out the most is actually something that happened this past fall. I am choosing this one because not only did I embarrass myself but my husband and kids too....because if I am going to do something, I am surely going to do it right...HA!
I have been known at times to get a little "worked" up during my boys games...now don't confuse me for that crazy mom that thinks every call against her own child is wrong, but I have been known to "speak up" in the stands when officials just clearly are getting the game wrong. I swear at times I think these refs are paid to call a game a certain way...that's how bad they officiate some times!
I am pretty sure I need this shirt!
This past fall, during one of AJ's football games, it was one bad call after another...I certainly was not the only parent getting annoyed, many of the dads were "voicing" their opinions in the stands. I usually stand up by the fence during the football games, running down the sideline as AJ is running with the ball, so yes I am that mom....ha! Anyway....the refs were making one bad call after another at this particular game, it was beyond ridiculous. I was getting pretty loud, and at one point the ref looked over and said "ma'am if you keep this up, you will be removed"....at that point Mark was borderline furious with me, and kindly told me to shut the hell up keep quiet. Harrison, my oldest son, coached AJ's team, and during half time came to me and said it was clear to all the coaches too that they were making some serious bad calls, but I should probably calm down a bit. So I kept my cool during the second half of the game, watching one bad call after another, and watching our entire team get screwed. After the game, I was pretty ticked....so as the team gathered for their little group chat after the game, I saw the officials walking off the field up to their cars....and I decided it was a good idea to follow them and tell them exactly what I thought of their crappy calls against our team throughout the entire game. The guy just stood there, almost in disbelief that I followed him to his car and basically told him off. He told me he made the calls as he saw them, and if I had any issues to send a letter to the league. Well, I told him clearly he was blind and definitely not watching the same game we all were, and I assured him I would be following up with a letter.
As I was walking down the hill back to Mark and the boys, I could see Mark just shaking his head....thinking, yup I married the crazy mom!!! I asked AJ if he was embarrassed of me screaming on the sidelines, and he said only a little bit, and he was pretty mad too about the crappy calls, so that made me feel a bit bitter! I came to later find out that a few of the other coaches and some parents also complained about that referee also, so it kind of in my mind confirmed I was not totally crazy!
Looking back, I probably should have kept my cool a bit more and NOT followed this poor guy to his car, but sometimes I just get really passionate about things and it takes on a life of it's own.
So there you have it, one of my most embarrassing moments. Can't wait to read everyone's today!
Be sure to check back tomorrow, I am sharing some GREAT spring jammies!!!
Have a great day!
Hahaha oops! The things we do for our kids!!
ReplyDeletelol Cory!
DeleteI love this....because I am becoming one of those mothers already and brady is only in second grade!!!!! I am going to have a heart attack before he is in high school!!!!! Lol
ReplyDeleteGirl it's crazy how serious we take our kids sports! So happy to be reading your blog now!!!
DeleteThis made me laugh, KImm! We are so much alike except I'm the crazy cheer mom!! Happy St Paddy's Day!!
ReplyDeletejumping on the crazy mom train for sure Laura! Have a great day
DeleteWhat I love most about this story is your passion! You rock girl! Happy Tuesday!
DeleteThanks Jenny
DeleteI really think having kids participate in sports is about teaching sportsmanship, respect for other players and how to deal when things don't go your way as much as the actual sport they are playing. It makes me sad when I see parents act like this at a game.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is very important to learn how to lose gracefully, and I have taught that to my children. However it is very hard, in my opinion, watching a team get screwed over by awful officiating. I have also had my kids team win a game because of unfair calls against an opposing team, and I don't like that one bit either. I don't want to see my child's team with a win they didn't earn or deserve. I am very proud of the good sports that my kids are. I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts. I am a firm believer in speaking up when something is wrong, at times I have probably taken it too far, but I will always speak up! Hope you have a great day
DeleteOh that drives me nuts! I've seen some bad calls both for my child's team and against. I think it's really too bad. How can they learn to play properly when the person reffing the games isn't paying attention?
ReplyDeleteI agree Erin. I just want my kids to go out there and play their best, win or lose, it really doesn't matter to me, however when horrible calling affects the outcome of a game that these kids worked hard it, it just sucks!! Thanks for stopping by today
DeleteYes, that is embarrassing. I read an article somewhere that said this kind of behavior is really most detrimental to the kids. The article said we should not try to coach our kids from the sidelines (leave that to the coaches) and that all we should say to our children is "I enjoyed watching you play."
