What do you do about extracurriculars and different children

[GSOchristie]

Up to this point, I have only had one child old enough to do extracurricular activities because we don't start until they are five.  We specifically chose swimming because all three could do it, it would have the same practice times and places, and they hopefully would be competing in overlapping locations.  Now my four year old says he wants to do soccer in the fall when he turns five.  I don't want to do soccer, I don't want to go to another practice and game every week.  I just want him to swim, that's easy for me, his brother already swims, we are already used to the schedule and it works well for us, it doesn't conflict with church activities or photography demands, he LOVES to swim and he's really good at it.  But...he wants to play soccer.  Sigh, so what do I do?  I feel like we are already stretched so thin, we have small group on Monday, CC and swimming on Tuesday, Awanas on Wednesday, swimming on Thursday, and sometimes a swim meet on Saturday, and church on Sunday.  I want to let him be his own little person, but what do I do if he loves it?  They play soccer year round here and the traveling teams start in third grade.  What do you do when you have two children in two different sports?  Or three, what if Piper says she wants to do ballet instead of soccer or swimming?  It sounds so stressful!

[Guest]

You let him play soccer. Soccer is so much easier (as a parent) than a lot of sports. If anything, I would quit awanas, because

I hate it.

[Wilma]

5 year old soccer is a hoot! And seriously, it'll be one evening a week for a hour long practice and then one game per weekend. No big deal. Plus' it's probably just a six week season, right?? You don't have to commit lock, stock and barrel.

 

Down the road, if he loves it, there is probably also a recreational league even though some kids play more seriously in third grade. It doesn't have to be all or nothing.

 

Let him give it a go.

[bettyandbob]

I'd let him play soccer. 

 

My kids all swam and did something else. Swimming was a requirement. The other thing was their pick. I understand other families do other things. Anyway, the "something else" was different for each kid. It was totally their choice. The rule was they picked it, they had to participate for the full period paid. when the season was done they could try something new if they wanted. Anyway, it's good to let the child choose and find his own thing (he may try soccer and find that he really feels best with swimming, but if he didn't try soccer he wouldn't know). So, if you can coordinate the schedule and can afford it, I would suggest trying. 

[regentrude]

nm

[Crimson Wife]

Swimming is a safety thing for me. So given your kids' ages, I would make it mandatory. 

 

I don't make my kids do the same extracurriculars but they know any activity they want to do has to fit into our schedule and budget. So that sometimes means they can't do their first choice.

 

[Gil]

I'd look into the soccer schedule and find one that works for the family. Also, don't feel auto-obligated to join a traveling team in 3rd grade.

[Alice]

I would try not to worry about what might or might not happen in several years. He might love soccer. He might do it one season and hate it. Your other son might burn out on swimming. Your daughter might hate all sports and refuse to do any. 

 

We pick and choose what to do by the season. You can always reevaluate or pull back if the time commitment becomes too much. Just because you start a sport doesn't mean you have to opt for the ultra-competitive level. Make the decision about soccer based on whether or not it works for your family this season rather than what might happen in several years. 

 

[Guest]

I would try not to worry about what might or might not happen in several years. He might love soccer. He might do it one season and hate it. Your other son might burn out on swimming. Your daughter might hate all sports and refuse to do any.

 

We pick and choose what to do by the season. You can always reevaluate or pull back if the time commitment becomes too much. Just because you start a sport doesn't mean you have to opt for the ultra-competitive level. Make the decision about soccer based on whether or not it works for your family this season rather than what might happen in several years.

Exactly. At one time, my DD did gymnastics. After a while, she was invited to train for team. After a month of seeing how consuming team is, we bowed out. She just stuck with the simple lessons once a week. Truly, most team gymnasts were only children, or way younger than sibs.

