Parents What to do...what to expect?

[Sasha]

Some parents and kids like fun coaches who aren't too strict.

Ooh, I can attest to this. When my DD was new and I stuck around for her rec class, I would continually strike up conversations with other rec parents. Some would remark/complain Coach A was 'too serious' or 'too tough' and wanted Coach B. While the next parent would complain Coach B was "too laid back" and "only about fun, a waste of my money" and would want to switch to Coach A. Some parents were downright vocally upset about the coaching style (on both sides!). Something for everyone, though! Luckily, our gym is happy to switch you to the Rec coach you would like, but the difference in perception is vast between different parents. Just an anecdote.

(For the record, I was happy with Coach A - the serious one, tee hee).

 

[munchkin3]

Hi! I second what everyone is saying. Gyms are funny with parents.....very scrutinizing as far as sizing parents up as a 'good egg' or 'bad egg'.... It's a natural reaction in the crazy world of GYMNASTICS where emotions run high!
I would definitely inquire about what their path is to team. Your DD Is 6 and that is a perfect age to begin the process. If a class switch is needed, then make it. Don't get personal, Don't criticize the coach, just make it a 'convenience' factor......If there is skills testing, just know when it is and keep on top of that, as sometimes gyms just do surprise testing. After you feel confident on the path, then sit back and relax and let time work in yourDD favor. This is the hardest thing for us parents.....waiting for our little ones to 'get' the skill. It sounds like once your DD is on a more competitive path, she will progress quickly. But remember that coaches have Their own style, and don't get too critical....it is harder for parents that were involved in competitive sports as kids because they compare coaching styles......

Do you have other children? This is important because YOU WILL spend an inordinate amount of time with your gymnastics kid. You must also have a strategy for Dbrother of Dsister to feel they are getting what they need because it will suck the life out of you and everyone in the family if you let it.

Our old gym was very inexpensive. I think I spent $4000 per kid (2 kids) a year WITHOUT hotels and airfare. At the new gym I will be paying about $6000 per kid for team fees, coaches fees, meet fees and clothes.

For my family the biggest sacrifice has been family time, and general time not revolving around gymnastics. My husband really hates it sometimes.....every year he wants to go somewhere great like Hawaii or something, but nope! $ goes to gymnastics, and the time always falls right on some critical gymnastics event that can't be missed!!!! But we always take a good 1-2 week break every summer and we don't even talk about gym....

Good luck and welcome

 

[mommyof1]

I think you might live in my state haha. Those costs seem what I was expecting... I figure by the time she is on a team level, my youngest will be school age, meaning I don't need to pay for full time daycare...I can just shift that budget over to gymnastics

That's what I thought when my daughter moved to preteam the year she started public school--I will just take the money I was spending on day care and put it into gymnastics. But it doesn't quite balance out that way. You still have to pay for after-school care for the time when they are not at practice, and on top of that there are gym tuition and meet fees and coaches' fees and competition apparel and travel. Plus private lessons if you are unlucky enough to be at the sort of gym where regular private lessons are the norm. Then you may need to hire a nanny to shuttle your child to practice, unless you can find a carpool or set up an alternative work schedule.

Seriously, if you are working full time, you will need to think long and hard about the logistics, maybe even more than the cost. I work full time for a relatively flexible employer and have only one child. Most days it seems like my entire life revolves around getting her to gymnastics practice. During the school year, I work from home in the afternoons so I can pick her up from school and drive her to practice. When I travel on business, I have to hire a babysitter. Summers are even more insane because she practices in the mornings and then needs to be shuttled to day camp halfway across the city. It is stressful and I hate it. I don't know how my co-workers put up with my schedule. But I do it because gymnastics is what makes my daughter happy.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Seriously, if you are working full time, you will need to think long and hard about the logistics, maybe even more than the cost. I work full time for a relatively flexible employer and have only one child. Most days it seems like my entire life revolves around getting her to gymnastics practice. During the school year, I work from home in the afternoons so I can pick her up from school and drive her to practice. When I travel on business, I have to hire a babysitter. Summers are even more insane because she practices in the mornings and then needs to be shuttled to day camp halfway across the city.

This with the exception of business travel.

I recently went from full time to part time. Schedule more manageable. Funds now tighter. SAHM and gymnastics would not be possible for our family.

