Kids after school activities/hobbies...

[Bumble Beez]

Ok...so I have three boys 10, 8 and 4...and my week looks like this...

Monday 6 - 7: goalie training for DS10
Tuesday 5:30 - 7: team footie training DS10
Wednesday 6 - 7: tennis training DS10 then 7 - 9 roller skating DS8 & DS4
Thursday...night off...ish, college for me 6 - 9 zzzzzzzzzz
Friday 5:30 - 6:30: tennis training DS8 & DS4
Saturday 10 - 11:30: footie training DS4 and DS10 volunteers to help with training

Then Sundays are spent watching footie matches and tennis tournaments...

Oh and DS8 has a new team footie training starting soon one evening :'(
And DS4 tells me tonight that he would 'really like to learn to ride a horse...' I could cry lol!!

Anyone else's week similar or worse or am I the only one?!

I love that my boys enjoy their sport but sometimes I just wanna sit down

I need more days, time and money!

Sarah x

[FloraDora]

I know that feeling...been there a number of years ago. Rugby,football,cricket,piano,violin and drum lessons, gigs....performances.. D of E volunteering .
As long as they also have time doing nothing and learning to occupy themselves too then It will all benefit them in the long run.

As a parent though .... Your life becomes driving and waiting, driving and watching ....with little time left for yourself!

I recommend a good book or take your planning to the training so that you are not just hanging around .. I expect you actually quite enjoy the matches.

As pay back though watching my sons play at the Birmingham Symphony hall and Glastonbury (twice) was emotionally wonderful. Their sporting talents meant they played at a high level - county - and the D of E presentations were proud moments - all added towards character and experience building, uni personal statement and CV. All worth those evenings spent wishing I had more time for myself, the house, my hobbies....... A bath!

Both are settled in good lives and jobs ... And I now have time for myself .... Those days on reflection were actually bonding times .... The boys love that I gave them so much of my time and are grateful...

Hang in there- it is worth it.

[jolliesdean]

Im the same I have 5 boys and 1 girl.
Monday- footie training 7 /8pm x1 ds13
Tuesday - off
Wedensday - footie traing 6/730pm x 3 boys
Thursday- 6/7 pm footie training x ds9
Friday -7/830 pm footie training x ds14
Saturday - 930 / 1030 am footie training x ds2 plus 2 footie matches ds 9 ds14
Sunday ds 13 footie match and ds14
Still have to fit in premiership matches as a season ticket holder
And to top it off little girl is a extra for tv and model.
Thank god for mother in law x

[LauraS]

Completely. Mondays are cello lesson for dd2 thiry mins drive away, fat club and gym for me and running club for dh. Tuesdays brownies for dd2 and dd3 and orchestra locally for dd1. Wednesdays running club for dh, clarinet lesson for dd1. Thursdays are free, although dh runs and I either run or go to the gym. Ditto Fridays. Saturdays are swimming lessons for dd2 and dd3, orchestra forty five minutes drive away for dd1 (a different orchestra to the first), violin lesson for dd3 and running for me and i work from 6.30pm too. Sundays are invariably race days for dh, and we all usually go to support him.

Add to this I am running about after my dad at the moment as he is unwell, housework, dh training five days a week and theoretically I should be too, paperwork, and working 7am to 5.30pm with four kids of my own.... No wonder I am frazzled!

I think it is the lot of most families with young children though, tobe honest x

[Memina]

I know the feeling!

Ds7 does competitive taekwando so he trains loads. Monday 6-7.30 & Saturday 11-13.30.

Tuesday Spanish 4-5
Wednesday Sports club 3.30-4.30
Thursday Dd4 Ballet - 4-5 & ds7 football 5-6
Friday cub scouts 6-7.30.

Theb he's preparing for Holy Communion so we need to go to Saturday&sunday school.

My dd poor thing gets left out but we're thinking my son could drop something so she can take on another activity.

[critch]

Me too,

Monday Dd11 gym 4-8.30
Tuesday Dd11 coaching 4-7 and dd5 gym 5-7
Wednesday dd11 gym 4-8.30
Thursday off
Friday dd11 and dd5 horseriding 4.30-7
Saturday dd5 and ds5 swimming
Sunday dd11 gym 9-3

Lots of running around!

[loocyloo]

Phew! I don't feel so bad! My children seem to be constantly doing activities but they are things they want to do and hopefully will stay with them for ever. I do feel like a chauffeur but we share lifts with friends so it's not so bad!