[JudoMom]

We chose not to do team sports.  Until this year, we did Judo as a family, and the boys all took the same rec. tumbling/trampoline class.  We decided that for our family, activities where the boys could participate at the same time were the only ones we would consider while they were young.  They have no complaints.  One summer, a boy asked to play baseball.  We said no.  He lived.  The next summer, they were able to participate in a weekly homeschool baseball camp.  Guarding our family time in the evenings has been important to us.  Honestly, it was  a hard decision because I played tball/softball for decade and dh played little league until he aged out.

We do not regret the choice we made.  This year, my oldest was on an intensive robotics team at the local high school, and my 13 year old moved to competitive gymnastics.  It meant a lot more running around, but we felt the benefits outweighed the negatives.

It's okay to say no.

[momto10blessings]

Not the consensus here, but if I didn't want him to play soccer, I wouldn't let him. I'd tell him he has to take swimming lessons and learn how to swim first, then MAYBE he could try soccer in the future.

[MeAndTheBoys]

It can be stressful.  My older two boys have had the same activities--they both like soccer and basketball, so we do those in spring&fall, then winter.  We take the summer off.  We try to have them on the same team (or at least practice at the same time).  Throw Little Guy in there--and wow, we are at the field for a long time!!! And add to that our co-op and band and other miscellaneous things---

 

We have encouraged them to play the same sports.  So far, so good--no one wants to swim or play baseball or do any non-team sports like martial arts or gymnastics.  We do have a conflict now with one evening activity that one boy likes, one doesn't--and we are having to re-evaluate this summer to figure out the fall.

 

When we have had conflicts--as we did with a small group we were in and Awanas and other things in the past--we've just had to hash it out and prioritize.  Everyone can't do everything they want, but everyone should have some activity they really like.

 

There are no easy answers.  There are a LOT of good activities but you can't do them all.  And just because swimming is the easiest doesn't mean it's the best choice--

 

Just re-read your travel soccer stuff.  We have decided to keep out of that--my boys are good players, but we are not committed to that kind of schedule (one reason being that they have other interests and would rather do a few smaller things than be fully committed to one).  Surely there are less competitive, less time-consuming teams.  We play on a homeschool league in the fall (usually 2 nights/week) and a church league for basketball and spring soccer (one night practice, games on Saturday).  We aren't aiming for scholarships, just good team fun--they really enjoy it but it doesn't eat up all of our time.  It can be done :)

 

You can figure this out!

 

Betsy

[MiMi 4under3]

What do you do when you have two children in two different sports?  Or three, what if Piper says she wants to do ballet instead of soccer or swimming?  It sounds so stressful!

 

 

:driving:  :driving:  :driving: 

:auto:  :auto:  :auto: 

[KungFuPanda]

I wouldn't worry too much now. Little kid activities take an hour or two a week, if that. It's when they are older that it really takes over. Swimming will consume your free time as much, if not more, than soccer. It's all small potatoes now. Enjoy it :-)

[catz]

Swimming is mandatory here, but not long term committed swim team.  We probably averaged lessons 1/2 to 2/3 of the year.  Sometimes we'd do an intensive in the summer, otherwise weekly lessons.  Both my kids tried soccer.  It's a great sport and quite adorable for 5 year olds.  It's not a huge commitment at that age.  I actually thought kids were easier when they were younger and I could call all the shots.  Turns out they develop interests and personalities!  Darn kids!  ;)

[catz]

I also just want to say, as a homeschooling family, our extra curricular activities have been extremely valuable.  My kids learn about team work, schedules, balance, working with many personalities, learning skills incrementally, fighting perfectionism, we count it as PE and art in some cases, etc etc etc.  It's not necessarily just about learning soccer or ballet.   Many of my kids nearest and dearest friends are those hooked up with at these activities because they tend to have similar personalities and common interests.  I know every family has to find their own balance point when their schedules, finances, comfort level, etc.  It's just been a pretty exciting and amazing process watching my kids develop and grow over years of working at something.   You might learn something about your little guy out on that soccer field!

