A Kickin’ Date Night

San Carlos has kicked up some serious fun for us adults on Thursday nights. I am not referring to the city’s enviable downtown, its delectable restaurants or fun nightlife.

For a lot of us moms and dads in the community, Thursday nights represent a different type of party, one that occurs on the turf soccer fields at Highlands Park in a co-ed soccer league.

There are three tiers of co-ed soccer teams, from competitive to intermediate to the recreation league for those just interested in friendly competition, team camaraderie and a tremendous work out. San Carlos rolled out this Parks and Recreation option beginning in mid-January, and word on the street is that it will continue in June following a mini Spring Break.

Our team, called The Pulled Muscles (not the “Old Muscles” as my oldest son asked after our first game), boasts 14 players and a whopping 28 children among us. There are several couples on the team and for those with just one spouse on the field, a very supportive better half cheers on the team from the sidelines at games that occur before the kids’ bedtime.

It’s those 6 p.m. games that show our true cheering section, as most of us tote along our kids to play with the other youngsters and also to avoid soliciting and paying for a babysitter. Last week, our troop took over the baseball diamond behind the field we played on, with a couple pizza deliveries and one of our injured and extremely generous team players bearing a cooler of cold beers for a post-game treat.

And it’s been very fun. At the beginning of the season, just seven weeks ago, our team spent much of the first game sucking wind and was slaughtered by a very fit and agile team. In goal that game, I let four shots whiz by, among the 20 that were darted in my direction.

But after weekly practices and Thursday night games against less aggressive teams, we Muscles, as now refer to our more conditioned and athletic selves, are playing hard and have seen some positive results.

My husband and I play on the team together, as do a few other couples. It’s been such a great way to capture that “date night” that we never seem to schedule.
Since having kids, our propensity to make time for each other has waned, even though its rule No. 1 amongst teachers, parenting experts, doctors and psychologists doling out advice on healthy marriages.

Date nights have been something my husband and I have laughed at for years. It’s been our sarcastic quip when life gets busy and we are rushing around from basketball to gymnastics to birthday parties and Costco, splitting in different directions to maintain our healthy and hectic family-of-five lifestyle.

At midday during those busy weekends, a text or a call about our desired “date night” will elicit a bit of a laugh, as our life right now doesn’t allow for us to simply cross off the family calendar, grab a sitter and go do dinner and a movie.

Don’t get me wrong, my husband and I spend a lot of time together and we have a rather healthy social life, but the idea of taking every other Friday night to chalk up a romantic dinner together has been unreal for our lifestyle. (Although we realize it’s significance and applaud those who can). We enjoy our family time and carve out time for ourselves too. And we are cognizant that we will have much time in life for those long, romantic date nights once our kids become too cool for us.

So now, we treasure our opportunity to test ourselves athletically and burn a bit of aggression as we play soccer in the beloved San Carlos co-ed league.

It’s a little unusual to chalk it up as date night, however, I located similar date night ideas on an article in Redbook, titled 100 Date Night Ideas. The closest thing I could find to this unique date night was listed at No. 30 on the list –“Grab a basketball and hit the free courts at the park.” Not soccer, but close. It was under the Cheap Date section. 

For more date night ideas, read more:
http://www.redbookmag.com/love-sex/advice/100-date-ideas