Before I had kids, I used to sleep in on most weekends.
It was glorious.
I'd open my eyes and glance at the clock beside my bed, chuckle to myself, let out a big let's say "sigh" and give it no more thought, then snuggle back into the warm blankets and force myself back to sleep until about noon-ish.
But that was before we had kids.
The kids aren't the problem, actually.
They take after me and prefer their mornings a little later in the afternoon, but my eldest seems to really like soccer, so we always seem to be up bright and early come Saturday mornings.
I can't blame her for liking the sport, though.
I played it when I spent a couple years in Germany as a youth, and continued to play back home in Canada all through high school and beyond - although I did stop calling it "footie" immediately upon reaching Canadian soil.
Pretty much as soon as she could walk, we were outside kicking a soccer ball around, and I may have expressed certain affection for the sport to her over the years.
So I was pretty pleased when she wanted in on the action after she started school and found her friends were joining the Squamish youth soccer program.
Now, I don't know what the statistics are on this, but I'm willing to bet it rains more frequently on Saturday mornings in Squamish than on any other day of the week.
I have this suspicion because her soccer games are on Saturday mornings - and it's usually raining and cold.
OK, I'll admit there were probably some sunny, warm mid-morning games in there, too - but for some reason I can only ever think of cold, rain and early when I think of her games.
But my wife and I (with the youngest in tow) are always there, cheering her on, just like every other soccer parent in Squamish - come cold rain or forgettable shine.
I've met more local people, and had better conversations at those games than anywhere else in town.
By the looks of it most weekends, half of Squamish is scattered around those fields, so we may be the Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada, but Squamish is certainly a soccer town.
So I was pleased to see some of our local government chaps recently trying to get turf fields and other improvements into the budget process and happening sooner than later ("Recreational priorities debated," The Chief, Feb. 11).
Unfortunately that didn't happen, but it's good to know folks like Coun. Lalli (who is also out there cheering for his daughter on wet Saturday mornings) and Coun. Lonsdale are paying attention to the soaked and muddied masses.
If current plans are too costly or complex, there should always be room for compromise.
But it's certain some improvements to those facilities are what's needed for the ever-growing Squamish soccer community.
I know it just means I'll have to spend even more early-Saturday mornings standing on the sidelines all cold and damp - but it's worth it.
It's glorious.