[Seeking Squirrels]

I'd let my kid do soccer. It's them doing the activity, not me. DD was in too many activities so I told her she had to cut back. We're dropping AWANA (done), piano(last day june 6), and frontier girls (last day thurs). Swimming lessons are required for safety reasons, having nothing to do with her chosen extracurriculars. She is now in Girl Scouts, soccer, and highland dance. DD2 will be doing some mommy and me classes soon, but when she gets older she'll be allowed to choose her own activities within reason. Hopefully we can make some of it line up. But if we can juggle six for DD, we can juggle three each for the two of them, especially because we can make some of them line up. I already know DD2 will choose highland dance.

[Erica in OR]

I know how you feel. We've tended to do our main activities in groups for the kids, but there's always the temptation to add one more thing. Eventually you're driving yet somewhere else, thinking "How did I get to this point?" I'll be the poster to tell you don't take on something new right now. He's only going to be five. Buy him a soccer ball, and see if you can pick up some used shin guards and maybe cleats in his size. Set up a goal in your backyard and let him do basic stuff at home to start. If he truly loves it, re-evaluate next year.

 

Erica in OR

[Jenny in Florida]

:driving:  :driving:  :driving:

:auto:  :auto:  :auto:

 

Yep, that's a pretty accurate summary of my life.

 

Neither of my kids played sports, but they have both been active in various things since they were young. Although there has been some overlap in their pursuits, it's been very rare that they could both be based at the same location at the same or similar times.

 

They are both performers, and each has done a lot of community theatre. My son, alone, has done about 30 shows. However, in the decade or so that they have been at this, my kids have done precisely two productions together.  It has not been at all unusual for the two of them to be rehearsing different shows in different locations at more or less the same time three or four evenings a week. Add in choir rehearsals and private voice lessons and dance classes and auditions and performances, and you can imagine the juggling that has to happen sometimes.

 

In our family, we made the decision to stay the course and let our kids explore their passions to whatever extent they could manage. It's hectic, but it's been so good for them that I have no regrets.

[Danestress]

I think competitive swimming is too emotionally and physically draining for a child to do it who doesn't really connect with it and choose it. I loved it and think it's a great sport, but it can be really discouraging and taxing. I would let a kid choose soccer if that is what he wants.

[Mommyof4ks]

We let our kids pick 2 activities each, and they are all in different things. Right now we have 4 kids, and 5 will be our max, because I do not want to have to limit their choices to things they all have to do together. All of my kids are great at different things, so making them do the same activity to fit my schedule would just lead to resentment and frustration. Then again, my parents let my sister and I try anything we wanted to, so maybe that is why I want my kids do the same. I found my love for dance, and my sister loves golf.

[texasmama]

I would try a season of little kid soccer. I am trying to be sensitive to the needs/wants of my youngest and not have her miss out just because she is the youngest. My boys are involved with a five month long season of four nights a week competitive basketball which dh coaches. But my little girl wants to play Upward Basketball this year, and we will make it work. The seasons run at the same time. It will be busy. But little dd spent hours tagging along with her brothers' practices and games last year so I think it is fair that she gets her own activity. It is what I can live with, anyway. :)

[mom31257]

Little kid soccer here is a big commitment, 2 sometimes 3 practices a week. This is why we never did it and only have 2 kids. I would look at the schedule first.

 

If it is a lot, look for Upward soccer in your area.

[GSOchristie]

Thanks for your answers, I was a little overwhelmed last night as I was looking at art camps and realizing I was going to have to choose three separate weeks for them, and all the driving that was going to go with it, and what my fall was going to look like if we added something else.  Just to clarify, they both know how to swim, this is swim team, so the swim on T and Th are practices, not lessons, and not mandatory.  My dh thinks we should let 5 YO do soccer in the fall and tell 7 YO he has to take a break from swimming for those three months.  He can start swimming again in November when J is done with soccer.  I don't mind doing soccer two days a week if we take swimming out of the equation two days a week.  I forgot that we are also adding piano for 7 YO next year. We live 20-25 minutes from everything, so I guess I'm seeing all this time in the car in my future.  I realize that I am also panicking over something that may never come to pass, he might just play one season and realize he doesn't like it as much as swimming (or diving, really, that's the carrot I put out there).  He told me last night, "I really want to play soccer because you get to have Gatorade and potato chips after the game." :).  