 

[notthatmom]

That's what I thought when my daughter moved to preteam the year she started public school--I will just take the money I was spending on day care and put it into gymnastics. But it doesn't quite balance out that way. You still have to pay for after-school care for the time when they are not at practice, and on top of that there are gym tuition and meet fees and coaches' fees and competition apparel and travel. Plus private lessons if you are unlucky enough to be at the sort of gym where regular private lessons are the norm. Then you may need to hire a nanny to shuttle your child to practice, unless you can find a carpool or set up an alternative work schedule.

Seriously, if you are working full time, you will need to think long and hard about the logistics, maybe even more than the cost. I work full time for a relatively flexible employer and have only one child. Most days it seems like my entire life revolves around getting her to gymnastics practice. During the school year, I work from home in the afternoons so I can pick her up from school and drive her to practice. When I travel on business, I have to hire a babysitter. Summers are even more insane because she practices in the mornings and then needs to be shuttled to day camp halfway across the city. It is stressful and I hate it. I don't know how my co-workers put up with my schedule. But I do it because gymnastics is what makes my daughter happy.

You just answered my next question without me even having to ask it lol.


Right now, I do work full time, which is fine for now, but if my daughter wants to get serious about gym I will have to re-evaluate things. Luckily I have an amazing boss who always puts family first (he actually got mad at me for not coming in late my daughters first day of kindergarten haha)
My husband is moving up at work which will mean more income coming in on his end, so once that happens, and once she has more practice hours, I'm seriously contemplating switching to part time.
All the other classes I could switch her to are on weekdays earlier in the day, so I'd rather have to hire someone to drive her, or find a mom at the same school who could carpool.
My younger daughter is in dance, and there is a gym close by that offers both gym and dance, but it isn't as good of a gym that she is at now so I'm not willing to make that sacrifice just yet.
I think talking to my gym about the track to team will be my first step to determine what changes I need to make. If I want this to work, I need to determine what is best for the family.
I feel like growing up, I was the one who had to convince my parents the importance of practice, and getting me there, so I know what kind of parent I need to be to make my kids happy if they want to be serious about their sports. Staying at home full time probably won't ever be in the cards, but switching to part time will soon be possible.
That and I am playing the lottery more....a girl can dream.

 

[Anna's_Mom]

I work FT and I make it work pretty well. Our gym has different practice times on different days, so some days have evening practice that aren't a problem. If she were L3 I could just do evenings and Saturdays with no impact on work. However, she now also does 2 afternoons each week and I found a car service that specializes in transporting kids from school/home to activity. Assuming you are in an urban or suburban area, look for a "child transportation service". If your team is large, there is also a good chance at carpooling -- I know several families that have teamed up. We don't because DD is one of the few in middle school and that changes timing from most of the girls.

I forgot about spectator fees for meets -- add about $10 per person for each meet (sometimes less for kids). And sometimes you'll pay for the grandparents or the best friend to watch. I am lucky in that my son is old enough to be on his own on meet days if he doesn't want to go watch, but count on either paying for siblings or paying for a sitter for them. And if they are young, it is HARD to keep them happy for an entire meet -- I am always grateful that I don't have to stress about that.

And yes, this does have a major impact on family schedules on both a daily and yearly basis. My son (high school, nearly driving!!) is often early to activities or picked up later because DD's schedule is more strict than his and I am more comfortable with him waiting somewhere. We are constantly juggling who picks up who and when between my husband and I. Vacations are strictly scheduled around the weeks the gym is closed for twice-yearly cleaning so that she doesn't miss practice due to a strict attendance policy. We no long go camping on weekends. If you are a church-going family, realize that sometimes meets fall on Sunday mornings and you'll have to weigh how you feel about missing church vs. the consequences of missing a meet -- and that varies widely by gym from what I see here. We miss church

So yep, this really is a whole-family commitment. If I had realized how much this was going to impact everyone, I 'm not entirely sure I would have let DD start down this path. DD's gym just started the team 3 years ago and she was already older than most L3s, which is where they had all of the girls start. No chance of being competitive in college and even high school is iffy. So it is all for her own love of the sport, no other driver. Which makes it worth it, but it has definitely been an adjustment. And it creeps up on you so you don't notice so much until you start writing out posts like this!