ReplyDeletehttp://www.thepostgame.com/blog/more-family-fun/201202/what-makes-nightmare-sports-parent It's only a GAME. And they're kids. No ones life hangs in the balance. And actually kids learn more from a loss than a win. Get some perspective.
I was not "coaching" from the sidelines, I was just voicing my opinion on the crappy calls. I agree that losing is a wonderful lesson children need to learn, however when things are blatantly unfair, it upsets me. I absolutely always enjoy watching my children play in sports. I appreciate your comment, and this is just my opinion, but I don't believe that by me sometimes getting a bit excited on the sideline has been detrimental to my children.
DeleteIt i also a great lesson in life to teach our kids that things are not always fair. In fact, most things are not fair. It is fair to be born into poverty or illness? No. We cannot choose what happen to us in life but we can choose how we REACT to what happens. Now that is an incredible lesson to both model and teach our children. Have a fabulous weekend, Kimm.
DeleteI hope you are reading some of the feedback on your post and taking it to heart for your son's future games. You don't really seem embarrassed enough to me, or as though you've learned a lesson. Your older son and your husband both told you to knock it off, as well as an official. You couldn't, though - and you took it too far. Officials remember this sort of thing and they talk among themselves, and any borderline playcalling in the future may very well go against AJ's team because you've represented the parents of that team - and the team itself - in a very poor light.
ReplyDeleteIf you feel like you can't control yourself at games, it may be best if you stay home and watch a video of it later. Being "that mom" doesn't endear you to anyone. If AJ gets the reputation that his mom is the "crazy football mom" it could damage his ability to be selected for teams in the future. School-level coaches cannot and will not put up with families who cause disruption - there is far too much at stake for the kids, the team, the school and the coaches themselves. A kid who has a reputation of bringing with him an overzealous, disruptive parent could easily be excluded through no fault of his own.
I hope you take this feedback as it is intended: To help you readjust your behavior as the mom of an athlete so your child can benefit from the sport. A lot of times enthusiastic moms like you take on dynamic roles on the team such as team mom or chain gang. This allows you to be a positive part of the action (though you do have to understand you cannot be disruptive or negative at all - but you can help influence the outcome of the game by taking good care of the boys and keeping them excited and positive).
As for taking it to far, I respect your opinion, as a mother of 3 sons, two of which play school ball, I have never ever had an issue. As far as officials talking amongst themselves, they called the game wrong, it was brought to the league's attention by numerous parents and coaches, and well this gentleman is no longer officiating our league, which was the correct decision. I always encourage my kids to try their best, and even in a loss, we always encourage and keep a positive attitude. I did hold myself back during the game, however, I felt the calling was bad enough to warrant me speaking with the official after the game. I actually was team mom for his team this year, and I absolutely enjoy nothing more than watching my kids play and be part of a team. I appreciate your comment, so thank you for taking the time to read and leave it.
DeleteYou don't feel that "telling off" the official was taking it too far? In our league, following him to the car would get you banned from the next several games! I hate to see bad calls too, but that's just part of life when you play or watch sports. My husband would have left me standing there and driven home without me!
DeleteThankfully my husband didn't do that....but I am a passionate person by nature, probably my best and worst quality is I usually speak my mind, had it been one or two bad calls, I probably wouldn't have said a thing, but it was every call, and "dirty" playing and hits from the other team that were not called that truly infuriated me. That is how kids get hurt, again, I was just sharing my moment, and I don't think it makes me a bad mom. I do though appreciate you taking the time to not only comment, but doing it in a nice way, and that I really appreciate! I can say that I would probably not do the same again, you live and learn right?
DeleteLoved this!! I always love your honest, down-to-earth honesty. I can SO see myself following that coach too!! lol! You go girl!
ReplyDeleteShelby, one of my best and worst qualities is speaking my mind!!!!
DeleteI'm the wife to a head coach and athletic director and mother to boys who play many sports and don't get the humor in this.
ReplyDeleteJust a few weeks ago in a nearby town a high school referee successfully filed harassment charges against a parent who followed them to their car after a game. (It was all verbal, nothing physical) Also about half the states in the US have harsher punishments for people who go after referees. You might wanna keep that in mind.
A few months ago in my state, an upstanding parent tried to just speak to a referee--who was 100% in the wrong--but it turned into a full on brawl with people being arrested and even a broken bone--just because he got out of his seat in the stands where he belonged. People get crazy-passionate when it comes to their children and athletics and it turns bad really quickly.
I get your passion for your kid's sports. I love it. My life literally revolves around sports. When I'm not at my job I'm either at one of their events or volunteering my time while other teams are playing. I know your type. Our school administration used to call a group of several parents who always behaved like you "the idiot club".