 

[DawnM]

It depends.  This year my younger two couldn't do a couple of things they wanted to because I simply could not get them there.  Oldest was involved in Robotics and it was 45 min. each way to that and some of the year it was over 40 hours per week.  I simply could not get middle to basketball as it conflicted schedule wise.  Youngest had a couple things he wanted to do too that I could not get him to.

 

However, at the ages your kids are, I didn't do a whole lot of running around.  Middle did soccer for a while, but it was close by.  Oldest did art.  Youngest was very young and I didn't sign him up for anything.

 

So, honestly, I just said unless they had a burning passion, we didn't pursue it.

 

This next year I WILL make time for middle son to do basketball.  

 

But overall, they all 3 do BoyScouts (youngest a cub) as it is something we can all do together.  Our unit even has a girl's group, so it is very family friendly.

 

Dawn

[Donna]

We do whatever we can comfortably do or figure out a way to do so each child gets to do what interests them most. That has meant saying "I'm sorry, we just can't fit that in unless you want to give up ____." sometimes but that's life. I have three kids with some similar interests and some completely different interests. We've always been able to find a way for them to each have something of their own. 

 

Granted, what I will do for my kids activities might be a little over-the-top for many but what I would do as far as spending and driving has increased slowly over the years to a point I would never have considered when they all were younger. I feel they only have one childhood and if they are willing to do their part in following their interests, practicing and choosing to foregoing other things, then I will do all I can do for them. I will have plenty of time and money when they are grown.  

 

Having one who can drive himself was awesome this year. He goes off to college in the fall when the next will get his license.

[Soror]

Well, I guess luckily for me my kids have never really asked to do anything as they haven't been aware of much. I let them know about activities that fit our schedule/finances that I believe they will be interested in and see what they think. We started Cub Scouts a couple of years ago with ds, then last year dd started AHG (same night). This winter the oldest 2 started TKD but only ds choose to keep at it. This summer dd1 and 2 are trying out dance classes. I wouldn't have started dd2 except for the fact that with dd1 doing it she is very much excited to try. Dance classes are just once a week though, TKD has classes numerous days but most just come 1-2 days a week, I aim for 2 days, so I can just have ds do TKD on the evening we do dance which will save some driving. So right now I look at it as how many nights/evenings will we be out of the house, right now it is 2-3, this fall if we continue with dance and the schedule is the same it will be 3, that is our personal limit for the moment, although we would consider more for a short term activity. We like to have supper together and reasonable bedtimes and I notice that even the kids start to ask to stay home when we start getting more than that, although they of course enjoy the activities, sleep, rest and family time are more important. 

 

Personally I think there are many ways to have a happy family and fulfilled childhood. The idea that our children have to do everything that is offered or they want is a new one, which has also came with a huge explosion in the offering of kids activities. I know families that have super busy schedules that love it and think it best for them. I don't want that for our family though, certainly not at he age of my children. There are pros and cons to everything and numerous activities also mean a lot more money and stress and a lot less family time, from what I've seen of families that keep such schedules it isn't quite what I want for us. We all have to find our own balance though and try to keep respectful of everyone's needs and the family dynamics, good luck in sorting it out for your family.

[Joyofsixreboot]

Well, we're a soccer family so I'd let him play  :laugh:  but he's 5.  If it doesn't fit your schedule there are still a lot of soccer years left, KWIM?  I'm not sure when the extras for little kids became such a thing.  I try to help my kids find an interest by 3rd grade or so but I don't worry about 5yo.  In the end you'll be doing the running so if it's going to make mama grumpy and unhappy it's not worth it.  I do think that as they get older, you'll be busier.  My kids can have one outside activity besides scouts but I still have 4 kids who can't drive so that leads to an activity or two every night for me to get them to.