 

[profmom]

Let me provide a slightly different perspective on the working and gym question. If you start right now on a path of "Mom (or Dad) does the gym running around and Dad (or Mom) earns the money to pay for these things," you may be setting your family up for problems down the road. What I've seen around our gym is that gymnasts with two invested parents who are doing drop offs and pick ups, talking to the coaches now and then, and going to the meets tend to last longer than those who have one fully invested and one completely absent parent. One key stress point is what happens if the parents divorce, which unfortunately does happen sometimes. I suspect it is no accident that the girls whose parents were divvying up day-to-day gym responsibilities before and after the divorce are still in the gym, and those who had one parent doing everything and the other parent just paying are just about all gone.

I'm not saying that it can't work to have one completely invested parent while the other just pays the bills, but I do think it's helpful in two-parent families if both are at least somewhat involved. It can also be very helpful to the kids to have two parental sounding boards as most individual parents will orient toward their kids in somewhat different ways. Plus, two involved adults can help keep each other from boarding the crazy train! I'm glad to be at a gym with a good number of dedicated gym dads and a few families where dad is clearly the primary (or only) gym parent. I'm also fortunate to have the freedom and flexibility in my career to pick whichever 10 hours of the day I want to work.

And what Anna's Mom says is so true -- once you get beyond the early competitive stages, your whole family is involved and affected. Poor eldest DS will soon be saddled with using his bright and shiny driver's license to shuttle his sibs to and from practice, after years of mostly uncomplainingly enduring the massive disruptions of weekends during the winter due to his siblings' meets. We've had to do a lot of dividing and conquering to manage them, and it's been tough also to keep on top of his less demanding but still very important to him soccer. Last winter was the first time both of us had to miss one of his weekend games because of gymnastics, and believe me, it stung me and DH pretty hard.

 

[Azgymmiemom]

Please inquire at the front desk if there is another class with a different coach that your child can take. And if they want to know why, you can tell them without making it sound totally mean about the coach. Just state your preference for a coach. Our gym does periodic anonymous evaluations on our coaches (we ask a parent sitting in the lobby to observe a class with a coach that their child is not in and fill out an assessment). We also have our coaches do self evaluations and have clinics. Plus, we have coaches that have different coaching style-some kids are suited to a certain type. There's one coach I know of that is very strict. Some of the kids and parents ADORE her! Others don't like her at all and we have had kids switch classes. My point being, the staff will want to help you, and they will want to know your concerns. Every business wants to improve.

With that being said, I also tell parents all the time. NO TIME in the gym is wasted time. Don't think if your child does 5 years of gym, gets to compete, then quits that it was all a waste of time and money. They learn discipline, body awareness, time management and are super physically fit! We've had team kids go on to compete track, baseball, wrestling, competitive dance, cheer, archery, swimming, diving-you name it! and have been very, very successful. Usually when a former team gymnast walks into another sport, the coaches say, "I want that kid on my team!"

Good luck to your young dd! Keep us posted about her journey!

 

[sce]

Let me provide a slightly different perspective on the working and gym question. If you start right now on a path of "Mom (or Dad) does the gym running around and Dad (or Mom) earns the money to pay for these things," you may be setting your family up for problems down the road. What I've seen around our gym is that gymnasts with two invested parents who are doing drop offs and pick ups, talking to the coaches now and then, and going to the meets tend to last longer than those who have one fully invested and one completely absent parent. .

I agree it can be an issue if one parent is truly absent or somewhat opposed to the sport for some reason. But I don't agree that having one parent dot eh driving, talking to coaches etc. is a problem. I am a stay at home, homeschooling Mom. My husband works a lot. So yes, I am at the gym 99% of the time. Dh goes to most meets though and does get tot eh gym every once in awhile. His lack of presence does not mean a lack of support though. This is what is more important. Are both parents on board and in support of the child and activity?

 

[mommyof1]

Let me provide a slightly different perspective on the working and gym question. If you start right now on a path of "Mom (or Dad) does the gym running around and Dad (or Mom) earns the money to pay for these things," you may be setting your family up for problems down the road. What I've seen around our gym is that gymnasts with two invested parents who are doing drop offs and pick ups, talking to the coaches now and then, and going to the meets tend to last longer than those who have one fully invested and one completely absent parent.

This is an important point. During the school year, my husband does evening gym pick-ups; during the summer, he handles afternoon camp pick-ups. If I had to cover all of the taxi duty, I would be a total basket case, even if I were a SAHM. And the involvement of both parents is conducive to success in everything, from school to sports.