What you don't see is the referees, the coaches, the players on the other teams, their fans, ALL see this poor behavior. And you represent the entire team when you act like a fool. They generalize that "all people" from X team are like that based on your behavior. For me it's incredibly embarrassing because I have so much pride in our school, my children and my husband and one stupid parent makes us all look ridiculous. I sit and listen to parents every game sideline ref and sometimes it blows my mind how they don't seem to know the rules to the game but feel confident in screaming out their own calls.
Do refs make bad calls? All the time. I've seen horrible, horrible, horrible calls. I've seen refs that are generally always bad. They're human. Especially in what I'm guessing is pee-wee or junior high football for an 11 year old. Your kinda at the bottom of the barrel of refs and umpires the younger they get.
As another commenter said, they do talk about it later. I've been in hospitality rooms and had referees say "Oh your from [Town Name], where there's those crazy parents who scream over every call?" That kind of behavior sets a precedent.
Just things to think about before you attend your next sporting event.
I didn't physically attack anyone, I spoke my mind, I wasn't disrespectful, but I said what I needed to say. My opinion if you're going to make crappy calls, at least make them for both teams so it's at least even. I've been involved in youth sports for the pas 17 years, never gotten a "bad" rap for acting like , as you said a memeber of the "idiot club", I am passionate about all things, and I definitely get involved in my kids athletics, and after sitting through hundreds of sporting events with my children, I can confidently say that I am nothing like those parents cursing, getting physical etc. I appreciat however you taking the time to comment! Hope you have a great weekend
DeleteI never once said a parent was physical or ever once used a cuss word. I did mention a broken bone in the brawl but neither the parent nor the ref was the injured--I wasn't there, it was relayed by my husband's colleague. And just an example of how one comment can turn explosive. I've seen one parent removed one time in all my years for cussing (and it was the night of the worst reffing I've ever witnessed) and never seen ever physically attack anyone. What I am talking about is exactly how you described your behavior.
DeleteAnd the ref that filed harassment charges against the parent? That was EXACTLY what the parent's beef with the ref was......that they called the game one sided. It was exactly what you did--followed him to his car and harassed him. The only difference was it was a 7A High School basketball game instead of a little kids football game.
If you read the bottom of my post, I wrote that looking back I should have not followed him to his car, we all do things in the heat of the moment, and I certainly don't think one thing defines who you are. I have never once claimed to be perfect, I was sharing a real life embarrassing moment. I do appreciate your thoughts and comments. Thanks for taking the time to read and reply! Hope you have a great weekend!!!
DeleteThis is why I'm inside our football offices during my husbands football games (he works in college ball). I can't take the fans opinions and don't want my girls around the fans that watch and comment about their daddy's job. I'm thankful I don't have to be a football mom- being a football wife is hard enough! Ha!
DeleteI'm sure being a football wife is so fun! Have a great weekend
DeleteAs a mother of three boys that play sports, I would never have thought about doing what you did. In fact, my husband keep our opinions to ourselves when it comes to bad calls, refereeing, etc. Why? Because the kids, the coaches, the other parents, and the refs do not appreciate that. You overstepped your boundaries. Am I passionate about my boys' sports? Absolutely! However, I have learned to be passionate and calm. I have been doing kids' sports for years and years now. I would never have thought to act like you did. In my opinion, you aren't embarrassed at all. The tone of your post doesn't portray that at all. Have a nice weekend.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your opinion, I did what I did, and I clearly stated that looking back I would not have done that. I really try to look back on things and never regret, but be able to learn from any mistakes I made and try and laugh about them down the road. I am very passionate when it comes to my kids, and I now express my disgust to crappy calling to my husband:) Have a nice weekend as well!
DeleteI'm really not sure why you shared this as your embarresing moment because you don't seem embarressed at all. Seems to me like its more of your most PROUD moment.
ReplyDeleteI shared this because the topic was to share an embarrassing moment, and if you read the end of the post, it said looking back I should have kept my cool, and not done what I did. I respect everyone's opinions, however no where once did I say I was proud of what I did. No one is perfect, and I am pretty sure most of us have all done something we are not proud of in our lifetime, I owned up to it, realized what I did was wrong, and chose to move on from it. The way I look at things, if you make a mistake and keep on doing the same thing over and over, well then there is a problem, but if you do something you're not proud of or make a mistake, and can look back and admit it wasn't a "good" move, then it's ok. I certainly don't expect everyone to agree, and like always, I do appreciate people's opinions. Thank you
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