[Joyofsixreboot]

Little kid soccer here is a big commitment, 2 sometimes 3 practices a week. This is why we never did it and only have 2 kids. I would look at the schedule first.

 

If it is a lot, look for Upward soccer in your area.

This must be a league or regional difference.  My kids usually had one practice a week and a game on Saturday.  My 15yo had chosen to play in a rec league this year and that is her schedule too.  I guess check with where you plan to play first.

[Gentlemommy]

Let him do soccer. I have 3, 6, and 9 year olds. All are in classes and lessons. It's crazy, but I see how much they love it, so we do it. I maybe wouldn't if they were in school all day, because I'd want to have down time and family time. Since we homeschool, it's not a problem.

[Miss Tick]

Between 8 and 9 I started to be comfortable with carpooling with families I had been sharing waiting time with for a few years. You may get some relief that way in a few years (don't discount it because you live rural!)

[J-rap]

This is what you do:  You move to a small town where everything is 8 blocks away!  :)  Life is sooo much easier!

 

Other than that, I do think once your children reach a certain age you end up spending a lot of time in the car driving them places.  Perhaps if your son gets involved with soccer and wants to continue, you can eventually get into a car pool with other kids.  Could you do that for swimming?  I also tried to involved my kids in a lot of the same things (starting with swimming and 4H), and it worked out great for a number of years.  Once their interested started to vary we worked it out when we could, but sometimes we just couldn't and had to say no.

[Gil]

... He told me last night, "I really want to play soccer because you get to have Gatorade and potato chips after the game." :).  

Can you just buy him some chips and Gatorade after swim? It might be cheaper and less time consuming than swim...

[mom31257]

5 year olds?!

 

Yes, at least that's what I was told by a mom who had every child playing soccer. I think it is a big sport here, but other sports require that much, too. We have allowed ds to play Upward basketball because it is only 3 months, one practice each week, and one game on Saturdays for 2 months.  We are just this summer trying swimming, but the practices and meets are not mandatory. We will attend all we can, but I like the low pressure of it. It's in the summer, too, so our schedule has the time for it. Dd is in a play this summer and doesn't have her license yet. I guess we'll be more of a typical American family taking them 2 different directions. At least we aren't outnumbered...LOL! 

[ByGrace3]

I think you have to choose-- are you going to be a family that participates in team sports? If so, I don't think oldest child should choose for all.

 

Kids sports can be a big commitment. If we weren't homeschooling, we wouldn't do it. But as it is I have 1 dd on team gymnastics, ds plays basketball, and younger dd is on Preteam gymnastics. They will all do swim team over the summer. its the only time of year i allow two commitments.

 

The schedule is busy but not consuming. If and when it conflicts with family or church community, it stops. We pick our nonnegotiable priorities-- family time, church community/commitments, no practices on Sundays or Wednesdays, and then we allow the kids to pick sports that we can afford within those parameters.

[rmtzc2009]

I struggle with balancing extracurriculars.  We have 3 kids, 10, 8, and 5.  DS10 does baseball with practice 2 nights a week lasting 2 hours and a game on the weekend lasting 3 hours.  DS8 does soccer.  One practice a week, 1 hour and 1 game on Saturday.  The kids do a church program Wednesday nights.  With all this I feel pushed to the max!  However, DS 5 has also been begging to play soccer.  Even though it's a fairly small commitment I can't imagine adding another soccer came to Saturdays schedule!

 

I think you just have to talk to your husband and decide what you are both comfortable doing.  

[marbel]

It sounds as if you chose swimming for your oldest child, so you could say no to soccer because you as the parents have chosen swimming for your family. 

 

If the oldest had chosen swimming, then I'd say you need to let #2 choose soccer, because oldest shouldn't choose for all (as a pp said).  That'll set up some sibling resentment!

