Play ball.????

So now that spring is in full swing and the weather is warming up and the days are longer, it also means that ball season is in full swing. I'm really having a hard time with it this year because Brennan is at that age where all the other children his age are on some sort of ball team and are very busy with ball games and practice and parents are out there socializing and cheering for their kids.

We tried to get Brennan interested in playing sports by signing him up for soccer 2 years in a row. And we bought him a t-ball set last year for his birthday. He showed no interest. For one reason, he's not aggressive. He doesn't even like fighting with his brother. He refused to take the ball from the other team or from someone else. Another reason, is he would rather play in the grass than take the game seriously. We asked him this year if he wanted to play on a ball team or if he would rather take art lessons--we couldn't afford both-- and he preferred art. And he LOVES art. He gets excited about going to art each week. But, now that his art sessions have ended for this semester, we don't have any other extracurricular activities going on. And all of my friends with children, and all of Brennan's friends at school, seem to ALL be on a ball team.

Now days it seems like so much emphasis is put on playing sports at such a young age. And these kids have games 3 or 4 nights out of the week. It's always something constant. I have to admit, I'm a little relieved Brennan doesn't care for sports, because I like spending time at home and sitting down with my family and having dinner TOGETHER. Very, very rarely do we ever NOT have dinner together. It has become on of Chad's unspoken rules.

I do feel that Brennan will find his niche later on in life. As a matter of fact, I feel like he already has--he loves art and he loves to "build houses" with blocks. He's got a very active imagination that he uses every day when he comes home from school. He hardly ever sits in front of the television and watches it all all afternoon. I just know how much emphasis this society puts on ballplayers and being on a sports team. Sometimes it seems that it's what can really make somebody BE somebody in life. However, I know that is not true, and I certainly plan on encouraging my children to find what they are good at and can excel at, no matter what it may be. I don't want my children to be one of these that "reach their peak" in high school. You know the ones I am referring to..... the people who refer back to their old high school days as "the good ol' days" and bring up that "one game our senior year". The one's who graduate high school as the most popular of the class, yet go on to do nothing in life but talk about those good ol' days. (Now, don't get me wrong! I do miss high school in a few aspects, such as living rent-free with my parents and having very little responsibility other than a part-time job or worrying about what I'm going to wear to the prom, but I certainly DID NOT reach my peak in high school. Ask anyone that knew me then and knows me now.)

So, I guess my point is, I know my boys will both find what they are good at. I do not want to force them to do anything they don't want to do as far as extracurricular activities. But, I DO want them involved in something. I feel like Brennan will turn out to be a "band nerd" like his daddy. I am okay with that. I will be there to support them. I just don't want Brennan to realize how much emphasis society puts on boys to play ball. And I am still convincing myself that it will out turn out just fine. I don't want Brennan to ever feel like he missed out on an opportunity whether it is early in life or later in life. And I need to realize that just because I have a house full of boys doesn't mean I have to have a house full of ballplayers.