Parenthood brings with it a barrage of choices; breast or bottle, pacifier or thumb, pink or blue vs yellow, spank or logical consequences, organic vs grocery store value brands, and many … many more.

Alot of these choices I have made quickly and easily, even though I struggle with decisions on a daily basis; for instance the question of what to have or where to go for lunch when eating out is quite a painstaking struggle for me and others at times.

The latest parenting decision took quite a bit of thought, dance or gymnastics for the kids. My kids are 3 and 4 years old so my goal of signing them up for extra-curricular activities such as either of these activities is to expose them to exercise and an opportunity to help them better develop their coordination. Both kids know what “dancing” is and love music, but when researching the classes available in our area I became quickly became aware of the excessive price ($45 per month for 9 mths x 2 for the second child plus $120 for costumes x 2). My desire to see the children laughing and dancing in a recital was quickly squashed, maybe next year if we start saving now.

So I began looking at alternatives and gymnastics quickly came to mind. I did gymnastics as a kid for a few years, I was no Mary Lou Retton, so my dream of competing in the Olympics came and went quickly. Putting the dream of Olympics aside, I thought the kids might have fun with it, so I explained to Kelsey that she might have the opportunity to try gymnastics. “What is ‘NYMNATIS’?” she asked innocently. So last night I showed her a somersault, and a cartwheel, and Shane showed her a round-off. And they tried the somersault and quickly fell in love with the idea of gymnastics and have been asking ever since when class starts. Yet another decision made! Sept 5 it starts, by the way, so I am sure there will be more to come on this topic.