OK, lots going through my mind... As you can see by my siggy, I am a homeschool mom of 4. I am getting things planned out for this upcoming year and am really torn on what to do. I am very much a homebody, but I also want to foster my children's interests at the same time. My oldest is a fisherman - he fishes tournaments throughout the year with my husband. He's grown up with a rod in his hands (almost literally, I have a pic of him as a NB and DH was playing around with him. At 6 or 7 months old he was on the boat, pacifier in his mouth, just reeling away! At not-quite-2 he was casting on his own and reeling in the fish.) A gentleman that used to fish on the pro-tour took him out one day. He is big into getting youth out on the water and had taken a number of kids out so that was kind of his "baseline" you could say. He came back blown away by his skill with a rod, and ODS even out fished him :lol: . I overheard him talking to someone else about how one day he would love to sponsor him. Fishing is something I want him to be able to do, and it doesn't really require much extra b/c DH is already fishing anyway.
The older two are taking piano - ODS has been doing it for a couple years, ODD just started last week. DH and I are both music people and we feel like piano is a good starting point because you learn so many of the basics plus both bass and treble cleft. They each do 30 minute lessons once a week, back to back. For now their great gma is taking them, but her health isn't great so I don't want to rely on that.
The two girls did dance two years ago, and the 3 older ones did it last year. This year all 4 are interested... unfortunately it looks like all 4 will be in separate classes. My older daughter is my laid back, go with the flow, eager to help child and she always gets the short end of the stick. Ballet is one thing she is truly good at (which is surprising given her general lack of coordination), and she loves it. The owner of the studio invited her to do competition which actually doesn't add much... just one weekend in November for intensives, then 3 competitions in the spring. I feel like ODS gets to do SO much, I want her to have something as well. The class itself is the same. Most, but not all, of the other comp students take a second class in lyrical/technique which is the other genre she was interested in. I want so bad to do it, because I feel like she does so much to help around the house, usually without complaint.
Last is our Bible study class - CBS. It's Wednesday mornings, but it's an hour away so it's a most-of-the-day affair. It's my one thing to do outside of the house and I have grown to love the women there. It's also their main group activity and they have a lot of friends there as well.
So... as of right now, next year looks like this:
Monday's will be our LONG days. ODD's ballet class would be in the 5-6:00 range, then ODS and YDD will have clogging later in the evening (7-8:30 I think? Assuming they are in separate levels, the classes will be back to back). DH and I will likely plan picnic suppers together as a family after he gets off of work b/c we live 20 minutes from the studio so to come home then go back is pointless. Then we would divide and conquer - two at the studio, two at home.
Tuesdays:
Piano lessons 3:30-4, 4-4:30
ODD's second class 5:15-6 (DH doesn't normally get home until around 6 so it won't cut into family time, and I can get errands done between lessons or during her dance)
Wednesday:
CBS - leave at 8:45-9, get home mid to late afternoon... usually we do lunch with friends then errands in the city
Thursday:
3:30-4 YDS's tumbling class
1 Saturday per month is fishing... then some extras in the fall and spring with a couple months off in the winter.
I am exhausted just thinking about it, but it's a season in life, right?
Then I go and listen to a Simply Charlotte Mason talk on simplifying schedules and life in general so we can have margin and it spoke so much to my heart and all my hesitations...
I'm so torn!! Our family motto is to encourage the forever things, and we feel dance and piano fit that bill (it's a Christian studio as well, so music and costumes are far more appropriate than any other place I have seen). We did t-ball and the first season was great - it was a fun family activity. The next? Ugly. The parents that in the previous season cheered for the kids no matter which team were yelling and screaming at them. Kids were crying, they were frustrated and throwing helmets. We walked away and never looked back, much to DH's family's dismay (sports are huge for them, and ODS did show some talent). It wasn't worth it, especially at that age.
