5 Things FANTASY FOOTBALL Taught Me About LIFE

When I tell people that I actually like football, they are normally surprised. For the most part, I come across as an ALL girl, shopaholic, who loves to do my hair and make-up. I understand why most people don’t believe me when I say I enjoy it. By all means, if you gave me the option of going on a shopping spree or sitting and watching a football game, I am pretty sure I would choose the shopping spree. BUT who said I can’t enjoy BOTH?

I grew up in a home that LOVED football. I was a BYU cheerleader for Halloween, we flew our BYU flag outside our house on game days, my whole family wore blue and white every Saturday they played and singing the Cougar Fight Song around the house was completely normal! My favorite memories with my dad and brother consist of watching the games and screaming of excitement when the cougars would catch the winning touchdown in the last 2 seconds of the game.

As I got older, I started dating Tyson. His family’s love for football was just as strong as my own family’s. His dad has over 40 Steelers shirts, they have a complete “man cave” in their home with black and yellow walls, we took family pictures in our Steelers jerseys (even their dog was decked out!) and if you don’t wear black and yellow on game days at their house, you aren’t welcome. 😉

After we got married, Tyson wanted to start a Fantasy Football League. For those of you who may not know what Fantasy Football is, I will explain. Fantasy football was created many years ago in hopes of making NFL programming more interactive with the fans who watch the games. In general it is played by anyone who is willing to participate and is often times free to play. When playing an individual participates in a mock season in which they participate as an owner of a “team” that they create with the players from the NFL. The in game statistics for individual players that are assigned to each team are tracked each week of the season. These statistics vary by performance and are given for things such as touchdowns (6 points) or interceptions (1 point). Each week every team’s statistics within a certain “league” are added up and compared to other teams within the designated “league” much like in the real NFL. At the end of the season teams compete in a playoff to crown the champion of their league. This statistical competition creates fun that everyone from the passive fan to the die hard number cruncher can enjoy every season.

As much as I love football, I honestly was a little hesitant when the idea of participating in such a thing was brought up. I felt busy with my own schedule and didn’t want to have to deal with the burden of having my football team to manage every week. I thought it was a little silly to have your own “team” and wondered why it was so important to him and why he was so excited about it. I also wasn’t very interested because as much as I loved football, I really only knew the basics. To this day I don’t know what every play means, position is named and why those random flags are thrown in the middle of the games. After thinking about it though, I figured WHY NOT? I have nothing to lose and it was very obvious it was something that was important to Tyson.

Today I have made a list of 5 Things FANTASY FOOTBALL Taught Me About LIFE. I always thought it was a “boy” thing, but after several years of being a part of the “League of Champions” I have learned that being a part of something my husband loves and stepping a little out of my comfort zone at times, is actually FUN and has brought me a lot of happiness! In fact, I have learned a lot about life.

1. GET OUT OF YOUR BOX: We all have boxes, right? Not a physical box, but our individual boxes of life! We get into our daily routines, we get comfortable and we normally stick to that schedule daily. As girls, we like to feel comfortable. We like to know what we are doing and we like to be good at it. It is sometimes hard to step outside of our box and do something new! I have learned though, that as we step outside, we can actually become better. In fact, as we step outside of our boxes, we find new talents and new things we are good at and maybe even enjoy! Jumping into Fantasy Football has helped me do just that. I had no idea what a “Running Back” or “Tight End” was, but I jumped into it and hoped for the best.

2. YOU CAN BE ONE OF THE “BOYS”: In High School, I loved hanging out with the boys. In fact I think I preferred it. (LOVE my girls too!!) BUT there was just something different about hanging out with the boys. I liked that once I started dating Tyson, I was able to hang out with him and his friends. Often times I was the only girl there. I liked how competitive they were and when they wanted something, they would work hard for it. Fantasy Football kind of did just that for me. It was fun to be a part of a little competition that meant so much to them and eventually meant so much to me too! I am highly competitive and by the end of it, I wanted that trophy too!

3. IT STRENGTHENED MY MARRIAGE: It may sound a little crazy, but this experience honesty helped my relationship with my husband. I have learned that as I invest in things my husband enjoys, we are happier! It is fun to participate in something he is passionate about. I have had to ask him for help and he has taught me. You know guys LOVE to “know it all.” He loved to explain everything to me. We would stay up late, as he would show me the best way to set my up my line-up. As we invest our time into our husband’s interests, I can almost guarantee you that they will be happier and in return you will be happier!

4. SUPRISINGLY FUN: I went into Fantasy Football thinking it was going to be very time consuming and more stressful than anything. To me, I was just too busy to deal with such a thing. The first week came though and it was game time. Immediately, my competitive side kicked in and I was in it, to win it! I had no idea I would be that way. It was so fun having a REASON to watch the games. Tyson loves watching football, so this time, I had a reason to watch too! I was cheering on my players when they did well and would get so mad at them when they would mess up. We made memories as we spent this time together, doing something he loved and I grew to love.

5. ANYTHING BOYS CAN DO, GIRLS CAN DO BETTER : Hopefully the boys don’t get mad if they read this, but it is true. Anything boys can do, we can do better, right?! 😉 If they can make Kraft mac n cheese, we can make homemade mac n cheese. If they can run a mile in 10 minutes, we can run a mile in 9 minutes. If they can play Fantasy Football, we can WIN at Fantasy Football! Honestly, my husband does EVERYTHING better than I do, but for a minute we will pretend like those things are the case in our marriage. Anything boys can do, girls can do better. The biggest mistake I made about Fantasy Football was replying, “Oh. That is a BOY thing.” I have learned that it is totally not a boy thing! Girls can do it too! If not BETTER! If we allow ourselves to do something, we can probably achieve it through hard work.

These 5 Things FANTASY FOOTBALL Taught Me About LIFE, goes towards our whole journey of life as women. (1) Get out of your box… do something NEW! Whether it is fantasy football or learning how to make a new craft. Do it! Don’t trap yourself in your box, there is always room to grow. (2) You can be one of the boys, always! Even if you are the girliest girl {like me}, get out there and do something you think is only a “boy” thing! A little competition is always a good thing and can make us stronger. (3) Invest in something your husband loves. Take some time to learn about his hobbies and then participate in it with him. He will LOVE it! (4) Have FUN! Do something you normally wouldn’t do and make the best of the situation! No matter what life brings you, enjoy it and smile. (5) Always remember, you can do ANYTHING, as long as you put your mind to it.

Next time football season comes around and your other half asks you to join in on the fun of Fantasy Football, I hope you don’t hesitate. I challenge you to jump in! I think you might be surprised at what life lessons you can learn from a simple game of football.

Don’t forget to share with your man, your lady or even your friends!

Danielle is the owner of Today's the Best Day. She strives to provide creative and uplifting content in order to enrich the parenting experience for women everywhere. Danielle hopes to help you and your family to make every day the best day!

August 22, 2014 by Danielle Davis | 6 Comments