At first it was easy adjusting to parenting boys, when they were young it was as simple as shopping in the "boy" isles for toys, and buying boy clothes. As they have gotten older however I have learned that there are some considerable differences between boys and girls. For one thing boys just aren't capable of sitting still as long as girls can, I can remember as a child sitting in my room quietly playing with my baby dolls, or barbies (when I was a girl they were much more modest), or even just reading a book. My boys however are hard pressed to sit still for a mere 20 minutes while listening to a story or watching a video. The older my boys get the more diffrences I notice, the energy level for me though is the biggest challenge. Simply taking them to the park for an hour to run out the wiggles just won't do! So I have been forced to actively seek an outlet for them because I can no longer manage their energy alone.
After locating(and rejecting) every sport team, gym class, and organized physical activity in a 15 mile radius of our home I had just about given up on ever finding anything that would a)fit in our schedule, b)provide a POSITIVE outlet for my children, c)not give me a panic attack thinking about all the potential injuries they could get during the activity, and d)not give daddy a panic attack thinking of the expense, until a friend invited the boys to his daughter's birthday party.
She has been enrolled in martial arts training for some time and had her birthday party at the school she attends classes at. Well, my boys were there and had a GREAT time! The instructor was so very patient and he didn't just teach them to punch and kick, he also taught them to have self-control and he did it in a positive way. I left with mixed feelings of the whole thing, on one hand I was happy they enjoyed it and that it wasn't just about punching and kicking each other, but on the other hand I was disappointed that this school was so far away from our home. It was a good 35 minute drive and having to make that drive 4 times a week was not feasable (2 classes per week times 2 children).
I came home and began searching for martial arts training in the areas around our home and I found one less than 5 miles from our home! I called them up and they set us up with a free trial lesson (to gauge their abilities) and a HUGE discount on the enrollment. Now I present to you my future black belts in the art of Songham Taekwondo.
They have gone to several classes at this point and they are doing well, obviously they are just starting but they are learning and this particular school incorperates their behaviour at home into the class and if they do well they are rewarded with a star for their Victory Patch, if they do poorly at home they must stay after and speak with their instructor. I am told that if they try hard and come to class regularly they will advance to orange belt by July, and possibly have their yellow belt by September. After that their advancement will depend much more on their focus, practice, and ability to memorize and replicate moves.
Birbitt thinks that this will be a good thing for the boys, and hopefully me as well.
