KIDS/COMPETATIVE EXTRACURRICULARS-help me understand

[sha_lyn]

Had to add that we don't push either kid. In-fact DD just returned to class last week after taking a 6 month break. For DS it has become a pt job and could very well become a career if he keeps it up. The chief national referee for USSSA Tae Kwon Do wants DS and I to both center at the USSSA nationals this summer in Kissimee. His hobby/sport has become a part time job for both of us.

 

[barkley]

Just a slightly different viewpoint, although no one should go into debt over kids sports or extras, according to the book "The Millionaire Next Door : The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy" by Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko, one of the most important goals should be to "educate the heck out of your kids" (I read this years ago so my paraphrase should be a little rough). Unfortunately you can be rich and in declining health but by educating your kids you are "leaving a legacy".

yeah, but if you are not "rich" don't count on that legacy to support you. some of the same parents who opt not to fund retirement state that with the education/training their kids are recieiving "who has to worry-they will be wealthy enough to support me". i cannot fathom investing in a child's future with the expectation that they would provide for me. the concept of a child decades later having to provide for a parent's financial needs based on the parent's financial decisions during the course of the child's adolescent years...in my opinion that is so moraly wrong!

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

I loved that book ("Millionaire Next Door"), but I think it was more that they said that millionaires were more likely to fund education because they valued it, even if they had little themselves. The millionaires were less likely to spend on "sexy" things like fancy cars and houses and vacations, but would shell out $$ for college and grad school. And, of course, there's always the un-magical methods of spending less than you make, saving where you can, etc.

And I think it's totally ridiculous for any parent to expect that their child should fund the parent's retirement. We do joke about them growing up, becoming famous, and sending large checks home, but believe me, we're not expecting anything.

 

[Sleepy]

some of the same parents who opt not to fund retirement state that with the education/training their kids are recieiving "who has to worry-they will be wealthy enough to support me".

We always make a joke that if our son is fortunate enough to reach his goal, he will either forget about us or we will be lucky if he gets us tickets in the back row for his performance.

 

[Skatermom23]

Very well said and as the mom of two figure skaters ITA!


This may be true with other sports as well but I find with figure skaters everyone assumes you have to be going to the olympics or why bother? IMHO there is much to be learned by doing any sport regardless of where it will get you later in life. The things it can teach you now are the things that will get you somewhere later in life. How to loose, how to be a good sport, how to set and work for a goal, discipline and yes how to win -many don't do that well LOL.

TJ

I wish you were at our rink! Sounds like you have the same opinion as me on this skating thing. I can't stand to walk into the rink and have some new parent there immediatley asking what level my DD is and when and where she is competing next. Drives me insane. This year DD has decided to only do the ISI competions and not compete USFSA. Oh, the looks we are getting because of this....No one can understand why anyone that good wouldn't want to compete USFSA or why do you pay for lessons at all? DD has gained so much out of this. She has learned discipline, definitely a tolerance of people, gets great exercise,and lets not forget the self confidence in herself. To me that is all worth what we do pay.

 

[plutolovr]

I saw a show on Dr. Phil where they had a mom forcing her son to to competitive cheerleading and he hated it. She kept insisting it was going to get him college scholarships, but obviously didn't do her homework because Dr. Phil found one college that gave cheerleading scholarships and they were for $2K. She had spent way more that that each year and had a very unhappy husband and child.

I don't know what Dr. Phil was talking about. My daughter cheered for many years on a coed team. Most of the boys on her team were given "scholarships" to cheer in college at schools like Louisville, Trinity Valley, Kentucky. Some of the girls were too. Most colleges can't really call them scholarships, because these are not NCAA scholarships. So if you were to look for cheerleading scholarships you wouldn't find many, but colleges do have funds for these kids when they need their talent. Until cheerleading is considered an NCAA sport, they can't offer official scholarships.

Okay, got that out of the way. Like I said my daughter cheered high school and all stars for many years. She enjoyed it. It was expensive, yes, but she did a lot of fundraising and paid for most of her trips this way. We didn't have to buy uniforms, they were given to the kids. She wasn't good enough to get a "scholarship" but it does build self esteem and team building skills, things she will use in her life. So money well spent.