Mr. Extracurricular.

Now that AB is settled into her school routine it is time to switch it up a bit.  Enter Mr. Extracurricular. (In my mind,  Mr.  Extracurricular is a burly man in a jogging suit with a clipboard and a whistle he blows shrilly every time I miss an extracurricular registration deadline).

The fliers touting soccer,  basketball,  cheerleading and foreign language classes have started making their way home.  When she was in preschool I was able to dodge Mr. Extracurricular by hiding behind the trusty excuses of lack of time and lack of money.

While I could continue to hide behind lack of money, my lack of time excuse isn’t as solid anymore.  So, I pacified Mr.  Extracurricular by promising that I would get AB involved in one this fall.  But now I (we?  because the kiddo should have some say,  right?)  must pick one.

Basketball and cheerleading were immediately crossed off the list.  Chinese as a Second Language classes were also rejected because, as awesome as it would be for her to learn Mandarin,  it was too expensive at the moment.  

That left soccer.  I like the concept of soccer.  The teamwork.  The camaraderie.  The running.  AB is a bit of a shy kid,  so I was thinking that the social aspect of the sport would be beneficial for her.  

But the more I thought about it, the more I started to dislike it.  First, I’m cheap.  I don’t really want to invest in cleats,  shinguards and uniforms (that she will be most likely outgrow in the next three months) for sport that she may end of hating.  Second, she is getting quite social at school, so I really don’t have to worry about her in that department.  Third, she is super active during the day,  so I think that her interactions with Mr.  Extracurricular should be more artistic and intellectual in nature as opposed to physical.

Therefore, I felt like I was back at square one with Mr.  Extracurricular breathing done my neck.  It did not help that I then read Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua and started to feel like the laziest mother on the planet. Okay, so I’ve pinpointed that she should do something artsy and cerebral.  Great.  But I’m way behind.  She should already be a soloist for the youth symphony and having her artwork displayed in local galleries.

Yeah,  right.

When I finished the book,  I decided that I am not going to push it. Watching your relationship with your kid deteriorate to the point that that you have a screaming match in a Russian cafe complete with broken glass? No, thank you. I really don’t care if I go on Mr.  Extracurricular’s Ish List.  Right now, I am quite happy with reading stacks of books, making collages and singing my heart out with my kid afterschool and on the weekends.

Mr. (Organized) Extracurricular will just have to wait.