May 19, 2011

DOUBLE-HEADER FRIDAY: Community Ed!

Posted by Ethne~

KD and Easy Mac have loads of energy – I can’t even harness it.  They play all day at daycare, then still have more at home.  Speaking of harness, two notes:  First, I have harnesses and I use them; Second, if their energy could be harnessed, we wouldn’t need foreign oil or offshore drilling.  Seriously, they exhaust me.  In a good way.  Most of the time.

A brief pause for hugs - brief.

So Shaun, Thrifty Nana, Grandma D and I are always looking for activities to burn the energy of two three-year-olds.  Grandma D and I take the girls shopping, but that hasn’t been as successful of late because they run around like Tazmanian Devils.  Running around in the grandparents’ yards is more their speed right now.

Digging in dirt is good!

Shaun and I take the girls out on their bikes, but they haven’t gotten the hang of pedaling and steering well enough to go too far.  Walks are rather dangerous because they run without looking both ways – no matter how many times we remind them.

Then Thrifty Nana had an idea – Community Ed!  We get the brochure every season for the latest activities, and finally decided to enroll them.  First, swimming lessons.

KD hanging on to Shaun like a spider monkey - no swimming today!

There were four swimming lessons at a local school pool.  It was the parent-child class – TN, Shaun and I all took turns going in the water with them.  The pool wasn’t toasty warm, but it wasn’t an ice plunge either.  It cost $45 per parent/child.  Not too bad for four lessons – considering it’s over $100 per child for swimming lessons at the local YMCA.

Easy Mac getting her swim on!

The girls were a little unsure for their first lesson, and KD wanted nothing to do with the second lesson.  But then we got to wear life jackets and jump off the diving board.  It seemed that they got their confidence in those life jackets.

Easy Mac taking the plunge!

For the last class, we couldn’t keep them out of the water – or rather, we couldn’t get them to stop jumping in again and again and again and again and again.  It was really cute.  And they passed on to the parent-free classes!

Yeah!  No fear Easy Mac!
No life jacket needed!  Parental supervision - yes.
Success!  Look at that sweet KD.

The next class we tried was dance – and thankfully it was only $25.00 per child – the girls couldn’t have cared less.  They ran around talking to the watching parents, distracted the other children, and one time KD sat in the corner of the gym appearing to talk to the exit door.  I have no explanation and I don’t even have pictures from any of it.  I think they need a little more one-on-one for something like this.  I’d be TICKED if I’d have enrolled the girls in private dance studio lessons – they cost a ton and my girls wouldn’t have cared at all!

The THRIFTY bottom line, Friends, is Community Ed is a great way to get your kids into some activities – and to try out several different classes and find out what their likes and dislikes are.  Community Ed classes are pretty reasonable and are ACROSS THE BOARD cheaper than private or studio lessons.

Check it out – it’s a great WOM idea!

1 comment:

WOM-MOMS said...

I also like to take advantage of the library reading programs--they are great and of course FREE!

Lori