Mainly I am the only one with hesitation - they enjoy what they do... they are excited for lessons each week (minus ODS sometimes, but I think that's thanks to peer pressure. He gets made fun of quite a bit for doing dance and piano ).
Just trying to talk it out, think it through. If I say no to one for dance, I feel like I have to tell all of them no... I don't want to have to do that. We will still have plenty of time to do school in the mornings, that won't be an issue. They have all but outgrown naps, so that's not a big deal either (I do require 1 hour of rest time for everyone, but rarely does anyone fall asleep).
The older two are taking piano - ODS has been doing it for a couple years, ODD just started last week. DH and I are both music people and we feel like piano is a good starting point because you learn so many of the basics plus both bass and treble cleft. They each do 30 minute lessons once a week, back to back. For now their great gma is taking them, but her health isn't great so I don't want to rely on that.
The two girls did dance two years ago, and the 3 older ones did it last year. This year all 4 are interested... unfortunately it looks like all 4 will be in separate classes. My older daughter is my laid back, go with the flow, eager to help child and she always gets the short end of the stick. Ballet is one thing she is truly good at (which is surprising given her general lack of coordination), and she loves it. The owner of the studio invited her to do competition which actually doesn't add much... just one weekend in November for intensives, then 3 competitions in the spring. I feel like ODS gets to do SO much, I want her to have something as well. The class itself is the same. Most, but not all, of the other comp students take a second class in lyrical/technique which is the other genre she was interested in. I want so bad to do it, because I feel like she does so much to help around the house, usually without complaint.
Last is our Bible study class - CBS. It's Wednesday mornings, but it's an hour away so it's a most-of-the-day affair. It's my one thing to do outside of the house and I have grown to love the women there. It's also their main group activity and they have a lot of friends there as well.
So... as of right now, next year looks like this:
Monday's will be our LONG days. ODD's ballet class would be in the 5-6:00 range, then ODS and YDD will have clogging later in the evening (7-8:30 I think? Assuming they are in separate levels, the classes will be back to back). DH and I will likely plan picnic suppers together as a family after he gets off of work b/c we live 20 minutes from the studio so to come home then go back is pointless. Then we would divide and conquer - two at the studio, two at home.
Tuesdays:
Piano lessons 3:30-4, 4-4:30
ODD's second class 5:15-6 (DH doesn't normally get home until around 6 so it won't cut into family time, and I can get errands done between lessons or during her dance)
Wednesday:
CBS - leave at 8:45-9, get home mid to late afternoon... usually we do lunch with friends then errands in the city
Thursday:
3:30-4 YDS's tumbling class
1 Saturday per month is fishing... then some extras in the fall and spring with a couple months off in the winter.
I am exhausted just thinking about it, but it's a season in life, right?
Then I go and listen to a Simply Charlotte Mason talk on simplifying schedules and life in general so we can have margin and it spoke so much to my heart and all my hesitations...
I'm so torn!! Our family motto is to encourage the forever things, and we feel dance and piano fit that bill (it's a Christian studio as well, so music and costumes are far more appropriate than any other place I have seen). We did t-ball and the first season was great - it was a fun family activity. The next? Ugly. The parents that in the previous season cheered for the kids no matter which team were yelling and screaming at them. Kids were crying, they were frustrated and throwing helmets. We walked away and never looked back, much to DH's family's dismay (sports are huge for them, and ODS did show some talent). It wasn't worth it, especially at that age.
Mainly I am the only one with hesitation - they enjoy what they do... they are excited for lessons each week (minus ODS sometimes, but I think that's thanks to peer pressure. He gets made fun of quite a bit for doing dance and piano ).
Just trying to talk it out, think it through. If I say no to one for dance, I feel like I have to tell all of them no... I don't want to have to do that. We will still have plenty of time to do school in the mornings, that won't be an issue. They have all but outgrown naps, so that's not a big deal either (I do require 1 hour of rest time for everyone, but rarely does anyone fall asleep).