However, the reality in many families is that it can't be a true 50-50 split, and the parent whose job has more flexibility (actual or perceived) naturally ends up shouldering more of the burden. Or you seek outside help, whether that's from grandparents or a nanny or a child transportation service. It's just something to think about very, very carefully before you have sold your entire family's souls to the sport and it is too late to escape.

 

[MILgymFAM]

I agree it can be an issue if one parent is truly absent or somewhat opposed to the sport for some reason. But I don't agree that having one parent dot eh driving, talking to coaches etc. is a problem. I am a stay at home, homeschooling Mom. My husband works a lot. So yes, I am at the gym 99% of the time. Dh goes to most meets though and does get tot eh gym every once in awhile. His lack of presence does not mean a lack of support though. This is what is more important. Are both parents on board and in support of the child and activity?

Completely agree. I am a SAHM and my husband works at least 65 hours a week. He doesn't do it for money and he doesn't have a choice. He supports my girls passion and appreciates that I do also, and that I am willing to have such an interrupted life for them. We have no local families, I have no sitters, and few local friends. At the end of the day, my girls can only chase their passion this fully for a few more years, and I can and will do this for them.

 

[sce]

With that being said, I also tell parents all the time. NO TIME in the gym is wasted time. Don't think if your child does 5 years of gym, gets to compete, then quits that it was all a waste of time and money. They learn discipline, body awareness, time management and are super physically fit! We've had team kids go on to compete track, baseball, wrestling, competitive dance, cheer, archery, swimming, diving-you name it! and have been very, very successful. Usually when a former team gymnast walks into another sport, the coaches say, "I want that kid on my team!"

I agree with all of this.

 

[Anna's_Mom]

Let me provide a slightly different perspective on the working and gym question. If you start right now on a path of "Mom (or Dad) does the gym running around and Dad (or Mom) earns the money to pay for these things," you may be setting your family up for problems down the road. What I've seen around our gym is that gymnasts with two invested parents who are doing drop offs and pick ups, talking to the coaches now and then, and going to the meets tend to last longer than those who have one fully invested and one completely absent parent. One key stress point is what happens if the parents divorce, which unfortunately does happen sometimes. I suspect it is no accident that the girls whose parents were divvying up day-to-day gym responsibilities before and after the divorce are still in the gym, and those who had one parent doing everything and the other parent just paying are just about all gone.

I can't imagine doing all of the taxi service on my own. I work shorter hours than my DH most of the time but he has more flex in his daily schedule. It actually works out pretty much 50/50 in terms of transportation between us. And for most meets we both attend, though we've also had weekends where it makes sense for only one of us to go. I think the only thing that I am solely responsible for is clothing purchases -- I doubt DH will ever set foot in a dance store. And at 12, my DD would probably have a fit if I suggested it -- she knows I'm a softer touch when it comes to breaking the budget! I get a bit annoyed because the coach only sends notices/announcements to the mom's emails so I have to remember to send it on so we both know what is going on.

 

[notthatmom]

With that being said, I also tell parents all the time. NO TIME in the gym is wasted time. Don't think if your child does 5 years of gym, gets to compete, then quits that it was all a waste of time and money. They learn discipline, body awareness, time management and are super physically fit! We've had team kids go on to compete track, baseball, wrestling, competitive dance, cheer, archery, swimming, diving-you name it! and have been very, very successful. Usually when a former team gymnast walks into another sport, the coaches say, "I want that kid on my team!"

I agree with this 100%!!! Being in gymnastics as a kid, and later when I was older just for conditioning/exercise has definitely helped me become a huge advocate of gym just for this reason. That's the main reason I put Dd in gym to begin with, it's the perfect starting point for any sport she may want to do. She ended up loving it!
If she decides next year she wants to do swimming, or dance, softball, shuffle board...I don't care, what she learns in gym is going to follow her for the rest of her life.
If this is what she wants to stick with, fantastic, if not, that's ok too....as long as she's doing what she likes and it's something that makes her happy, healthy, and fit...I'm on board.
(I was kind of joking about the shuffle board though, I really hope she doesn't pick that)

 

[Gymmom826]

Hello everyone, I am brand new to this forum and looking forward to learning and sharing things with you all.