 

But still I'd be inclined to let #2 try soccer if it fits.  It doesn't have to be a big commitment at first.  I'd give up one of the other nightly things, or tag-team with husband if possible. For example, on small group night, maybe you and your husband could alternate weeks, one taking the kid to soccer and the other going to small group.  (Of course I  might be misunderstanding how small group works; I'm assuming it's for the adults.)   Or one parent take swimmer on Thursday and other take soccer kid.  It really depends on what night soccer is, and if the other activity that night is negotiable or you can tag-team.

 

Even with two kids, we were tag-teaming it a lot.  It can be a hassle.  I don't go out of my way to get my kids into every activity they want, but I think it's important to let them try things out, particularly if they are homeschooled and not exposed to those things in a school setting. In our family, soccer didn't last very long but one of my kids would still be harping on it 5 years later if we'd said no to it in the first place.

 

 

[AngelaNYC]

My 3 have been in over a dozen different activities since they all turned 3.  I just made it work.  Lots of driving around and we were really busy, but we did it.  Of course it would have been easier if they all did the same thing.  One year they did!  But is was short lived, and they all wanted something new after that.  

[MysteryJen]

All of my kids have done competitive swimming and something else. Yes, it is sometimes crazy, always expensive, but it has been very worth it for our family.

 

I drive a lot. We are 20-40 minutes away from the majority of our activities. Swim team is the constant. Other sports work around it. And we have been able to make it work, overlapping classes and times, so that sometimes we come early for one child and stay late for another.

 

I would not ask a child to give up a primary activity for a sibling to try something new. If you can make it work for both, you should do that. It is fine to limit sports, but each child should get to choose for themselves.

 

Maybe Gatorade and chips after swim team would solve the immediate question!

[texasmama]

In our family, soccer didn't last very long but one of my kids would still be harping on it 5 years later if we'd said no to it in the first place.

We had a similar experience with baseball.  We had one son who asked to play it for several years and we were unable to do it for many reasons.  He played three seasons (and one of these, his older brother played on his team, as well, to try it out).  When it came time to decide between basketball (four days a week from 3:30-5:30 half an hour away) and baseball, younger son chose playing basketball knowing it was the end of his baseball career.

 

I suffered from a lot of guilt during the years we told him "no" about baseball (for many, complex reasons), and I'm really glad he got the chance to scratch his baseball itch and play for those three seasons.  It was a short, intense season for us (and kind of pricy), but I am so grateful we did it.  Then he was able to make his own choice about a sport going forward and has been very happy.  This is a kid who would have always wondered and had regrets if he had not been able to try baseball for those three seasons.  Not every kid is like this.

 

As a kid, I was allowed to try many different activities, most of which did not "stick".  But I am very glad for the chance to do so.  I know now what a sacrifice that was for my parents (particularly my mom), but I am grateful.  That said, no kid can do or try everything, particularly in the context of a family with several kids.  That is part of the trade off of having several siblings. 

 

All that said,  I resisted putting little dd in dance classes (multiple reasons), and that desire has gone away.  My kids never got into the karate I wanted them to take.  We do sports instead of Boy Scouts because we can't manage the time for both.  I wanted younger ds to try robotics, but he was not interested. Our family is a basketball family for lots of reasons (we are really, really tall, for one), and I think that the kids are good with that...but it has been a process.  And every person's and family's process is different so there isn't one right or wrong answer.

[SKL]

While they are young, I only do things they can both do at the same time.  My kids are 7, and that's still how we do things.  ;)

 

Can you put both kids in soccer next fall?  If not, is there anything your other son can do to keep busy and active during that time?  Or would it make sense to bring some school work for him to do?

 

I would still do swimming, though, for both kids.  It's a life skill and not optional over here.

[SKL]

FWIW we have not done team sports because the schedule would be a nightmare for me.  I hope I'm not ruining my kids' lives ....

