Building a Foundation for Your Kids

When I was a kid, I wanted to sign up for every activity in the book. It began with cheerleading, then it was dance, softball, track, chess club, choir, drama- you name it. Needless to say, from my childhood to my teenage years, I had my parents running amuck. Was I passionate about every extracurricular? No, and some of my interests just came and went like the wind. There were, however, those few sports/activities that I loved the most. And today I thank my parents for introducing me to all of it.

It all started with cheerleading. I remember how badly I wanted to be on the cheer team. I started a new school in the middle of my second grade year, and I can vividly recall all of the friends that I made. This one particular day, I saw one of my new friends bounce up out of her seat after class and grab her cheer poms out of her cubby. The intercom buzzed in, listing o the end-of-the-day announcements. I heard there were cheer tryouts, and just like that, a light bulb went o in my little kid brain. That’s what I wanted to do, I wanted to be a cheerleader. As soon as I got home, I begged my mom to sign me up. We were late signing up, but I was allowed to jump into tryouts, hoping I could learn the choreography in time - I had two days. The day they announced who made it on the team, I was holding my mom’s hand tight. We were assigned a number - I was number ‘0’ - and I watched my friends being called, one-by-one. I saw disappointment in some kids’ faces and I sank. Then to my surprise, the final number was called, “Number ‘0’.” My mom and I bounced up and down like a bunch of jelly beans. From that day through my senior year in high school, I cheered. I competed in competitions and added dance into the mix, and that was my thing. Above everything else, cheer and dance were my number one.

I love it when I hear the confidence in my kids’ voices, and I see the cute, excited expressions on their faces when they are sure they want to do something. When their minds are set on a sport or activity, I have no regrets signing them up and going all in. Over the years, my big kids have slowly eliminated little activities they were once involved in, and I see it narrowing down to one or two main interests as the years go by. All of the little things I signed them up for - pee wee soccer, Tball, basketball - have merged into bigger things. I believe those “little things” helped them learn the foundations of sports and playing with a team. It also kept them active and strong! Now, they chose their “thing”; their niche. (For now, at least.) But it brings joy to me knowing they are truly in it and they enjoy it.

So when you sign your kids up for a million little things when they are little, know that you are building a pathway for them to explore more and beyond. One day, they will just know what their thing is. And you as a parent should be proud of that because you helped get them there. The next time you wonder if you are wasting your time as you watch your toddler pick dandelions in the soccer field, don’t. That little toddler will one day learn from that experience and find their thing!

By Amanda Hayward EDITOR

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