My daughter is just starting out in gymnastics, she has been in rec classes for about a year and a half (with a small break last summer due to a broken arm - non-gym injury).
I have some concerns with the current "coach" she has. I feel like the coach, who I believe is still in high school, is basically just teaching this class as a part time job since she no longer competes, she doesn't seem to care, or know what she is doing. I have "coached" my daughter after class on occasion how to properly touch her toes, point her toes, do a bridge, etc. (I mean really? How hard is it to show kids how to do that correctly?) Her regular coach was out a few weeks ago so my daughter had a substitute coach. I noticed a huge difference in both the coaching style and in the things my daughter was able to do. This coach showed my daughter how to use much better technique, corrected her feet/arms/legs when needed, and just like that, DD magically did the most beautiful handstand I have ever seen her do. She also started training her on conditioning for the harder tricks that she will need to master when she moves up, something her regular coach never does. I don't want to be that parent that tells a gym how to run things, but I am paying money for her to be in this class, she clearly has potential, but the current coach is getting her nowhere. My kid is strong, and her technique is impeccable when someone is showing her the correct way to do it. If I didn't think she had potential I wouldn't say so...I wouldn't spend time and money on a sport my kid couldn't be good at we would be somewhere along the lines of "Hey so I realize you go to gymnastics now, but how does T-Ball Sound?" ; ) ....I want to make sure she's getting the proper training so she isn't a recreational gymnast for 7 years....What would you say to the Rec Coordinator? How would you go about this?

Also, I am starting to prepare for what DD's schedule will be like once she gets to level 3 and starts competing, I just don't exactly know what to expect. I was a competitive figure skater, so I understand the commitment it takes to be in such a sport, but I am not too clear on it. I want to make sure that if I keep my daughter in gym, and she wants to compete that I will have the time and money to do so. I understand it of course varies from gym to gym, but what's the norm, how many hours, and the approx. monthly cost (if you don't mind sharing).


Thanks, I look forward to your feedback, harsh or sweet, I can take it all

I had almost the same situation as you. The only difference is you said you are in a very good gym.

Hello everyone, I am brand new to this forum and looking forward to learning and sharing things with you all.

My daughter is just starting out in gymnastics, she has been in rec classes for about a year and a half (with a small break last summer due to a broken arm - non-gym injury).
I have some concerns with the current "coach" she has. I feel like the coach, who I believe is still in high school, is basically just teaching this class as a part time job since she no longer competes, she doesn't seem to care, or know what she is doing. I have "coached" my daughter after class on occasion how to properly touch her toes, point her toes, do a bridge, etc. (I mean really? How hard is it to show kids how to do that correctly?) Her regular coach was out a few weeks ago so my daughter had a substitute coach. I noticed a huge difference in both the coaching style and in the things my daughter was able to do. This coach showed my daughter how to use much better technique, corrected her feet/arms/legs when needed, and just like that, DD magically did the most beautiful handstand I have ever seen her do. She also started training her on conditioning for the harder tricks that she will need to master when she moves up, something her regular coach never does. I don't want to be that parent that tells a gym how to run things, but I am paying money for her to be in this class, she clearly has potential, but the current coach is getting her nowhere. My kid is strong, and her technique is impeccable when someone is showing her the correct way to do it. If I didn't think she had potential I wouldn't say so...I wouldn't spend time and money on a sport my kid couldn't be good at we would be somewhere along the lines of "Hey so I realize you go to gymnastics now, but how does T-Ball Sound?" ; ) ....I want to make sure she's getting the proper training so she isn't a recreational gymnast for 7 years....What would you say to the Rec Coordinator? How would you go about this?

Also, I am starting to prepare for what DD's schedule will be like once she gets to level 3 and starts competing, I just don't exactly know what to expect. I was a competitive figure skater, so I understand the commitment it takes to be in such a sport, but I am not too clear on it. I want to make sure that if I keep my daughter in gym, and she wants to compete that I will have the time and money to do so. I understand it of course varies from gym to gym, but what's the norm, how many hours, and the approx. monthly cost (if you don't mind sharing).


Thanks, I look forward to your feedback, harsh or sweet, I can take it all

I had the exact situation except that I said u are at a great gym. My dd started at rec and they never said anything about her getting on team, but I saw a lot of natural talent like perfect cartwheels, lots of strength and flexibility. I would say run don't walk to the HC. The HC did an evaluation and put her on team right away. Even on that team though she seemed way ahead so I took her to another gym that is excellent and has great training.

