Too many things to blog about.
Too many things on my mind.
Too many sleepless nights due to thinking about too many different things.
Too many decisions to make.
Too many prayers to be said.
Too many answers to listen for....
Life is so crazy busy these days. I never imagined it would be this way as we have always kept things pretty simple around here. I guess slowly over time that changed. The kids are involved in more extra-curricular activies. I seem to be busier than usual with my calling at church, so many school projects, so much laundry (!), birthday parties to plan and host, potty training to commit myself to, blah, blah, blah. Just so many things.
I'm hoping that if I write out some of the things on my mind I'll maybe be able to get it off my chest and out of my mind and get some sleep tonight!
Tonight was Activity Day's. It went really well. We made Family History books from a great website called Wendy's Activities. One thing off my mind.
Tomorrow we are having Dan's cousin and her husband over for dinner. They are newly married, and expecting a baby and a super cute couple. We hope to be able to befriend them, provide them with some family support, and to help them with the new-parent jitters (and also to get them coming back to church....) .
Thursday we are having Kami's 7th Birthday Party. She has invited 4 friends from school to come over after school for a couple of hours. She is so excited about it, it is so cute to watch her grow and make some real friends and have them over to the house to play. We will make hair clips and play games and hopefully keep them entertained for a couple of hours before their parents come to pick them up. I'm not too worried about that, they are a great group of girls.
After that, we were supposed to go to the cabin. We have not been there for so long and are really looking forward to a break and some USA shopping. However, I have not been able to get my visiting teaching done this month so on Thursday night I am making my family stay home so that I can go to a Relief Society dinner and sit with my gals and count that for visiting teaching this month. The other lady I hope to be able to visit Thursday morning.
One of the biggest and hardest decisions that I am trying to make is the girls and their gymnastics. We try to encourage our kids to try out all sorts of different sports and activities. I've always really believed that it is good for kids to have something to do with their time. Something that they enjoy and that they are good at. I think it's good for their self-esteem and good for them to stay busy. This year Chelsey and Kami decided that they'd like to try gymnastics. And it seems they've found "their thing". They are both very good at it. Over the last week I've had a few of the coaches approach me and tell me that they see potential in the girls and that they are advanced for their ages. Kami has been invited to join the Invitaional Only Team called Elite Petites. They suggested Chelsey try-out for the Ladies Competitive Team. I was so excited and proud for my girls! What a great opportunity for them, right?
Well, there is more to it. Kami's class is 4 hours a week. Ouch. And worse, if Chelsey were to make the Comp. Team, it is a minimum of 6 hours of training a week and the price is astronomical! How do I, as a mother, decide if this is something they should do? I have so many thoughts and questions!
*Is this something we can handle financially, or is it something we want to spend that much $ on?
*Is is too much? Too much time away from the home and family? Will they be able to keep up with school, church and other responsibilities?
*Is it fair to make the other kids give up their time to sit at the gymnastics building or be driving the girls back and forth every day.... because it would be pretty much. every.day.
*Am I allowing the girls to do something I've always told Ty he couldn't do: he has always wanted to play hockey and I've always said it's too much money, too much time commitment and too many Sunday's.....
*Where do you find the balance in developing talents and not over-scheduling?
*I've always told myself I would do whatever I could to give my kids the same opportunities they would have if they weren't growing up in a largish family... is this one of those times when I have to think about them as individuals rather than as part of something much larger?
*I have a million more thought about this but I'll spare you as this post is already long and boring. I don't usually post these sorts of posts but since it's been forever since I've had a chance to update the blog, it's your lucky day and this one is going up!
This is just a tip of the ice burg of what is going on for me but I'm starting to bore myself and don't want this to be miles long. Seriously, m.i.l.e.s. long.
7 comments:
It's not boring. If it helps at all, I would choose "not". I would choose to make things less complicated, not more. It probably doesn't help, does it? :-)
What a hard decision. I know there are things I regret giving up on as a kid with lessons/sports etc b/c you can only do them as a kid growing up. But at the same time, it makes life more stressful. The only thing I can think of is pray! By the way, gymnastics was my favorite thing I did growing up. I always wished I lived somewhere bigger than Cardston where the training was a little better.
I have always gone with the easier, less complicated answer, as I can't deal with more. As a result my kids have missed out on quite a few opportunities. I feel guilty at times, but I hope that I have done what is best for my family. They are individuals, and because of that should have individual opportunities. But the family also needs time and opportunities.
You have to make the decision that is best for your family. You will get the answers you need. You are a wonderful mom and even if life is crazy, you are doing the best you can, and that is enough :)
I've just been sitting at the computer trying to think of ways I can make changes in my life to help me simplify and help me be happier... Obviously I can't tell you what you should do, but if you have a gut feeling like things need to slow down, then you know what to do. What a fabulous opportunity though -- Good luck with your decision! :)
I actually think you should go for it! As long as it fits in your life, and doesn't make you guys overly stressed....i always wished I had the opportunity to get good at something like that...and I always encourage my kids to seek out things they enjoy...so encourage it for now1
PRAY, PRAY, PRAY. HE will help you decide what is right. I'd love to see the girls in gymnastics and Ty in hockey but is that what they really want? Your family is definitely busy and growing up fast, they are all good kids and even when they challenge you they know you are right. My love and prayers are with you.
Your blog reminded me of a talk by Julie B. Beck "Mothers Who Know"...great talk! I don't know what I would do though. Justin and I want to get our kids into something they really like, but not just get them into it, but have them excel at it - but that would obviously mean they'd need to put the time into it too, right? So I don't know...tough decisions! You guys are amazing though, I'm sure you'll do the "right" thing...whatever that is!
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