Kids & Activities
I provide Saturday shuttle service in my mom van!
The kids reached that age when they want to join activities and life got easier because theyr’e a little more independent, but now also want to spread their wings and try new things! (Especially if you have what I like to call “covid” kids who are young and grew up in the pandemic so were sheltered from structured activities and sent to the beach and mountains instead! :P That’s our kids!)
Soccer? Dance? Baseball? Japanese? Piano? Parents told me it would come to a point when you would find yourself busy with activities. I’ve watched other parents transport kids to 5 different activities or soccer 5x/week and carefully observed what I wanted and didn’t want for our family and mentally prepared for this time.
This feels like a new season of parenting that should be discussed with your partner or whoever you may need to rely on for help.
I had always hoped one kid would choose dance and the other basketball, but also knew that I wanted them to decide. It’s kind of interesting to see what they want to try at this young and curious age before peers become too big of an influence. So I let them pick and am grateful I am able to give them opportunities to explore what they like and don’t like.
Our one non-negotiable was that they had to enroll in swimming. From the age of 3 they’ve been swimming and will continue for a while. But beyond that, they could each choose 1 more activity. Maybe 2, but I’m not sure I can handle because if they each have 2 different activities, that’s 4 activities to shuttle them to already with full time work and household responsibilities too!
My son chose tennis, my daughter chose gymnastics, and they both chose cub scouts. And suddenly, we find ourselves in a very different season. I went from 1-2 after-school/weekend commitments per week (swimming) to 5 per week and suddenly found myself in the same boat as those parents I watched.
They’re not in anything competitive or super straining, but I can feel the pinch.
I’m not sure what else to write here except to caution us parents that we make sure what we sign up for for the kids, we ourselves can handle and commit to and enjoy as well. WE have to figure out our new routines as we figure out theirs. It can be a fun start to a new life-long discovered hobby, but caution we continue to make room for the good stuff we' had prior to all of these activities. Family dinners together, spontaneous adventures, and evenings of nothing at home and just playing games together. A mix of all the good stuff is what we want to make sure we have time for.
Good luck! And send me advice if you have any for parents with older kids looking back! I’d love to hear.
erin’s tip
Check how you feel. How they feel. And make sure you’re doing it because it adds value and not just because everyone else is doing it or because it’s on the schedule.