[scootiepie]

I told my husband a while back if I am spending my day homeschooling the kids, then he needs to take charge of the sports .... mainly taking them to practice.   

That has worked for us.  I get a little peace when they're all out of the house which some days I desperately need.

The games on the weekends are a family affair.   

 

 

For the first time we have signed up for a summer swim league.   I am dying a little bit on the inside thinking about all the driving and early mornings.  Summer is my break from all

the extracurriculars so I may be hard to live with.     If it wasn't a safety issue, I would not do it. 

[kewb]

If you can afford it let him play soccer.  When mine were little I let them try just about anything they were interested in. It was about exposure to different things.  I lucked out that they both took to the water and swim competitively.  One of my friends has triplets.  They all do dance.  1 swims, 1 plays softball, the other is an artist.  She drives a lot and arranges carpools.

[G5052]

Some moms I know drive a lot and are in multiple carpools for activities.  At one point a friend of mine had kids in five levels of soccer, all were taking music lessons of various sorts, and they had a lot of church activities.  I don't know how she did it, but she had it all planned out and the older ones had cell phones and back-up plans if she couldn't get there in time to pick them up.  As soon as they turned 16, they got their licenses and started driving themselves.  Her husband worked long hours and had two jobs, but he helped when he could.

 

Me?  I couldn't deal with that much.  Mine do the same sport 3x a week at the same place, and one does music lessons and an outside class (thankfully a carpool helps with that).  That's all I can stand!

[Caclcoca]

I have four children involved in extracurricular activities. Some overlap, but others don't. We are in the car a lot, but I do want them to get to pick what they do. I have three that want to swim, but my middle boy loves soccer. He would be miserable if I took soccer away from him. So I would try to find a way to let them both do the sport they picked.

[Elisabet1]

I had to cave and let them go different directions. I should have caved earlier. I do not know why this in in italics, but will have to finish my post like this, sorry....

 

My older children had different interests, but I always made them do the same thing. One always lost out. I really regret that. Then, with the middles, they did nothing until a year ago because we were so busy with older daughter. Finally, we put them in Karate and Boy Scouts. Well, that did not work out. Older of the two loves Karate, but younger is more artistic. He wants to do dance. Now I have finally concluded that I have to go different directions and let each child pursue their thing.

[Soror]

We're not big on team sports here, so we've never tried any. We've done some swimming lessons but just the shorter summer sessions. I'd love for the kids to do swim team but it requires 6 days a week, starting about 6am, which is not good for those with smaller children still asleep. We tried track last year as I thought it would be perfect for the older 2 and they were interested but the schedule kept growing and then there were reschedules to Sun (we take as a family day if at all possible) and ds was rather meh about it. DD1 liked it pretty well, not well enough to try it again. I believe we will be starting a robotics club this fall but it will be at our house, which makes life easier for me, no idea how often we'll meet yet though.

[GSOchristie]

Here soccer is one one hour practice during the week (day determined by coach in the fall) and one 45 minute game on Saturday. He will always be in the first set of games. Half our games will be played at a field 6 minutes from our house, half are played at a field 25 minutes away. Hopefully, practices would be at the close field, I think they assign teams geographically. Carpooling is an issue now because if car seats, we just moved A to a low back booster two weeks ago, J is still five point harnessed. I would have to move his car seat if he was going to ride with someone to games. Another issue is we still have a bunch of weddings in the fall, so my nanny would probably have to take him to half the games, two September games, two in October, one in November. She wouldn't mind, I don't think, but we wouldn't be there to watch.

[bettyandbob]

He told me last night, "I really want to play soccer because you get to have Gatorade and potato chips after the game." :).  

 

My response would be "other kids might, but people in our family do not." The amount of exercise kids get at this level of soccer warrants water. Not Gatorade, with all its added crap.

 

Obviously, this is my family's personal preference.

 

I'd still do soccer. I like my kids to try multiple things so they have a chance to discover what they like.