Sports Mom Essentials.

Fall sports season is upon us! Even though I enjoyed the ease of sports-free summer weekends, I am determined to bring a positive energy to the soccer and baseball sidelines this fall. I was just at my son’s back to school night, and the teacher mentioned that children whose parents are involved at school tend to have a much stronger and more positive connection to school in general because they see their parents value it. I am thinking of how that percolates through everything we do; if I’m (even secretly) dragging my feet about making it to a soccer game, what message is that sending? My kids are assuredly picking up on it. I’m determined this fall to focus on how nice it is to be outside, showing up for my kids and catching up with parent friends in the beautiful weather, hopefully with coffee in hand.

Anyhow, I am not a true blue “sports mom” — my kids aren’t doing travel leagues or anything — but most of our weekends are spent on sidelines, and we do a lot of practice schlepping. I have a couple of items I have grown to love for these fall weekends…

LOEFFLER RANDALL FLEECE // RHONE REVIVE LEGGINGS // REVIVE BRA // VB SHEARLING SNEAKERS // CHAPPYWRAP BLANKET // CLAW CLIP // COMPACT UMBRELLA // PARKE HAT // SUNGLASSES // INSECT REPELLENT

01. Big roomy tote to schlep things around. I am a traditionalist here and love the L. L. Bean Boat and Tote, personalized with our family name on the side. (This is a fun alternative – love the monogram scale and style.) So sturdy and reliable, and not so precious you’ll weep if they get dinged up or muddied. They also stand up on their own on the grass. I then keep a small crossbody on my person so I have my more precious belongings (card case, keys, phone, sunnies) right next to me while I’m catching up with other parents, etc. A few chic options for this use case: the St. Barths Petit Tote, the Tory Burch Romy, the Cuyana Linea, this Longchamp. All that said, I think I’m treating myself to this bigger statement tote this fall and I can imagine carrying this around with me a lot of the time (comes with crossbody strap).

02. Helinox folding chairs. These are lightweight, highly-durable, water-resistant, and fold up into nothing.

03. I am not BIG into athleisure but have learned the hard way that the dusty dugout and the muddy sidelines are not the place to wear a sundress or leather sandals. I love Varley for an elevated athleisure look — like this, this, with a pair of Sambas or my VBs. My other go-to looks for sidelines are F+E’s Carmel set (great look for less here, and many Magpies have reported back that the quality is decent) OR leggings (truly obsessed with this pair and matching bra) with a tone-on-tone matching sweater or sweatshirt. And always a hat for keeping sun out of my face (and eyes) — love these RL ones, this Parke one, Clare V.’s, the ones from Merci.

04. I have been using Stanley products for years, and their Camp Mug is perfect for on-the-go.

05. This fleece for that biting chill of fall mornings. (More statement fleeces here!)

06. A compact umbrella — you never know! We keep a big golf umbrella in our trunk, too.

07. Chappywrap’s fall releases included this “Varsity” throw blanket, which I already snagged (seen at top photo, along with Hill’s new favorite fleece).

08. A foldable bench! Some of the moms on my daughter’s team have had these — so clever; the kids love to have a spot to rest while off the field.

09. The Welly First Aid kit — can’t tell you how many times bandaids (and placebo bandaids) have been needed.

10. A cute printed pouch for snacks.

11. A sleek refillable wipe system. I love these; they smell great, too.

12. Activities for sideline siblings: this playtime notepad and these washable markers.

13. Leakproof, silicone snack containers!

14. Never forget the kids’ water, and one for each. You’ve never seen a child so thirsty as the one whose water bottle is at home.

15. Natural insect repellent!

16. A hair clip — always in my bag.

17. This picnic blanket from Weezie in case you’re spreading out on a field — and you can customize with your monogram!

18. Chic Celine-inspired sunglasses.

19. Spare socks and sweatshirt for my daughter/son — this has become a recurring “emergency” on the way home. Her socks are wet; she’s cold; etc. And then of course slides to change into out of cleats.

20. I like to buy Supergoop sunscreen in the value size — we go through an absolute ton of this stuff each year.

21. Depending on weather, I’ll toss a spare rain coat or sweatshirt into my bag for my sideline child! I find nothing can ruin that experience like a cold/wet child.