Staying On Your Kids' Team
by Mary Ann Halloran
My daughter, Rebekah, is a very talented artist. When she was a teenager, she participated in a lot of art shows and my husband and I would help her. Art shows are a lot of fun and a lot of work. Of course, Rebekah did most of the work because she does all the painting. But a lot more goes into an art show, like loading up, setting everything up, and taking it all down afterward. So, to support her, my husband Mike, me, and often some of her brothers helped her with all of that. We were glad to be a part of it all. We met a lot of people, which is great, and seeing her sell art always made our day.
In preparing this post, I was thinking about all the things Mike and I got involved with because we had eight children. We learned through experience that if you want to stay on the same team as your children, then be a part of what they are interested in. Jump on board and learn as you go. A parent can usually see early on what their children's interests are.
Through the years, my husband and I have learned all kinds of things by being a part of their activities. We participated in parades with a jump rope team and traveled out of state with our oldest daughter, both when she was a jumper and when she was a coach. We went to numerous soccer games and even learned the rules (although I never really understood the off-side rule). Mike even helped coach one year. We went to basketball games, swim meets, tennis matches, and many baseball games.
Three of our boys were in Scouts, so my husband became a Cub Scout leader and later an assistant Boy Scout leader. He helped lead Scouts in merit badges and went to numerous Scout summer camps with them.
We also attended piano recitals, jazz band concerts, horse competitions, and various art shows. (I might add here that even though this sounds like a lot, remember we had eight children.)
We knew little about most of these activities but made it a point to learn as we went. We wanted to support our children in their interests and be a part of their lives.
We did not (nor could we) allow our kids to do whatever they wanted. They were limited in what sports and pursuits they could choose since we had community activities and because we live in a rural, out-of-the-way location. We also worked at organizing and coordinating what we did so that while some had an activity, others did not. That helped us not get over-committed or burnt out.
It was a wild ride but a fun one!
My advice to you parents out there is to make your children's interests your interests as much as you can. This can help form strong and lasting relationships between you and your children.
God bless,
Mary Ann / Mother Hen