Monday Night Football

We are a sports family! We love going to sporting events and watching them on TV.  We watch hockey, baseball, March Madness basketball, the Triple Crown horse races, golf, college football and the NFL. Mikey will even watch Nascar. Everyone in our family has played on more than one sports team…Dave and Will even organized a father-son flag football game with local friends. Beyond that, we have built family vacations around attending football games at the Big House and Lambeau Field. You’re probably thinking, “Wow, that’s a lot!” But, as I write this, I realize we haven’t watched much tennis and I’m now feeling like we have a whole new frontier to explore as a family. LOL

Especially when Mikey has gone through tougher phases and it was difficult to go out and do a lot of things, sports on TV has been an anchor for our family.  We love being together and cheering for our favorite teams, although, I don’t think the team matters as much to Mikey as the sports themselves.  I keep threatening to get him a tee shirt that says, “I just hope both teams have fun.” My family finds that much less funny than I do.

The Benefits

Other than the obvious…SPORTS IS SO FUN!…there are some things that make sports a particularly cool thing for the special kiddos in your family.

Participating

Teams like challenger, unified and special Olympics give your special kid a sense of belonging and help build physical skills in a safe, supportive environment. 

Attending

Going to sporting events allow your kids to be a part of something big and loud and exciting.  For some kids, this might be their worst nightmare, but for our sensory seekers, it’s exhilarating.  Go prepared with BIG noise muffling headphones and keep an eye on your little buddy to make sure they’re not too overwhelmed. Smaller events like high school or minor league games are often not quite as loud and might be a great introduction. If a sibling plays, even better!

The cheers are really easy to participate in, even if you have few or no words. For example, if I chant, “Let’s Go, Islanders” (our NHL hockey team), Mikey will clap 5 times, right on cue.  If the Islanders score a goal, he joins us in yelling, “Yes! Yes! Yes!”  These cheers are the same every time and easy to learn and remember. And just like that, you’re part of the group.  Much easier than complicated, ever-changing, conversation.

Watching on TV

Sports are stimmy! They are colorful and bright and they move fast. It’s mesmerizing. Plus, this is a lifelong interest.  Literally, at my Nana’s retirement home, the football game was on every Sunday.  Your child’s peers won’t outgrow it so it’s worth the time investment to help them build an interest because they’ll always be able to watch sports as a leisure time activity.