Field Hockey season is here!

In other words, the Baby Weight Loss Program has begun!

I haven't officiated a game since November of 2007. Why? Because I was 8 months pregnant with Elektra when the season started! I took my test anyway to stay current much to the surprise and amusement of my fellow officials (read: waddled in... waddled out...).

So the start of this season is exciting and nerve wracking for me. I'm excited to get back into the world of field hockey, to get outside, and be physically active again. But I've been wondering if I can keep up, physically and mentally.

I had a couple of scrimmage games on turf on Saturday. Turf makes for a very fast game, so I got to see how out of shape I am (not too bad, actually!). Turf also makes the fouls more subtle. I'm happy that I got most of them right, thought I can certainly use some improvement, particularly on my open field (between the 25's) skills. I'm very happy with my circle play, though, needing less tweaks than other parts of my game.

One of the refs that I've known for years was giving me pointers on my positioning which were great; I was working less hard by the end of the day, so that was good! She asked me how I was feeling and my answer was, "Physically - fine. Mentally - in a fog." She was surprised by this answer, and I continued, "I'm not actively processing what I see. I'm just going on instinct." To this, she answered, "It's the beginning of the season, and this is why we have practice games!" So glad that I'm not the only one. Hopefully, I'll work through the Mommy Fog sooner rather than later!