Parents When is it time to call it quits?

[gym law mom]

Ok, on the drive issue--are there other gyms that are closer? Any programs that she might like to do that are competitive gymnastics, but closer to home. Have you checked into carpools for this current gym?

As for moving up each year--that rarely happens. What if she does move to L6 this year and then doesn't move up next year? Would you consider pulling her out then? If your dd feels that she has to progress at a certain rate to make the drive and time away from home justified, she'll put alot of pressure on herself which will end up in a very unhappy girl and stressed family.
I think you have to be honest with yourself as to what you feel you can sacrafice in terms of time away from family for anything whether its gymnastics, dance, soccer.....................
Your dd is at an age where the socialization does come into play and they can have problems dealing with each other. That is all pretty normal and unless she is miserable about how some of the girls treat her and the coaches let bad behavior go unchecked, not much to do at this age except ride it out.

 

[Trixiebelle]

This is a tricky one. There have been many times over the years I had wished DD would quit. Up until last year, she would still do another activity (horseback riding) but when the gym added hours to her L5 and then L6 teams, it was all we could focus on. The one thing I have going for us is that the gyms is 7 minutes from our house and I have another parent I carpool with. So from a purely parenting side, I totally get where you are coming from. There is anothe gym in our area that rumor has it is a "better" gym and DD has begged to check it out. I won't even consider it at this stage as it is way too much of a committment from our family. It is 40 minutes away and I would have to stay for each practice. I don't think I could do that and not resent the sport a little.

Like so many here, DD loves this sport and she is still young (just turned 11 last week) I am anticipating the burn out. She is already experiencing her first (and serious) injury. She has expressed interest in playing softball next spring and I have already emailed the league so we know when sign ups are.

To summarize, I think you should talke to the coaches and be very frank about your concerns. And I would certainly see if DD is receptive to other sports. Just because she loves gymnastics doesn't mean she won't really love trying softball!! Oh and can you find a parent to car pool with...