Hi! I'm Victoria and I blog over at Smiles 'n' Snuggles. I entered the blogging world a little over a year ago thanks to Melissa! I mostly blog about my little guy, J, my pregnancy and my attempt at being crafty! I'd love for you to come visit me!
I come from a big family. Alright, not huge like Duggar style, but big compared to the typical family where I grew up. My Mom (the crazy lady that she is) had 4 kids under 5. It made things pretty hectic but I'd love to have a big family.
My family (including J and my nephew and minus my Dad)
My parents were both very active and involved when they were younger and they wanted that for us when were growing up. During the summers, my sister and I played softball (house league and all-star), my brother played rep baseball and my youngest sister played soccer. The winter months were even crazier! My brother played hockey, my sisters and I were involved in Girl Guides (same as Girl Scouts) and on the weekends, we skied, often at different hills as my brother and I were racers and had races almost every weekend. There were also all the school events. To be honest, I don't know how my parents kept their sanity!
Now that J is getting bigger and is home with me all day, I'm looking for opportunities for him to interact with other kids, learn new skills and be active. But my big question is how much is too much?
There are so many opportunities for kids these days. I've looked at signing J up for gymnastics, swimming, martial arts, hockey, baseball, soccer, football and Boy Scouts (all when he's older). I potentially could have him running around 4 or 5 days a week...which means I'll be running around 4 or 5 days a week...times that by 2 because we're expecting our second in September...no thank you!
My little football player!
I get that these things provide opportunities for kids to interact with each other, but what about burnout? Being a teacher, I see the negative effects of kids running around in the evening from activity to activity. They are the kids that aren't able to get their homework done and are exhausted in class. I feel bad for them, but also tell them that school is the priority.
I think parents need to realize that not every child is going to be the next Lebron James, Michael Phelps or Sydney Crosby and that they need to let their kids be kids. They can't push them. The trouble is in which direction do you start them? Do you put them in everything and hope they pick one or do you pick one or two and hope they continue with one they love. What happens if they hate everything you put them in?
We're signing J up for swimming lessons, but it's for more of a safety precaution. I'm also looking at gymnastics as a way to get his energy out one afternoon a week. That's it. Anymore than that and I'm going to be put in the poorhouse! As he gets older and shows some interest in other things we'll move forward
So what do you think? How much is too much?
By the way, we'll be seeing you at the World Series in 2031, when J is playing for the Red Sox. He's already one heck of a baseball player! I'll be the proud mom in the front row!