Monday ... dd dancing ds & dd piano lesson
Tuesday ... dd singing ds football training
Wednesday ... dd environmental ds drama dd & ds swimming
Thursday ... dd dancing
Friday ... dd drama & singing ds basketball
Saturday ... ds football training
Sunday ... ds brass band ds football matches dd sunday school

Not to mention assorted clubs, music lessons and bands etc at school.

[Bumble Beez]

Wowzers...not just me then!!
To be fair I love watching the matches and love to support them...
One mum I know said I'm pushing them all too hard, but they all want to do these activities and I feel it's good for them so why not let them?!
If we weren't doing all this stuff, we would all be bored

Sarah x

[Roseolivia]

OMG I think you're all mad

How on earth do you fit all that in and work/housework as well, not to mention the kids homework.

Rose horserides on a Monday but a friend takes her with his children as it's when i'm working. She then has gymnastics Sat 9-10 and swims Sun 10-10.30. I don't think we could fit in anything else through the week, once the kids have gone home we need to walk the dog, do homework if any, supper then bed at 7-7.30.

[bunyip]

Can I suggest we all switch our children's sporting interests and teach them the benefits of learning to play snooker, dominoes or darts?

At least then we can sit in a comfy pub with a pint if we have to watch them play.

[Bumble Beez]

Can I suggest we all switch our children's sporting interests and teach them the benefits of learning to play snooker, dominoes or darts? At least then we can sit in a comfy pub with a pint if we have to watch them play.

Now there's an idea...having said that, DS8 watches snooker a lot and is actually quite good

Sarah x

[smurfette]

Can I suggest we all switch our children's sporting interests and teach them the benefits of learning to play snooker, dominoes or darts?

At least then we can sit in a comfy pub with a pint if we have to watch them play.

Ah yes much prefer this idea! Much better than standing at the side of a cold wet pitch!

[loocyloo]

Ah yes much prefer this idea! Much better than standing at the side of a cold wet pitch!

luckily for me DH does the standing by the side of the pitch thing!

[loocyloo]

OMG I think you're all mad

How on earth do you fit all that in and work/housework as well, not to mention the kids homework.

Rose horserides on a Monday but a friend takes her with his children as it's when i'm working. She then has gymnastics Sat 9-10 and swims Sun 10-10.30. I don't think we could fit in anything else through the week, once the kids have gone home we need to walk the dog, do homework if any, supper then bed at 7-7.30.

think i'm mad too!

it has evolved over the 2 1/2yrs that we've been here! where we used to live, the childrens activities were at the weekend, and equally they were younger and didn't do so much! here we can't pick and choose which day to do an activity ... if they want to do it, it has to be done on the day it is offered!

homework is done as soon as we get home from school /reading at bedtime. luckily we're part of a good network of friends and there are always multi people lifts going on! so I only do lifts once I've finished work! a couple of times I have to mindees along with DD to things, but have mindees attending too!

and housework? ... whats that?

[fionamadcat]

I sometimes wonder if my dd does too much! She does mon homework club 3 - 4, tues running club 3.30 - 4.45 then street dancing 6 - 7, wed brownies 6.45- 8, thurs youth club 6.30 - 8, fri during summer tennis and 1 weekend day horse riding.
She wants to do horse riding more and her running coach wants her to take that up a gear and she is keen to do it. Think she will give up dancing without too much of a fight and brownies will end when she turns 10 in feb and we don't have guides locally.
Compare her to my ds who goes to running club and his brass band and that is it for him, he just doesn't want to do anything else.

[scottishlass]

My youngest daughter age 7 does brownies Monday, street dance Tuesday, swimming Thursday, highland dance Fridays! Over the years she has done lots if different classes and then changes her mind!

My other daughter who is 11 only goes to guides - she has dropped all her other classes and won't do anything else so I am just letting my youngest do classes while she still will!

[samb]

Woah your kids are so busy!

I thought my dd (8) did lots... Tues brownies 6:15-7:45; Friday dance straight from school-4:30 then swimming 5:30-6; Saturday tap and jazz 11-1. Ds (5) does tennis- mon after school-4:20.

Mondays works for me as other schoolie wanted to do it too so not an extra run; tues I finish at 5:30 so that works; Friday I finish at 2:30. Other days I can't manage as clubs would fall within times I have other children and its too much to do extra runs when they're here and too late for mine to do things later every day.

[chriss]

I must say I did have a year or so when it was like this in my house. I realised for us it was too much. No time to chill after school, having to take both kids when only one had an activity, so not fair on them. Not really spending any proper time with them wasnt good for us. so we scaled it right down to what they really wanted to do and we have our family life back how we want it.

kids can do too much