Managing the Madness

A couple of years ago I wrote a blog post about being a soccer super hero by preparing your trunk for the coming year. This is going to be a similar post. I'm going to share how I prepare my trunk for the coming soccer season and give you an Amazon shopping list of items I use to keep my trunk stocked and in order. The links in this post are affiliate links so, OSMD receives a small commission for items ordered through these links.

I have 6 kids (5-16 Years Old) at 3 different schools and 4 of them play at 3 different clubs. Staying ahead of the madness helps me manage the madness.

Managing the Calendar

One of the first questions I get is "How do you keep track of everything?" With 6 kids it is literally a 6 front war that we tackle 3 ways.

1. We keep a wall calendar on the fridge with really large spaces and we updated it each month. Sitting down and writing everything in is a good way to stop and really reflect and problem solve your schedule in advance and not let it get ahead of you. This calendar is on sale for just $2.99 but I actually recommend this calendar because it has so much more space. You Can also use these clips to hold it in place on your fridge.

2. We use a simple spreadsheet as a master calendar. Across the top is all of our names and down the side are running dates. Its so simple. As a new item comes in it immediately goes to the spreadsheet. The sheet is in google docs and share with our parents and helpers. When my mother-in-law wants to know where games will be and when we are available for family dinners she just pops into the spreadsheet and can see who is available or where we need help.

3. On days when things are congested or overlap we do hour by hour sheets so we can visibly see where everyone is and where we need help.

Preparing your Car

1.One of the best pieces of advice anyone ever gave me was to get a carwash membership. Maybe I was the last person on earth to do this but its definitely made me more consistently go through the car wash and vacuum out the van keeping me more sane.

2. Get a floppy laundry basket, whether it is a flexible plastic or a collapsible one doesn't matter but you want to be sure it isn't hard plastic.

3. The laundry basket is for all of your rainy day supplies. You can either keep it in your trunk or in your garage so you can easily load it up on those rainy days. You want to be sure to have trash bags, a beach towel, baby wipes and a clear umbrella (you will thank me) and a change of clothes. After a rainy day of stripping down a muddy kid in the back seat just flop everything bag into the laundry basket and bring it inside, strait to washing machine.

4. If you really want to be a supermom here is my most stellar advice. Grab one of those extra drawstring bags your kids have collected over the years and fill it with these items. First is extra shin guards and I don't mean just one pair if you have the means to stock up on extra shinnies I recommend you do these Messi ones from adidas are my kids favorite. Also include a roll of white medical tape, hand sanitizer, a roll of duct tape, scissors, hand warmers and zip ties. Trust me, before too long you will be a genius for having this little bag prepped.

5. Next we have the basics a blanket, rain jacket, an all terrain wagon,

folding chairs, bleacher chairs and first aid kit.

6. Last we have the next level soccer parenting supplies. These are the super unexpected but very necessary items that every player coach and parent will appreciate showing up on your sideline. The team tent, team bench and a tarp. The tarp might be the best one, because when the bleachers are wet this is the easiest way to provide players, coaches and/or fans with a dry place to sit.