 

[notthatmom]

Thank you thank you thank you for everyone's kind and helpful responses and advice! If gym ends up being dd's dream, I'm here for her all the way. You have all made it work and I know I can make it work too.
I only hope I can balance this with my younger dd's dance schedule (I'd put her in gym too, but I'll be honest, she tried one class and the kid just isn't built to tumble, plus she loves "balleray" as she calls it).
I'm looking forward to this journey, and sharing it all with you wonderful parents and coaches. So glad I found this site!

 

[OzZee]

I can't say I get the both parents have to be equally involved for success thing?!
Unheard of around here. I'd say 99% of the kids at gym are picked up nearly always by one parent.
It's the kid that does gymnastics not the parents/families.

Whole families don't attend competitions.

gymnastics (or soccer or dance or whatever sport) just isn't such a big deal to most people around here. (Maybe that we don't have college scholarships for sport means parents are less invested? )

One parent (the stay at home/more flexible hours one) tends to drive around.
Weekends parents tend to divide and conquer getting multiple siblings to whatever they need / want to be at.
Games and competitions one parent goes.
Big things like end of year shows both parents try to go (and even some siblings if they want - though dragged dd2 to a ballet presentation the other week and think she will mutiny any idea of another)

To the op, I do agree it's a good idea to think about costs and if you can continue down the path to not disappoint her. But things do change (if anyone had told me 10 years ago what I spend on kids activities if have thought they were mad).
But gymnastics doesn't have to be a whole family life changing thing.
I actually find it one of the easiest as training sessions are long so can just get on with normal family life and remember to pick them up!

Luckily most activities are close by for us though which helps. That and a rigid timetable and plan for each afternoon/evening.

 

[profmom]

I didn't say it had to be a 50-50 split of involvement. I said both parents have to be invested. Ideally that translates into some picking up/dropping off/attending things for both parents, because I think the more day-to-day stuff a parent is doing, the easier it is to invest emotionally. My observation is simply that if one parent is completely invested and the other is completely absent, it's less likely to work out well in the long run. Gymnastics in the US is an expensive sport, and it's very sad to see an optional girl or boy have to quit because one of the parents decides s/he doesn't want to foot the bill any more or doesn't understand that the child is getting a lot more out of it than a minimal chance at a scholarship. It's definitely something to think about for people who are just starting down this road and making that first round of decisions about who's going to drive to and from practice, write the checks, and order the leotards.

For my part, I am very glad that my sons have their dad as a role model should they decide to become fathers themselves someday, because I think they'll be a little more likely to be the guys who ask their bosses to leave work a little early to pick up their little ones or go to the big game. I just think that for my guys, the way they are wired, that will be more emotionally healthy for them. Who knows, maybe they'll enroll in the first Daddy and Me gym classes! Not trying to pick a fight here or criticize anyone for the choices that work for their families and situations, but I very much treasure our gym's collection of gym dads. I'm especially glad for those girls whose parents divorced since they started on team but can still always count on having the non-custodial parent taking full responsibility for some gym stuff and being there screaming their fool heads off at meets. It very nearly broke my heart a few years ago when one of DS's teammates was desperately hoping that his (divorced and repartnered) dad would finally come to a meet but his mom had to tell him just before warmups that she'd gotten a text from him that he couldn't make it. We all had to cheer a little bit louder for him that day.

 

[B.Gold]

My observation is simply that if one parent is completely invested and the other is completely absent, it's less likely to work out well in the long run. Gymnastics in the US is an expensive sport, and it's very sad to see an optional girl or boy have to quit because one of the parents decides s/he doesn't want to foot the bill any more or doesn't understand that the child is getting a lot more out of it than a minimal chance at a scholarship.

I know how lucky I am my husband and I see eye-to-eye spending our discretionary income this way, and how blessed I am to have found a partner who values these experiences for the children as much as I do.
Quick tally of our expenses for this month for activities alone....$1,558. Nothing unique about this month either. That's a lot of money, and it alters a family's lifestyle. If both partners aren't willing to make the same sacrifice...you're gonna' have issues. My opinion is a strong partnership is key. It has been in my situation at least.

 

[JustDucky]

I hope I'm not butting into this thread -- I'm new too! -- but I have a question for those of you who talk about doing gym drop-offs and gym pick-ups. At what age did you drop off your child at the gym without staying the whole time? My son is 4 (just started the 1x/week pre-team for the littlest kids on the team track) and I can't imagine just dropping him and leaving him at gym. He goes to school so it's not as though I generally have a problem with dropping him off places, but for some reason it seems different at gym.