still refusing to be a soccer mom..

What the heck is that supposed to mean anyway?... 'soccer mom'. Whatever. Cause we can be defined by the sport our kid plays or by the fact that we have to drive them somewhere in the afternoon..

I didn't even want to admit that my boys were playing soccer last fall for fear of being dubbed a...

'SOCCER MOM'

Huh? wha? who said that?? No, I'm not. My kids don't even play soccer.. They just run around on a field chasing some kids who are kicking a ball... Seriously though, they didn't really get to play soccer. The homeschool co-op takes 'making it fun' a little too far. Where's the challenge? where's the personal growth? where's all those life skills they learn from team sports?? Yeah, not so much.

That's ok, we put them in wrestling with the school district after that.. and found out that they would get their butt kicked if they ever picked a fight with anyone bigger or slightly stronger than them... Still ok though.. we also found out that Princess has a head start on it with a wicked wrestling stance.. by the time she's four, she'll be able to take any of her brothers down, we're quite sure of it. Good thing, too.. since apparently her brothers won't be able to protect her - unless you count 'distracting the attacker' as defending..

This year, I asked the kids what they wanted to do. Yes, you guessed it.. soccer and wrestling are Dad's favorites. But Monkey wants to be just like Dad, so he would have requested soccer anyway.. and Captain would have just followed along. I've always thought that Monkey would enjoy gymnastics. I even looked into enrolling him (and his brothers) a couple times while we were living in CA. We just never had the time or the money to do it - and the other 2 boys would have just been 'along for the ride' for the sake of simplifying schedules. Yeah, it wasn't big ears or cro-magnon like facial structure that earned him the nick-name Monkey, but rather the fact that he was climbing on top of the dining room table (before he could even crawl on all fours) at 9 months old.

Recently, some friends of ours enrolled their kids (you know.. our friends' kids are our kids' friends) in gymnastics. . Monkey thought that was 'rad'. So, pair that with the fact that he'd caught a glimpse of the Olympic gymnastics and it kind of sealed the deal for him.

Me: What do you want to do this fall?
M: Gynnastits.

So we had a talk about the fact that it costs money for him to do that and that if it's 'hard' that doesn't mean he can stop going (became an issue with wrestling.. though more with his older brother than him). He's got heart.. and a good dose of perseverance, so I think he's got a good chance. And, yes, he said he still wants to wrestle this year.. so we're quietly hoping that the gymnastics will give him more of an 'edge'.. helping improve his strength, flexibility, and body control. Maybe he'll do more than flop like a fish this year. Then again, maybe he won't.

Me: You sure about that?
M: Yup.
Me: You know.. it's kind of hard. You going to be ok with that?
M: Yup.
Me: and if it gets hard?
M: I'll keep doing it.
Me: ..because?
M: ..if I don't Daddy will cut my legs off and I'll have to walk around on little stumps and everyone will call me stumpy.
Me: um... no.

And Booger is 4 so...

Me: What do you want to do?
B: Gynnastits.
Me: ok.. and if it gets hard?
B: I keep doin it.
Me: ..because??
B: I don wanna be stumpee??

Um.. yeah. Anyway, so my pirate-obsessed Captain would be off sailing the 7 seas if he could, pillaging and plundering all the way.. but since that's not an option..

Me: What activity do you want to do this fall?
C: I want to dance.

Very much like me and my father, my oldest has a love for all things dramatic. He loves to sing, dance, and act. He spends lots of time choreographing his favorite songs and has even been known to engage his siblings in his conquests and direct them. (Honestly, I think directing is what he's best at..) Sadly, he kind of lacks a natural propensity for rhythm and coordination.. but he's got heart (not so big on the perseverance part though).

Me: Really? and if you think it's hard?
C: I'll keep doing it.
Me: Why?
C: Because I want to get good at it, and it's fun. I want to show my teacher my moves and..
Me: You realize that if you go to dance class, they'll want to teach you, not watch you, right?
C: Oh.. Ok. Can I do the Scottish dancing?
Me: You mean Irish dancing?
C: What's that?

This is not my child. Son, in this house, it's Irish dancing. Get it right. You're Irish Mexican. Not Scottish Mexican. Oy. So Highland Dance it is (turns out they do Scottish and Irish dances in the class I found.. so he's off the hook this time). Thank God for grandparents who are supportive of personal enrichment (I didn't tell grandpa that he called it 'Scottish' dancing.. that would be an ever so grievous mistake..), who will help lighten the load by giving Captain some dance lessons for his upcoming birthday.

So, I will officially be carting my kids around town in my mini-van. And, if you call me a 'soccer mom' I'll sick my 2yo on you. Trust me, you do not want that!