"What Do You Want To Do Next?"

One rule in our house is the the boys need to be involved in one activity outside of school. They always get to choose after we present the options to them based on what is available at the time. We want to expose them to as many activities as possible at a young age, and feel perfectly fine that neither one of them has seemed to latch on to one activity in particular at this point. Hopefully later on they will be able to make a more informed decision about what to pursue.

Additionally, once they choose, they are not allowed to quit. We feel there is a good lesson to be learned with this in that the coach/teacher is counting on them, their team is counting on them, and in our family, we do not quit or give up. Now, once the season/session is over, they do not ever need to choose that activity again, but they have to finish the season. We have been following this philosophy long enough that they seem to understand the process, and now look forward getting to choosing their next activity.

So far, they have each tried soccer, but Luka ended up playing in the woods more than he was on the field, and I think TJ perhaps kicked the ball only once each game. We tried Tae Kwon Do for one month, but that did not seem to be a hit at the time either (even though Luka was terribly cute in his little white outfit). We had a round of T-ball a year or so ago, but then they were ready for something new. TJ has played basketball a couple of seasons, but he just never seems to ever be where the ball is. Both boys have been involved in music lessons, and those didn't stick (though this is one area that we will definitely pursue again.) They have each had swimming lessons, but the indoor pool was so cold after a half hour that their lips and fingers were blue.

Currently, Luka is taking another shot at T-ball (and Scott is coaching) and TJ is in his second session of Tae Kwon Do. Luka has informed me that he is having a lot of fun with T-ball, but he wants to know what his options are next.

TJ is really doing well with Tae Kwon Do. What is interesting about this activity is that Scott and I have no clue how it all works like we do with soccer, t-ball, basketball, etc. It seems to be a really popular activity down here. It definitely teaches discipline and respect (both upon which TJ can certainly improve) and he really looks forward to going twice a week. Recently, he tested for his yellow stripe, and got to break a board and everything. He was really proud and had a great boost to his confidence.

What is next? Without being too pushy, we'd really like to see TJ try baseball. Since he was a baby, TJ has had a great arm and seems to have a strong natural throw. Likewise, he can just wail on balls that are pitched to him. I'd really like to see how he does now that he would be out of the T-ball stage. But, he says he'd like to do both baseball and Tae Kwon Do at the same time, but that means we would have four days a week of TJ's activities alone, not including Luka's, and I'm just not quite sure we can swing that! (No pun intended...)