This time we have committed to the season by actually buying the mouth guard. I've shoved it into boiling water and then shoved it into a crying kid's mouth and got him to bite down for 20 seconds.
Then I've plunged it into cold water to set it and prayed to the mouth guard gods that it was the right fit. It wasn't. I've trimmed and remoulded that mouth guard to within an inch of its life and it's still not right. I've told Mac that mouth guards are meant to be uncomfortable, deal with it.
What I've since discovered is that Saturday morning sport is meant to be uncomfortable (for the parents). Mac has told me to deal with it.
There's the frost, the battle of the car parks, the queue for the coffee, the distracting of the younger siblings, the bribery of hash browns and hot chocolate after the game, the purchasing of hats, gloves, merino everything, the looking at the clock on your phone to see how much longer this game actually goes for, and the piece de resistance - the wrong spectator footwear.
Since becoming a Saturday morning sports mum, I've done nothing else except search for wool-lined winter boots.
They're not in huge demand here in the subtropics of Hawke's Bay, but still I am on the hunt for an elusive pair I can actually try on in a shop.
I'm sure by the time I've found a pair, and/or saved up for a pair, the season will be over.
That's if we make it to the end of the season of course. And by "we", I mean "me".
– Megan Banks
• Don't miss Adam Green and Megan Banks on The Hits Hawke's Bay from 6am to 9am, Monday to Friday.
