gymnastics or family life fun

[gimchick]

Are there any parents that feel like gymnastics take you and your child away from other family members financially and emotionally sometime? I mean you have to travel sometimes without your spouse or other children if any applies to you. Your time at the gym either watching, dropping off, or picking up the girls does not allow much time for homelife other than quick meals, homework, and bathing. I am at the point of calling it quits sometime because I am so tired, overwhelmed and I need a break, mentally, financially, and just time away from the gym and travelling. suggestion, advice, are welcomed......

[Gym mum UK]

Oh yes, I identify with you completely! We are 1 hour's drive away from my daughter's gym and we seem to spend so much time in the car. It is also costing a lot due to the fuel price increases. I have 3 other children and I do feel that they suffer with less attention from me, less potential outings/ friends over etc.

We are on the point of giving it all up as she is definitely not going to the Olympics!! Is that the only thing though - if a child does not have the potential to go really far in a sport - should you just give it up for convenience etc? I really dont know the answer.

I am worried that she might be sorry at a later point in time...

[flippymonkeysmom]

I battle those same questions myself constantly.

[Bay Valley]

I am in the same situation. We live about 1 hr 20 minutes from our gym and practice 4 days a week. It does help that I just have to drive days a week thanks to a carpool. We have several people at our gym that do this even the ones that live minutes from the gym so they can spend more time with family and save money. Do you get any vacation time after the season is over? We do and it is well needed by than. We can also take 2 weeks vacation in the summer if we want.

[Gymmonkeymomma]

I think many of us are in the same boat. As long as my DD's are happy and want to stay in gymnastics, we will try to make it work. Their brother is now playing traveling soccer. We run ALL the time. We are lucky that we "only" live 15 mins from the gym. We do take our family vacations over the summer and spend any free weekends (meet-or-game-free) just hanging out doing very little. We sometimes go out to dinner as a family after practice, even though the kids end up staying up later on a school night, it's good to just sit and relax, not have to cook and enjoy a meal together.

[mariposamama]

I can only imagine how hard it must be to have to balance out gymnastics with family life/school, etc. My DD only goes 2 times a week right now and the idea of 3 nights a week seems life forever to me. We don't even have to deal with school since we homeschool and I have to say that as much as I love my DD, I don't know if I would be as supportive if she were in school. I can't imagine that much time away from her, I don't think I could do it. And the idea of her missing sitting down and having dinner 3 nights a week (with the family) pains me as well. Her dad works a lot and the evenings are when they really connect and get that special time together. I guess he will have to take a nap when he gets home and wait up for her. He gets home very hungry and has worked all day outside, so he can't wait. LOL.

Maybe I am naive since we haven't been already sucked into the gymnastics world yet, LOL, but what happens if you miss practice sometimes? Take a 2 week vacation once in a while? Does the gym discourage it or is it not allowed? Miss practice once a month for a break?

-If they don't have gym on Saturdays, maybe make it a family night at home night? Play board games, etc, just relax, order pizza and talk? Or at least once a month miss gym practice and have family night? Some way to connect and have fun?

-And for you, could you try to find ways to carpool with other families? I can imagine that for working parents as well it must be stressful. You come home to relax and can't because you are off to take kids here and there.

I think that all the parents/kids that do school/work, etc and gym are amazing. I don't think I could do it. I just need down time and so does my DD. She is a wreck without it and I am as well. We are so used to our pretty laid back life with homeschooling and me staying home, maybe we aren't cut out for the gym world. So many successful gym kids/families seem to be good at multi-tasking, being on the run and they all seem to do fine.

General question, do most gyms leave Saturdays as a non practice day? I know that during meet season, there are weekends that they have a meet, but it doesn't seem (at our gym at least) that there are more then 2 meets a month and seems more like 1 a month is the norm during meet season.

To the OP, I hope you can find some time to just relax and not be stressed.

[Gymmonkeymomma]

Quote:
Originally Posted by mariposamama what happens if you miss practice sometimes? Take a 2 week vacation once in a while? Does the gym discourage it or is it not allowed? Miss practice once a month for a break? - General question, do most gyms leave Saturdays as a non practice day? I know that during meet season, there are weekends that they have a meet, but it doesn't seem (at our gym at least) that there are more then 2 meets a month and seems more like 1 a month is the norm during meet season.

My girls practice M-Th, 5-8 and Sat 9-12. The new rule (this month) is that if you have a meet, you don't come to Sat practice, but it used to be if you had a meet on Sun, you still went on Sat. The only times that my DD's miss practice is if they are sick (fever, vomiting) or if there is a school event (show or concert). During the summer, they don't have Sat practices. We schedule our vacations during the weeks that the gym is closed. The only other week that my older DD missed is when she was away at gymnastics camp. Some of the girls on my DDs' team miss once a week or a few times a month. Only twice have girls been "punished" (scratched from a meet) due to missing too many days the week prior. As for my kids, this is a commitment and they are not going to skip practice just b/c they don't feel like going.

[Gymnasticsgirl521]

I have to say Gymnastics is not the only sport that takes up this much time. I know my future is pretty dim for spending time as a "Normal" family. DS plays Ice hockey and at his young age is at the rink 3 days a week for 1.5 hours time. He will begin traveling for games this fall so that will take even more time. DD is at the gym two nights a week now which will go to 3 this summer. DH travels for work during the week so our time together is very limited. I have to say I am worried that in the future we will be running in different directions for the kids sports. Many of our friends think we are nuts for letting the kids participate in such sports. I look at it as they are "Club" Sports. Any time you do things like this it is different than the local req programs. You pay more for the activity and you are dedicating more to the sport too. I don't know how long we will be able to keep up the pace but as long as the kids want to do them DH and I will try our best to accomidate them. I just wish one of them would have choosen a lower price sport. At last they can't say we played favorites when it comes to that. LOL

[mom2kazkids]

With DD having finished level 3 and moving on to level 4, I can say that I am already feeling the rush out the door to the gym momments. This month she increased hours from W-F 5-8 to M-W-F 5-8 so that she can get the hang of practice 3 nights a week and homework while she is in first grade. My DH works 2nd shift every other week, rotating with day shift. Soo when he is on 2nd shift my DS have to come along. This Monday he brought his homework and a portable DVD player to the gym, and tonight it was swim lessons at the Y 10 minutes away from the gym. With the price of gas I really do not want to run home to run back to the gym to get DD. Since school does not get out until 3:30pm and I also work until that time I have started to try to use the crock pot more for meals when DH is working and there is practice.

This summer I will be able to tweak my work schedule as her practices move to daytime hours and I really am not able to get her into daycare after practice. At least I know that or evenings will be less intense this summer.

[gimchick]

We are in school 8: 15 - 3:15 and we have gym approximately 20 + hours per week. Missing is highly discouraged unless illness prevails, vacations have to be taken on days that the gym is closed. After gym we are too tired to vacation anywhere, we just want to relax and end up just sitting around enjoying ourselves, which is great !!!. But, I sort of miss the nights that we sit down and eat dinner as a family and it is all so sad that my dd knows nothing else but gymnastics and I have to continue to be creative on my end--- keeping her in the loop that family is important. I just don't know.......... i thank everyone for ideas that they have posted and for sharing their situations SOMETIMES I FEEL THAT I AM THE ONLY ONE, I am at a gym where the parents are jumping off of bridges for gymnastics, and I don't share the same feelings and I am gald to be here....