Since When Did I Become A Bag Lady?

I feel duped. At no point during either of my pregnancies did a single one of the medical professionals or ante-natal tomes make any reference to the fact that, from the moment my boys could walk and talk, my husband and I would require an additional room in our already-cramped house. And no, I don't mean for the baby Ð I am referring to the extra space given over to the copious amount of sporting equipment that our little darlings apparently require on a weekly basis.

Don't get me wrong - I have been fairly successful in limiting the number of after-school activities to a manageable quantity. Call me old school, but I don't feel that children should be exhausted to the point of needing an oxygen mask by 5pm every evening. (Admittedly, there is also a selfishly imposed limit to the amount of time I am prepared to spend observing my children's sporting prowess from a cold and damp sideline).

In the early days, when I was new to the extra-curricular activities that now consume so much of my thinking time, I approached from what was, in retrospect, a terribly naive position. I actually believed that I could use one sturdy bag (eco-friendly, of course) and simply replace the 4-year old's swimming goggles from Monday with the 7-year old's tennis racquet on Wednesday. If you are considering this method, take my advice and don't bother. The freshly laundered swimming trunks are never where you thought they were, the goggles get mixed up (and, apparently, that does matter!) and trying to pack the martial arts kit 10 minutes before your child is due to transform into the Karate Kid is just plain foolish. So, having accepted that each child requires a separate bag for each activity, I now find myself with an under-stairs cupboard that looks like a JJB Sports stockroom.

This would be significantly less irritating if I was an insatiably competitive parent intent on propelling my boys into the 2020 Olympics, but I'm simply trying to get through the week and I can't help resenting the disproportionate amount of time that I spend ferrying bags full of soggy towels and muddy trainers between the car and aforementioned cupboard. In fact, I object on a far more fundamental level Ð being able to get to the vacuum cleaner without being assaulted by a tennis racquet would feel like a small victory.

Given that I have 2 boys who, as we all know, are an entirely different species to girls, I struggle to see when this side of parenting will come to a close. At what point do I hand over responsibility to the children? I have tried on occasions to apportion some degree of duty to them both, but basic requests for them to find their tennis shoes or check if the £1 coin for the swimming locker is still in their bag, are met with looks of utter contempt, and I learnt a long time ago to pick my battles carefully. Regrettably, I think I am in this for the long run. Now, where did I put that swimming cap?

This article was written by Eva Harrington.

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